ON THIS DAY | American Cellist Gregor Piatigorsky Died in 1976

Legendary pedagogue Ivan Galamian once described him as "the greatest string player of all time"

Russian-born American cellist Gregor Piatigorsky died on this day in 1976, aged 73.

Before leaving to pursue a wildly successful solo career, Piatigorsky served principal cello positions at the Bolshoi Opera Orchestra, Warsaw Symphony, and Berlin Philharmonic. He was also a member of the Beethoven String Quartet.

A student of Alfred von Glehn and Anatoliy Brandukov, Piatigorsky served coveted teaching positions at the Curtis Institute of Music and the University of Southern California.

GREGOR PIATIGORSKY & RALPH BERKOWITZ | SCHUBERT | THEME AND VARIATIONS