Matt Haimovitz facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Matt Haimovitz
מאט חיימוביץ
Matt Haimovitz photographed in Montréal, Quebec, Canada at the MBAM Bourgie Hall., 2017
Born	December 3, 1970 Bat-Yam, Israel
Education	Juilliard School, Harvard University
Occupation	Cellist
Years active	1984 - present
Employer	Oxingale Productions, Inc; McGill University Schulich School of Music; Mannes New School of Music

Matt Haimovitz is a famous cellist who lives in the United States and Canada. He was born in Israel on December 3, 1970. When he was five years old, his family moved to the US, where he grew up. Matt Haimovitz often plays a special cello made in 1710 by a craftsman named Matteo Goffriller.

Matt Haimovitz's Early Life and Music Journey

Starting Cello Lessons

Matt Haimovitz was born in Bat Yam, Israel. His parents, Meir and Marlena Haimovitz, were Jewish and had moved to Israel from Romania. When Matt was five, his family moved to Palo Alto, California.

He started learning to play the cello at age seven with a teacher named Irene Sharp. Two years later, he began studying with Gábor Reitő.

Discovering a Young Talent

When Matt was twelve, a famous violinist named Itzhak Perlman heard him play at a music camp. Perlman was very impressed and introduced Matt to another great cellist, Leonard Rose. To study with Rose at the famous Juilliard School in New York, Matt's family moved to New York in 1983.

Leonard Rose thought Matt was an amazing talent. He praised Matt's "beautiful tone" and his "unusual sense of style."

Early Success and Awards

In 1985, Matt Haimovitz performed with Zubin Mehta and the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra. This concert was even filmed and shown on TV! The next year, he toured America with the same orchestra and played with the New York Philharmonic.

In 1986, Matt received the Avery Fisher Career Grant. This award is given to very talented young musicians. Matt was the youngest person ever to receive it. Over the next ten years, he played with many major orchestras around the world. In 1987, when he was just 17, he signed a special recording contract. His recordings won many international awards.

Matt Haimovitz's Unique Career Path

Exploring New Music and Venues

After finishing college at Harvard College in 1996, Matt Haimovitz decided to try something different. He wasn't happy with the usual way classical musicians performed. He started exploring new kinds of music, including non-classical pieces. He also began playing concerts in unusual places.

In 2002, he went on a tour across North America. He played Bach's cello suites in places like night clubs and restaurants. This was very different from traditional concert halls and got a lot of attention! In 2003, he did another tour called Anthem. He played American songs, including his version of Jimi Hendrix's famous "The Star-Spangled Banner."

Starting His Own Record Label

In 2000, Matt Haimovitz started his own record label called Oxingale. He created it with composer Luna Pearl Woolf. Through Oxingale, he released his own music and music by other artists. In 2010, Oxingale also started publishing music.

One of his albums, "Shuffle. Play.Listen," released in 2011 with pianist Christopher O'Riley, was praised for mixing different types of music. It included film scores, classical pieces, and even music from the band Cocteau Twins. The idea was to "blast away at any and all categories," meaning to break down musical boundaries.

Teaching and Recent Projects

Matt Haimovitz has also shared his knowledge with others. From 1999 to 2004, he taught at the University of Massachusetts. Since 2004, he has been a teacher at the Schulich School of Music at McGill University in Montreal, Canada. He also teaches at the Domaine Forget academy in rural Quebec.

In June 2013, Matt Haimovitz toured Italy with the Palo Alto Chamber Orchestra. He also recorded Philip Glass' Cello Concerto No. 2 with the Cincinnati Symphony. This concerto was a new version of the music from the film Naqoyqatsi.

Since 2015, Oxingale has teamed up with the PENTATONE record label. They formed the PENTATONE Oxingale Series, which re-releases old albums and produces new ones. In 2015, Matt Haimovitz released two recordings on PENTATONE using older, period instruments. One was of Ludwig van Beethoven's cello sonatas, and the other was a second recording of Bach's cello suites.

Discography

Matt Haimovitz has released many albums throughout his career. Here are some of them:

See also

In Spanish: Matt Haimovitz para niños