1908–74

Ukrainian violinist, b. Odessa. Encouraged by his father, an amateur violinist, he began to study his instrument at the age of five. He graduated from the Odessa conservatory in 1926 and launched a brilliant concert career. In the late 1930s he was appointed professor at the Moscow conservatory and won the Stalin Prize. His concert tours in Europe and in America (after 1955) and his celebrated recordings of works by Brahms, Beethoven, Tchaikovsky, and the modern Soviet composers met with great success. Oistrakh was internationally esteemed as one of the towering violinists of his day. His son and pupil, Igor Oistrakh,. 1931–, is a virtuoso violinist.