Alexander Velinzon Named First Associate Concertmaster of Boston Symphony

August 28, 2024, 1:16 PM · Longtime Boston Symphony Orchestra violinist Alexander Velinzon has been promoted to First Associate Concertmaster and Boston Pops concertmaster, effective immediately, the BSO announced on Tuesday.

Violinist Alexander Velinzon. Photo by Robert Torres.

Velinzon became a member of the Boston Symphony in 2000 and has steadily risen through the ranks, being promoted to assistant concertmaster in 2005 and then to associate concertmaster in 2015.

During the search that ultimately resulted in the appointment of violinist Nathan Cole as BSO concertmaster earlier this summer, Velinzon often occupied the concertmaster’s chair in BSO and Pops concerts and was violinist with the Boston Symphony Chamber Players.

The BSO' Music Director Andris Nelsons said that "we are thrilled to promote Alexander Velinzon to the role of first associate concertmaster. Over the past decade that I have had the privilege of working with 'Sasha,' the orchestra and I have been delighted to share in his musicality, professionalism, and collegiality, and I look forward to working closely with him and Nathan Cole as our first violin section begins an exciting new chapter this season."

BSO Concertmaster Nathan Cole and First Associate Concertmaster Alexander Velinzon. Photo by Hilary Scott.

"As I look forward to my first season with the BSO, I couldn’t ask for a better stand partner than Alexander," Cole said. "His wisdom and experience from leading the violin section will be invaluable to me as I get to know my new colleagues, and his playing and dedication are at the highest level. I’m so glad that we’ll get to continue the musical partnership we started during my first weeks with the Symphony."

A native of St. Petersburg, Russia, Velinzon began playing the violin at the age of six and graduated from the Leningrad School for Gifted Children. He continued his studies in the United States at the Manhattan School of Music, earning his bachelor's and master's degrees from the Juilliard School, studying with Dorothy DeLay. He made his New York recital debut at Carnegie Hall's Weill Recital Hall as a winner of the Artist International Young Artists Auditions. A prizewinner in the Heida Hermann International Competition in the United States and finalist of the Tibor Varga International Competition in Switzerland, he has performed as soloist with the National Symphony of Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic and in Venezuela. He made his New York soloist debut with the Jupiter Symphony playing Paganini’s Concerto No. 1 and served as soloist and concertmaster for the Paul Taylor Dance Company at New York's City Center. Velinzon's other solo engagements in the United States have included appearances with the Seattle Symphony, Cascade Symphony Orchestra, Rondo Chamber Orchestra, Absolute Ensemble, Chappaqua Symphony, and Metamorphoses Orchestra.

"I'm thrilled to be appointed to this new position by Maestro Nelsons," Velinzon said. "It has been an absolute honor to make music with him and my extraordinary BSO colleagues for so many years. I'm very much looking forward to many years of collaboration with our new Concertmaster Nathan Cole."

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Alexander Velinzon Named First Associate Concertmaster of Boston Symphony

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