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Inspiration from the Life of Yehudi Menuhin

2017-05-10T13:09:58.0Z

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Inspiration from the Life of Yehudi Menuhin

 

Yehudi Menuhin was a violinist and a conductor. He lived from 1916 to 1999 and he is considered one of the greatest 20th-century violinists. Yehudi spent most of his performing years in Britain. He started playing the violin at a young age and he made his first public performance when he was seven years old. During WWII, Yehudi used to perform for the allied soldiers. Argentine violinist Alberto Lysy was his personal student.

 

Louis Persinger Would Not Train Him

At age four, Yehudi’s parents wanted Louis Persinger to train their son, but Persinger turned down their request. Yehudi forged ahead. Sigmund Anker became his trainer. Yehudi proved to be a fast learner. In fact, he managed to make his first public performance as a solo violinist at age seven. Seeing his incredible talent, Persinger finally accepted to train Yehudi and even accompanied him for his first few solo recordings.

 

Yehudi Did Not Like the Training He Received From Eugene Ysaye

When his family moved to Paris, Persinger suggested that Yehudi should be trained by his former teacher Eugene Ysaye. Ysaye was a virtuoso and a pedagogue. However, after the first lesson, Menuhin felt that the trainer was old. Moreover, he disliked his teaching methods. He quit his training and opted for George Enescu, a Romanian composer, and violinist. Under his training, Menuhin was able to make several recordings with several pianists one of who was his sister Hephzibah.

 

Yehudi Received Praise and Condemnation for Some of His Actions

Wilhelm Furtwangler was a German conductor who had received international criticism for conducting in Germany during the reign of the Nazi’s. Yehudi interacted with him despite this criticism. He looked past the critics and said that the conductor, in fact, helped several Jewish musicians to free Nazi Germany where they were being persecuted. Yehudi also managed to start several music schools and received a lot of honor from different notable people including Malcolm Williamson, an Australian composer who wrote a violin concerto for Yehudi.

 

Inspiration from the Life of Yehudi Menuhin

At times, people will reject without sufficient reason for doing so. Instead of brooding over the rejection, move on and show them what you can do. Persinger refused to train Yehudi because he thought he was too young, but later, he felt impressed by Yehudi’s talent. Additionally, you have the freedom to walk if you come across anything or anyone that makes you feel uneasy. After Yehudi had left for Paris, he rejected Eugene Ysaye as his trainer because he did not like his teaching style.

 

Keep reading: “Why learn scales on violin?”>>

Read on: “5 Ways to Sneak Violin Practice into Your Busy Schedule”>>


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The post Inspiration from the Life of Yehudi Menuhin appeared first on Willan Academy Of Music.

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