Kim Kashkashian , internationally recognized as a unique voice on the viola, was born of Armenian parents in Michigan.
Major influences during her studies were Walter Trampler and Karen Tuttle at the Peabody in Baltimore, and at the Marlboro Music Festival where she worked intensively with Felix Galimir.
Ms. Kashkashian first gained international recognition as recipient of the Pro Musicis award, and as a prize winner in the Tertis and ARD Munich International Competitions , which led to a creative assosiation with the Lockenhaus Festival led by Gidon Kremer.
Kim Kashkashian has appeared as soloist with the major orchestras of Chicago, Cleveland ,Berlin, Milan , London, Tokyo and Vienna ,working with conductors including Nikolaus Harnoncourt, Zubin Mehta, Riccardo Muti, Christoph Eschenbach, Ricardo Chailly,Dennis Russell Davies and Franz Welser-Möst.
Her recital appearances include the great concert halls of Vienna, Rome, Paris, Berlin, New York, Boston, San Francisco, Cleveland, Philadelphia, and London with her duo partners Robert Levin and Robyn Schulkowsky.
Kim Kashkashian’s quest for new directions and forms of music making is an active element of her musical life. Her work with the composers György Kurtág, Giya Kancheli, Krzysztof Penderecki, Ken Ueno, Betty Olivero Tigran Mansurian and Peter Eötvös has extensively enriched the repertoire for viola.
Ms. Kashkashian has collaborated with the Tokyo, Guarneri and Orion quartets and toured with a unique quartet which included Daniel Phillips, Gidon Kremer and Yo Yo Ma. She is a frequent participant at the Ravinia, Marlboro, Salzburg and Verbier Festivals.
After early recordings of Mozart’s Sinfonia Concertante and Divertimento with DGG and Sony, a long term relationship with ECM Records has created an extensive discography which includes the award winning Brahms sonatas, the complete Hindemith sonatas, the concertos of Bartók, Eötvös, Kurtág, Berio, Kancheli , Olivero and Mansurian, and Asturiana, songs from Spain and Argentina.
Kim Kashkashian resides in Boston with her daughter, and holds a position teaching viola and chamber music at the New England Conservatory of Music.
