Atar Arad

Israeli-born violist and composer Atar Arad is a faculty member at the Jacobs School of Music, Indiana University, Bloomington. His summer activities include teaching and performing at Keshet Eilon, Israel, Domaine Forget, Canada, Heifetz Institute, caramoor, Norfolk Chamber Music and the Steans Institute, Ravinia Festival (where he is serving as faculty since 1991).

A Cum Laude First Prize winner at the Geneva International Music Competition (1972), he has performed worldwide in recitals and as a soloist with major orchestras and, for seven years, as a member of the celebrated Cleveland Quartet. His recordings with the quartet and as a soloist for labels such as Teldec, Telarc, RCA and RIAX are widely acclaimed. His performance of Paganini’s Sonata Per La Grand’ Viola e Orchestra in particular is considered by many as a landmark in the history of the viola.

A “late bloomer” composer, Arad’s compositions include a Solo Sonata for Viola, two String Quartets, a Viola Concerto (which he premiered in Bloomington, Brussels and in Stockholm) and more. His Tikvah for Viola Solo was commissioned for the 2008 Munich International Viola Competition by the ARD. His Listen (three poems by W.S. Merwin) for tenor, clarinet, viola, cello and bass was written for the International Musicians Seminar’s concert tour in England with singer Mark Padmore. Epitaph for cello and string orchestra was written for cellist Gary Hoffman who premiered it in Kronberg, Germany, with the Kremerata Baltica Orchestra (Arad performed the viola version of this piece at the International Viola Congress in Rochester, NY). Arad performed and presented his set of Twelve Caprices for Viola on several USA, Canada, Israel, England, Germany, France, Spain and Portugal concert tours.

Recent performances include the Primrose Memorial Concert at BYU and a recital played in Toronto as the Lorand Fenyves Distinguished Visitor. Arad’s Tikvah, as well as his set of Caprices, are published by Hofmeister Musikverlag, Leipzig.

In June of 2018, the American Viola Society presented Arad with its Career Achievement Award.

More information as well as some of his essays (published by Strad and Strings magazines) may be found on his website AtarArad.com.