Alexander Velinzon has been a member of the orchestra since 2000, and also assumes the role of Boston Pops concertmaster

10.5.23 Alexander Velinzon after tuning the BSO (Robert Torres)

Photo: Robert Torres

Alexander Velinzon with the BSO

Read more news stories here

The Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO) has announced the appointment of violinist Alexander Velinzon as its new first associate concertmaster, holding the Helen Horner McIntyre chair, and its new Boston Pops concertmaster. Velinzon joined the BSO in 2000 under music director Seiji Ozawa, becoming the assistant concertmaster in 2005 and the associate concertmaster in 2015.

‘We are thrilled to promote Alexander Velinzon to the role of first associate concertmaster,’ said BSO music director Andris Nelsons. ‘Over the past decade that I have had the privilege of working with “Sasha”, the orchestra and I have been delighted to share in his musicality, professionalism, and collegiality, and I look forward to working closely with him and Nathan Cole as our first violin section begins an exciting new chapter this season.’

Velinzon was born in Russia and has studied at institutions including the Leningrad School for Gifted Children, the Manhattan School of Music, and the Juilliard School, studying under renowned violin pedagogue Dorothy DeLay. He has been a prizewinner at the Artist International Artists Auditions and the Heida Hermann International Competition, and a finalist in the Tibor Varga International Competition.

As a soloist, Velinzon has performed with ensembles including the Jupiter Symphony, Cascade Symphony and Metamorphoses orchestras; as a chamber musician with the Boston Symphony Chamber Players and the Seattle Chamber Music Society; and as an orchestral musician with the London Philharmonic, the Seattle Symphony, Seoul Philharmonic, and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, among others.

‘I’m thrilled to be appointed to this new position by Maestro Nelsons,’ said Velinzon. ‘It has been an absolute honour to make music with him and my extraordinary BSO colleagues for so many years. I’m very much looking forward to many years of collaboration with our new concertmaster Nathan Cole.’

Best of Technique

In The Best of Technique you’ll discover the top playing tips of the world’s leading string players and teachers. It’s packed full of exercises for students, plus examples from the standard repertoire to show you how to integrate the technique into your playing.

Masterclass

The Strad’s Masterclass series brings together the finest string players with some of the greatest string works ever written. Always one of our most popular sections, Masterclass has been an invaluable aid to aspiring soloists, chamber musicians and string teachers since the 1990s.

Calendars

American collector David L. Fulton amassed one of the 20th century’s finest collections of stringed instruments. This year’s calendar pays tribute to some of these priceless treasures, including Yehudi Menuhin’s celebrated ‘Lord Wilton’ Guarneri, the Carlo Bergonzi once played by Fritz Kreisler, and four instruments by Antonio Stradivari.