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He was appointed Associate Concertmaster of the Atlanta Symphony when he was just 23 years old, and during his tenure there he also achieved distinction as a solo player — winning the Certificate of Honor at Moscow’s International Tchaikovsky Competition and becoming a laureate of the Montréal International Music Competition.
A five-year stint as Associate Concertmaster of the Cleveland Orchestra followed, after which Chalifour was appointed to his current position in Los Angeles.
Beginning his tenure in 1995, he played under just two Music Directors, Esa-Pekka Salonen and Gustavo Dudamel.
Chalifour has played more than 50 different concerti as soloist, with the LA Phil, Montréal Symphony Orchestra, the Queensland Symphony Orchestra (Brisbane, Australia), the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra, the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra, and with the Sarasota Music Festival and Mainly Mozart Festival in San Diego.
He teaches students at home in Québec, as well as at the University of Southern California's Thornton School of Music.
"It has been the honor of a lifetime to serve as Principal Concertmaster of the LA Phil, performing orchestral works and chamber music with some of the greatest artists in the world," Chalifour said.
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Martin Chalifour
Chalifour received a Certificate of Honor at the Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow and is also a laureate of the prestigious Montreal International Competition.
Chalifour received a Certificate of Honor at the Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow, and is also a laureate of the Montreal International Competition. He received a Certificate of Honour at Moscow’s International Tchaikovsky Competition and became a laureate of the Montreal International Music Competition.
Prior to joining the LA Phil, Chalifour served as associate concertmaster of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, which he was appointed at the age of 23, and subsequently associate concertmaster of the Cleveland Orchestra for five years.
Chalifour began his orchestral career with the late Robert Shaw and the Atlanta Symphony, playing as Associate Concertmaster for six years.
"While much has changed over these past three decades, the orchestra has kept its passion for making music, and its ambition to keep rising to higher and higher artistic levels."
"It has been an honor and a privilege to have Martin Chalifour as Principal Concertmaster for my entire tenure at the LA Phil," said GustavoDudamel, the orchestra's Music and Artistic Director.
Chalifour has appeared as soloist with conductors Pierre Boulez, Gustavo Dudamel, Charles Dutoit, Christoph Eschenbach, Sir Neville Marriner, and Esa-Pekka Salonen. It’s packed full of exercises for students, plus examples from the standard repertoire to show you how to integrate the technique into your playing.
Teaching
The Strad’s Masterclass series brings together the finest string players with some of the greatest string works ever written.
Chalifour is a frequent guest at several summer music festivals, including the Sarasota Festival, the Pacific Music Festival in Japan, and the Mainly Mozart Festival. Chalifour began his tenure as Principal Concertmaster of the Los Angeles Philharmonic in 1995.The recipient of various grants and awards in his native Canada, he graduated with honors from the Montreal Conservatory at the age of 18 and then moved to Philadelphia to pursue studies at the Curtis Institute of Music.
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While in Cleveland, Chalifour taught at the Cleveland Institute of Music and was a founding member of the Cleveland Orchestra Piano Trio.
Chalifour is a frequent guest at summer music festivals, including the Mainly Mozart Festival and the Ottawa Chamber Music Festival.
Maintaining close ties with his native country, he has returned there often to teach and perform as soloist with various Canadian orchestras, most recently in Vancouver and in Hamilton.
Chalifour has recorded solo and chamber music for the Telarc, Northstar, and Yarlung labels.
Always one of our most popular sections, Masterclass has been an invaluable aid to aspiring soloists, chamber musicians and string teachers since the 1990s.
Calendars
The Canada Council of the Arts’ Musical Instrument Bank is 40 years old in 2025. Chalifour was also the first musician to play any notes in the newly built Walt Disney Concert Hall in 2003.
As an educator, Chalifour teaches at Caltech and the University of Southern California’s Thornton School of Music.
Playing
In The Best of Technique you’ll discover the top playing tips of the world’s leading string players and teachers.
I am so grateful to have one more season with Martin by my side, and wish him all the happiness in the world as he enters this next chapter."
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The Los Angeles Philharmonic Association has announced the retirement of its principal concertmaster Martin Chalifour at the end of the 2024/25 season.
Chalifour, who holds the Marjorie Connel Wilson chair, will have served in the position for 30 years, and will be the longest-serving principal concertmaster in the orchestra’s history.
’It has been the honour of a lifetime to serve as principal concertmaster of the LA Phil, performing orchestral works and chamber music with some of the greatest artists in the world,’ Chalifour said in a statement.
’While much has changed over these past three decades, the orchestra has kept its passion for making music, and its ambition to keep rising to higher and higher artistic levels.’
LA Phil music and artistic director Gustavo Dudamel said: ’It has been an honour and a privilege to have Martin Chalifour as principal concertmaster for my entire tenure at the LA Phil.
Maintaining close ties with his native country, he has returned there often to teach and perform as soloist with various Canadian orchestras, most recently with the Vancouver Symphony and Barmwell Tovey.
Los Angeles Philharmonic Concertmaster to Retire After 30 Years
The Los Angeles Philharmonic has announced that its concertmaster, Canadian violinist Martin Chalifour, will retire from his post at the end of the 2024/25 season — bringing a remarkable 30-year tenure to a close.
In celebration of his work, Chalifour will curate a special chamber music concert in November 2024, and appear as a soloist in two concerti: Vivaldi's Four Seasons (April 2025) and Vaughan Williams's The Lark Ascending (July 2025).
Hailing originally from Quebec, Chalifour studied at the Montréal Conservatory and the Curtis Institute of Music.
He sets the example for the orchestra each day with his skill, taste, knowledge, consistency, and deep love of the music.
’I am so grateful to have one more season with Martin by my side, and wish him all the happiness in the world as he enters this next chapter.’
The LA Phil’s 2024/25 season will include special concerts and concerto appearances to celebrate Chalifour’s tenure, such as performances of Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons in April 2025 and Vaughan Williams’s The Lark Ascending at the Hollywood Bowl in July 2025 with Chalifour as soloist.
Chalifour is a native of Quebec and is a graduate of the Montreal Conservatory and the Curtis Institute of Music.
Chalifour has appeared as soloist with conductors Pierre Boulez, Gustavo Dudamel, Charles Dutoit, Christoph Eschenbach, Neville Marriner, and Esa-Pekka Salonen.
Additionally, he was offered two concertmaster positions in France and Switzerland before joining the LA Phil in 1995.
Chalifour has maintained a prolific career as a soloist, performing a diverse repertoire of more than 60 concertos and appearing with conductors including Pierre Boulez, Charles Dutoit, Christoph Eschenbach, Alan Gilbert, Neville Marriner, Franz Welser-Möst, Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos and Esa-Pekka Salonen.
Chalifour has recorded solo and chamber music for the Telarc, Northstar, and Yarlung labels, including the albums Martin Chalifour: In Walt Disney Concert Hall (2009) and Martin Chalifour and the Los Angeles Philharmonic in Walt Disney Concert Hall (2011).
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