James Oliver Buswell IV (December 4, 1946 – September 28, 2021) was an American violinist, chamber musician, conductor and educator.

Biography

Buswell learned violin at age five. His solo debut took place with the

New York Philharmonic The New York Philharmonic, officially the Philharmonic-Symphony Society of New York, Inc., globally known as New York Philharmonic Orchestra (NYPO) or New York Philharmonic-Symphony Orchestra, is a symphony orchestra based in New York City. It is ...

at the age of seven. When he was 18, he appeared as soloist on one of the New York Philharmonic's

Young People's Concerts The Young People's Concerts with the New York Philharmonic are the longest-running series of family concerts of classical music in the world. Genesis They began in 1924 under the direction of "Uncle" Ernest Schelling. Earlier Family Matinees had ...

performing

Mendelssohn Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), born and widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions include sym ...

's Violin Concerto in E minor with

Leonard Bernstein Leonard Bernstein ( ; August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, pianist, music educator, author, and humanitarian. Considered to be one of the most important conductors of his time, he was the first America ...

conducting. This performance was televised and shown throughout the United States. He later studied with

Mary Canberg Mary Canberg (1918 – 15 June 2004) was an American violinist, conductor, and music educator. Canberg was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan. She studied with Michael Press and Hans Letz at the Juilliard School in New York City and made her pro ...

Paul Stassevich Paul may refer to: *Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) * Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity *Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chri ...

, and

Ivan Galamian Ivan Alexander Galamian ( hy, Իվան Ղալամեան; April 14, 1981) was an Armenian-American violin teacher of the twentieth century who was the violin teacher of many seminal violin players including Itzhak Perlman. Biography Galamian w ...

at the

Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most ...

and was a graduate of

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of high ...

. He was also a Grammy nominated recording artist for the

Barber Violin Concerto The ''Barber Violin Concerto'' is a ballet made by New York City Ballet ballet master in chief Peter Martins to Samuel Barber's Violin Concerto, Op. 14 (1939). The premiere was conducted by Robert Irving and took place on 12 May 1988 at the ...

with the

Royal Scottish National Orchestra The Royal Scottish National Orchestra (RSNO) ( gd, Orcastra Nàiseanta Rìoghail na h-Alba) is a British orchestra, based in Glasgow, Scotland. It is one of the five national performing arts companies of Scotland. Throughout its history, the Or ...

. Buswell was on the faculties of University of Arizona,

Indiana University School of Music The Indiana University Jacobs School of Music in Bloomington, Indiana, is a music conservatory established in 1921. Until 2005, it was known as the Indiana University School of Music. It has more than 1,500 students, approximately half of whom ar ...

(1973–1986) and the

New England Conservatory The New England Conservatory of Music (NEC) is a private music school in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the oldest independent music conservatory in the United States and among the most prestigious in the world. The conservatory is located on ...

(1987–2014). Most recently, he was on the faculty of the

Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development The New York University Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development (commonly referred to as Steinhardt) is the secondary liberal arts and education school of New York University. It is one of the only schools in the world of i ...

at New York University with his wife, cellist Carol Ou. He and his wife had four children (Anna Buswell, William Buswell, Joshua Buswell, and Rachel English) and four grandchildren. James died September 28, 2021, in Boston.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Buswell, James 1946 births 2021 deaths American classical violinists American male classical violinists 21st-century classical violinists 20th-century classical violinists 21st-century American male musicians 20th-century American male musicians Musicians from Fort Wayne, Indiana Juilliard School alumni Harvard University alumni Indiana University Bloomington faculty New England Conservatory faculty Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development faculty Classical musicians from Indiana 20th-century American violinists 21st-century American violinists