Alan de Veritch

Alan de Veritch (born July 18, 1947) is an American violist and viola teacher. He studied with William Primrose and performed in the Los Angeles Philharmonic for at least ten years. He has taught viola in various universities and was the president of the American Viola Society from 1990 to 1994.He played Jago peternella modern italian Viola

Early life and solo career

De Veritch's talent caught the attention of William Primrose when he was twelve after solo appearances with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and Primrose accepted him as a student. While studying with Primrose, his career quickly took flight. At the age of 16, De Veritch tied for first place in the National String Competition in Washington, D.C., the youngest and first violist to receive that honor.^[1] In the spring of 1965, De Veritch was one of three student musicians invited to perform with Jascha Heifetz at the University of Southern California.^[2] Later that year, De Veritch enrolled at the Indiana University School of Music and was featured as a soloist with the University Concert Orchestra in October.^[3] He soloed with the Pasadena Symphony in the Spring of 1966,^[4] and at the Albuquerque June Music Festival.^[5] In 1969, De Veritch was named a winner at the Emma Feldman National String Competition—again the first violist to receive such an honor.^[6] De Veritch was a featured soloist with the Los Angeles Philharmonic 1972^[7] 1975,^[8] and 1976.^[9] De Veritch worked closely with the American Viola Society for many years and was a guest performer at the 1989 XVII International Viola Congress.^[10]

Chamber & orchestra involvement

While maintaining a solo career, De Veritch was also a member of different orchestras throughout his life. He joined the Los Angeles Philharmonic in 1970 as assistant principal violist,^[11] and went on to serve ten years as principal violist under Zubin Mehta and Carlo Maria Giulini. De Veritch has participated extensively in chamber music performances with "greats" including Josef Gingold and Ralph Berkowitz.^[12] He served as the principal violist in the United States Marine Orchestra,^[13] and in 1975 was a member of the Miraflores Trio.^[6] de Veritch has also performed with the New York Philharmonic, Sunset Chamber Consort,^[14] An die Musik, and the Aldanya String Quartet. He was the founder and member of the White House String Quartet.^[8]

Teaching & recording career

De Veritch has taught many of the world's leading violists including Paul Neubauer, James Dunham, and Nokuthula Ngwenyama. He was a member of the string faculty at the University of California for several years,^[15] and acted as the head of the viola department of the California Institute of the Arts,^[6] and taught at Indiana University's Jacobs School of Music until the spring of 2012. He served as the president of the American Viola Society from 1990 to 1994.^[16] He has also recorded for hundreds of motion picture soundtracks, as well as producing his own recordings of standard viola repertoire.^[17] In addition, he authored a book entitled The Art of Sensuality and its Impact on Great String Playing.^[18]

References

1. "Slate Concert Friday With Noted Artists". Valley News. Van Nuys, California. 15 Dec 1964. p. 28. Retrieved April 29, 2016 – via newspapers.com. 
2. "5 'Greats' To Perform Next Sunday". The San Bernardino County Sun. San Bernardino, California. 28 March 1965. p. 75. Retrieved April 29, 2016 – via newspapers.com. 
3. "Famed Cellist Janos Starker Will Conduct IU Orchestra". The Terre Haute Star. Terre Haute, Indiana. 25 Oct 1965. p. 5. Retrieved May 4, 2016 – via newspapers.com. 
4. "Symphony Plans 38th Year". Pasadena Independent. Pasadena, California. 13 August 1965. p. 25. Retrieved May 4, 2016 – via newspapers.com. 
5. "Albuquerque June Music Festival Is Celebrating 25th Anniversary". Albuquerque Journal. Albuquerque, New Mexico. 8 May 1966. p. 21. Retrieved May 4, 2016 – via newspapers.com. 
6. Powell, Libby (21 January 1975). "Museum Concert Sunday Honors Memory of Mavin T. Hamilton". The Daily Mail. Hagerstown, Maryland. p. 6. Retrieved May 4, 2016 – via newspapers.com. 
7. "Mozart, Franck for Philharmonic". The San Bernardino County Sun. San Bernardino, California. 24 February 1972. p. 40. Retrieved May 4, 2016 – via newspapers.com. 
8. "Cellist to Perform in Museum Recital". The Morning Herald. Hagerstown, Maryland. 17 Jan 1975. p. 9. Retrieved May 4, 2016 – via newspapers.com. 
9. "Southland Events: L.A. Philharmonic". Independent. Long Beach, California. 5 November 1976. p. 74. Retrieved May 4, 2016 – via newspapers.com. 
10. "It's String Time at U of R as Viola Congress Opens". The San Bernardino County Sun. San Bernardino, California. 18 June 1989. p. 61. Retrieved May 4, 2016 – via newspapers.com. 
11. "Philharmonic Return Delights". Independent Press-Telegram. Long Beach, California. 14 November 1970. p. 6. Retrieved April 29, 2016 – via newspapers.com. 
12. "Sunset Chamber Consort to Perform at MSAC". Progress Bulletin. Pomona, California. 5 Apr 1974. p. 30. Retrieved May 2, 2016 – via newspapers.com. 
13. Meyer, Constance. "Beyond the Brass Bands". beverlyhillsviolinlessons.com. Retrieved May 4, 2016.
14. "Sunset Chamber Consort to perform at MSAC". Progress Bulletin. Pomona, California. 5 April 1974. p. 30. Retrieved May 4, 2016 – via newspapers.com. 
15. "As Memorial to Mavin T. Hamilton, Young Cellist to play Museum Concert". The Daily Mail. Hagerstown, Maryland. 16 January 1975. p. 26. Retrieved May 4, 2016.
16. . americanviolasociety.org. Archived from the original on December 30, 2015. Retrieved May 4, 2016.
17. de Veritch Institute
18. de Veritch, Alan (2014). The Art of Sensuality and its Impact on Great String Playing. AuthorHouse. ISBN 978-1491860601..

External links

• Alan de Veritch's official website