Jean-Jacques Kantorow (born 3 October 1945) is a French violinist and conductor. His son is the pianist

Alexandre Kantorow Alexandre Kantorow (born 20 May 1997) is a French pianist. Described by ''Gramophone'' as a "fire-breathing virtuoso with a poetic charm" and by ''Fanfare'' as "Liszt reincarnated", he won the first prize, gold medal and Grand Prix at the 16th In ...

Biography

Kantorow was born in

Cannes Cannes ( , , ; oc, Canas) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. The ...

, France, into a family of Russian-Jewish origin. From the age of 13 he studied at the

Paris Conservatoire The Conservatoire de Paris (), also known as the Paris Conservatory, is a college of music and dance founded in 1795. Officially known as the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris (CNSMDP), it is situated in the avenue ...

with René Benedetti, and in 1960 won the first violin prize. In the 1960s he won ten major international prizes, including first prizes in the

Carl Flesch Competition The Carl Flesch International Violin Competition (also known as the International Competition for Violinists "Carl Flesch" and the City of London International Competition for Violin and Viola (Carl Flesch Medal)) was an international music competi ...

(

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

), the (

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian census, the Province of ...

)

Paganini Competition The Paganini Competition (aka Premio Paganini or Paganini Concore) is an international violin competition named after the famed virtuoso and founder of contemporary violin technique Niccolò Paganini. Created in 1954 it has been carried out ever si ...

, and the

Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaking part of Switzerland. Situa ...

International Competition. Since the 1970s he has been noted for his solo performances in a very wide range of repertoire (from

Baroque music Baroque music ( or ) refers to the period or dominant style of Western classical music composed from about 1600 to 1750. The Baroque style followed the Renaissance period, and was followed in turn by the Classical period after a short transit ...

to contemporary), and as a chamber music performer. His recordings have won many awards, including the

Grand Prix du Disque Grand may refer to: People with the name * Grand (surname) * Grand L. Bush (born 1955), American actor * Grand Mixer DXT, American turntablist * Grand Puba (born 1966), American rapper Places * Grand, Oklahoma * Grand, Vosges, village and commun ...

and the Grand Prix de l’Académie Franz Liszt. He held senior positions at the

Strasbourg Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label= Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label= Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the ...

and Rotterdam conservatories and at the

Conservatoire de Paris The Conservatoire de Paris (), also known as the Paris Conservatory, is a college of music and dance founded in 1795. Officially known as the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris (CNSMDP), it is situated in the avenue ...

, until his retirement from conservatoire violin pedagogy. He continues to teach privately and to give master-classes. According to ''Grove Music Online'', "Kantorow has an infallible technique and a beauty of tone which combines the best features of the French and Russian schools." He plays a

Stradivarius A Stradivarius is one of the violins, violas, cellos and other string instruments built by members of the Italian family Stradivari, particularly Antonio Stradivari (Latin: Antonius Stradivarius), during the 17th and 18th centuries. They are c ...

attributed violin, the ‘ex-

Leopold Auer Leopold von Auer ( hu, Auer Lipót; June 7, 1845July 15, 1930) was a Hungarian violinist, academic, conductor, composer, and instructor. Many of his students went on to become prominent concert performers and teachers. Early life and career Au ...

’, dated 1699.Kurzbauer, H. (1988) 'Diverse Interests', ''The Strad'', xcix pp.776–9 In the 1980s he began a separate career as conductor, becoming principal conductor of the Auvergne Chamber Orchestra and later the Ensemble Orchestral de Paris. He has longstanding conducting engagements with other European orchestras, including the

Netherlands Chamber Orchestra The Netherlands Chamber Orchestra (NKO; Dutch, ''Nederlands Kamerorkest'') is a Dutch chamber orchestra based in Amsterdam. The NKO is part of the ''Stichting Nederlands Philharmonisch Orkest'' (Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra Foundation), alon ...

, the

Tapiola Sinfonietta The Tapiola Sinfonietta (founded 1987) is a city orchestra of Espoo, Finland. The orchestra consists of 41 members and its principal concert venue is Tapiola Hall (with 773 seats) at the Espoo Cultural Centre. At the beginning Jorma Panula, Osmo ...

of Finland, the Helsinki Chamber Orchestra, and the

Lausanne Chamber Orchestra The Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne (OCL, Lausanne Chamber Orchestra) is a Swiss chamber orchestra of around 40 musicians based in Lausanne, Switzerland. It has a vast repertoire, from the earliest baroque to contemporary premieres. The founder Vi ...

. From 2004 to 2008 he was principal director of the

Orquesta Ciudad de Granada The Granada City Orchestra (in Spanish: ''Orquesta Ciudad de Granada'', OCG) is a Spanish orchestra based in Granada, Spain. Its primary concert venue is the ''Auditorio Manuel de Falla''. The City of Granada and the provincial council of ...

in Spain. In 2019, his son

won the First Prize and Gold Medal at the

International Tchaikovsky Competition The International Tchaikovsky Competition is a classical music competition held every four years in Moscow and Saint Petersburg, Russia, for pianists, violinists, and cellists between 16 and 32 years of age and singers between 19 and 32 years of ...

piano category.

Selected recordings

* Camille Saint-Sëns, ''Symphony in A major, Symphony n° 1 in E flat major op.2, Symphony n °2 in A minor op.55,'' Organ Symphony n°3 in C minor op.78, Symphony "Urbs Roma" in F, Thierry Escaich, organ, Orchestre Philharmonique Royal de Liège conducted by Jean-Jacques Kantorow. 2 SACD Bis 2021. Diapason d’or

References

External links

* Biography at allmusicbr> Biography at NaxosAgency website
*J-J Kantorow tours Southern Africa, 1975. Photo dedicated to Hans Adler, tour organise

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kantorow, Jean-Jacques 1945 births Living people People from Cannes 20th-century French male classical violinists French male conductors (music) Conservatoire de Paris alumni Paganini Competition prize-winners Long-Thibaud-Crespin Competition prize-winners 21st-century French conductors (music) 21st-century French male classical violinists