Inside the Notes sat down with violinist Noah Bendix-Balgley for an enlightening discussion. We covered many aspects of a musician’s experience; from the importance of early technique, to the brave endeavor of risking perfection for a connection. Noah is involved in many projects, ranging from his position, first concertmaster of the Berlin Philharmonic, to Philharmonix, solo concerto performances and chamber festivals- he is constantly improving and stretching his musical expression.
Since becoming a Laureate of the 2009 Queen Elisabeth Competition in Brussels and gathering top prizes at further international competitions, Noah has appeared as a soloist with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, the Orchestre National de Belgique, the Utah Symphony, the Auckland Philharmonia, and the Nagoya Philharmonic.
In 2016, Noah performed the world premiere of his own klezmer violin concerto, Fidl-Fantazye with the Pittsburgh Symphony, conducted by Manfred Honeck. Recent and forthcoming highlights include his concerto debut with the Berliner Philharmoniker in January 2018, recital tours in Taiwan, China, and Europe and performances of his klezmer concerto with orchestras in the USA and with the China Philharmonic, as well as his period instrument debut, performing the Beethoven Violin Concerto with the Apollo’s Fire Orchestra in Cleveland.
From 2011 until 2015, Noah was Concertmaster of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. His Pittsburgh debut recital in January 2012 was named the “Best Classical Concert of 2012” by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Noah also performed his own version of “The Star-Spangled Banner” for solo violin in front of 39,000 fans at the 2013 Pittsburgh Pirates Opening Day at PNC Park.
Noah is a passionate and experienced chamber musician. He currently performs as a member of the multigenre septet Philharmonix, which features members of both the Berlin and Vienna Philharmonic orchestras and will release their new Deutsche Grammophon album in early 2018. Noah performs in a piano trio with cellist Peter Wiley and pianist Robert Levin. Noah appears regularly at music festivals in Europe, North America, and Asia, including the Aspen Festival, Seattle Chamber Music Society, the Sarasota Festival, ChamberFest Cleveland, Domaine Forget, the Zermatt Festival and the Le Pont Festival in Japan.
Born in Asheville, North Carolina, Noah began playing violin at age 4. At age 9, he played for Lord Yehudi Menuhin in Switzerland. Noah graduated from the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music and the Munich Hochschule. His principal teachers were Mauricio Fuks, Christoph Poppen, and Ana Chumachenco.
In his spare time, he enjoys playing klezmer music. He has played with world-renowned klezmer groups such as Brave Old World, and has taught klezmer violin at workshops in Europe and in the United States.
Noah Bendix- Balgley performs on a Cremonese violin made in 1732 by Carlo Bergonzi.
This solo in Ein Heldenleben is what Noah Bendix-Balgley discusses in the podcast, referring to his journey to the Berlin Philharmonic.