Gil Shaham

Does anyone here like Gil Shaham? He is my favorite violinist! And what do you think about his playing?

My children's violin teacher holds up Gil Shaham as an example of the technique, posture, and musicianship they should be aspiring to. Myself, I think his playing is very enjoyable and technically excellent, but I don't hear any of the profundity of an up-and-coming Heifetz or Stern yet. He's young and will acquire more depth as he goes on.

says...

Shaham is somewhere in his late 20's, I think. His Barber/Korngold Concertos disc is a favorite of mine. If I have any reservations about his playing, well... his tone is sort of hard and 'bright;' he needs to temper or soften it a little at times. But what a talent! He has an unnerring sense of the narrative line in a work, which he demonstrates very well on that CD.

I attended his recital this past Sunday in which he played Copland's sonata, Faure's first sonata, Brahms Hungarian dances 2,13,14 and 18 and Sonata #3. Shaham is not a youngster in need of seasoning or maturing, he's there and played with all of the emotional depth of a master. He's a major artist among many living and performing today. He commands a tremendous dynamic range used with taste and very bold and sweet tone as well as the requisite fancy fast fingerwork with the left and fast and fancy work with his bow. Complaints about Shahams playing will boil down to the individual listeners tastes in performance. If you agree with Shahams conception of the music he plays, he's quite a wonderful violinist.