Igor Oistrakh Was Born in 1931

Soviet violinist Igor Oistrakh was born on this day in 1931.

Born in Odessa to a Jewish family, Igor was the son of Tamara Rotareva and the celebrated violinist David Oistrakh. His musical journey commenced at age 6 under the guidance of Valeria Merenbloom, although his father was his primary mentor.

Enrolling at the Central Music School in Moscow at 12 years of age, he continued his violin studies with esteemed pedagogue Pyotr Stolyarsky, who had also taught his father and Nathan Milstein.

Igor's concert debut was in 1948, and a year later he won the International Violin Competition in Budapest before enrolling at the Moscow State Tchaikovsky Conservatory. He also won Henryk Wieniawski Violin Competition in 1952, and graduated from the Moscow Conservatory in 1955.

He later became a faculty member at the Conservatory in 1958, initially assisting his father, and then assumed the role of lecturer in 1965. From 1996, Oistrakh served as a Professor at the Royal Conservatory in Brussels.

Igor's wife, Natalya Zertsalova, a pianist, often joined him in performances, and their son Valery Oistrakh also pursued a career as a violist.

Igor’s other honours included being appointed the president of the Russian section of the European String Teachers Association, and in Belgium that of the César Franck Foundation as well as an honorary membership of the Ysaÿe Foundation. A jury member of various international violin competitions, he chaired the Tchaikovsky competition in 1978.

Igor Oistrakh passed away on August 14, 2021, at the age of 90.

IGOR OISTRAKH & NATALIA ZERTSÁLOVA  | PAGANINI | LA CAMPANELLA