30 FAMOUS VIOLINISTS FROM HISTORY AND TODAY - HISTORY - 2025

There are famous violinists who have stood out among all the others for the quality of the music they have played or that they have been able to compose. Probably the best violinists that have passed through the world is on the list that I will leave you below.

The violin is the smallest instrument in the family of classical strings (which complete the viola, cello and double bass), but in its tiny body it keeps a sharp, powerful sound with a unique charm.

It is estimated that it was created in the seventeenth century, although some say that it was before, but it acquired its final form (which it retains to this day) almost 200 years later.

Since then, the violin has possessed a versatility of sounds that make it the star of any symphony orchestra, where it is the majority instrument with 40 representatives on stage. But other musical styles are also used, from the typical folklore of each country through rock, jazz and even techno music.

During the four centuries that make up its history, the violin underwent some modifications in its composition, the strings are no longer gut and the woods are increasingly sophisticated, but its importance in music remains intact.

Numerous performers stood out by rubbing their strings masterfully and solemnly, leaving a vast legacy of melodies in the ears of the world. We will review here the history of 30 fundamental violinists of all time, from the appearance of the instrument to the present day.

Arcangelo corelli

He is one of the most inspiring violinists in history, thanks to his influence in the crystallization of the concerto grosso, a baroque instrumental form intermediate between a small group of soloists and a full orchestra.

He is known as the father of the violin sonata and was an influence on instrumentalists of his time and throughout history. He is awarded a dozen works for violin, which set a record at the time.

Francesco Mar

Member of a family of musicians, Veracini began to stand out since he was a child for his great technical ability to play the instrument. He composed several dozen works although his most outstanding pieces were for opera.

Antonio Vivaldi

He began his career as instrumentalists thanks to the influence of his father Giovanni Battista Vivaldi, who worked as a violinist. Antonio Vivaldi was a virtuoso of the instrument but later devoted himself to the composition of masterpieces and has a repertoire of more than 500 pieces.

As a violinist, he was one of the most prominent of his time and was distinguished by the complexity of his solo compositions. He achieved fame for The Four Seasons, a work that was rediscovered and revalued almost a century after his death by Johann Sebastian Bach.

Francesco Geminiani

Disciple of Arcangelo Corelli, he was noted for his virtuosity as an instrumentalist but also had a praised career as a composer for works such as his concerti grossi opus 2 and opus 3.

He was an inspiration for subsequent generations thanks to his book "The Art of Playing the Violin", one of the fundamental treatises on the interpretation of that instrument, which was published for the first time in 1730.

He died after the manuscripts on the general history of music were stolen from him.

Jean-Marie Leclair

Known as the Corelli of France, he was one of the great composers of violin works in his country and Europe during the 18th century. Renowned for being the initiator of the French violin school, he composed numerous works and ended up becoming a legend after being murdered in a mysterious event at his home.

Leopold mozart

Father (and great influence) of the famous Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, he is the creator of the "Complete Treatise on Violin Technique", one of the fundamental books in the study of the instrument from its publication to the present day.

He was recognized for the great variety of works he composed, some criticized for their quality, but his versatility for composition earned him a place among the great violinists in history. His detractors accuse him of being a man of unpleasant character and of exploiting his son's talent.

Pierre Gavinies

He surprised the world of music when at the age of 13 he made a masterful duet with Joseph-Barnabé Saint-Sevin on a work by Jean-Marie Leclair.

An adulterous affair with a noble lady of the Court of France landed him in jail for a year. Upon leaving, he resumed his career as a violinist and achieved great success for his ability as an instrumentalist, composer and teacher.

Rodolphe Kreutzer

He inherited his love for the violin from his father and began to excel as an instrumentalist from a very young age. He was only 13 years old when he performed his first concert on his own work.

He ended up gaining relevance for his methods and studies for the violin, and for the sonata that Ludwig van Beethoven dedicated to him. He was one of the most admired violinists of his time, founded the French School of Violin and is credited with being the promoter of the Conservatory's Violin Method.

Niccolò Paganini

Considered one of the most virtuous violinists of all time, he contributed to the development of the modern technique of playing the instrument and composed "24 caprichos del violin", his masterpiece.

Talented and disruptive, he stood out for his capacity for improvisation and was defined as the “violin magician”, for achieving unmatched sounds on the instrument.

Antonio Bazzini (1818 -1897, Italy)

Bazzini's story is a story of transformation, he began his career as an organist in Italy but achieved consecration as a violinist in Germany and France.

He stood out as one of the great violinists of his time for his talent for interpretation, but at age 47 he abandoned the instrument and devoted himself to composition.

Henri Vieuxtemps

Considered the greatest exponent of the violin in his country, he began his career under the guidance of his father and at the age of 7 he made his debut as a concert player, achieving success throughout Europe for his talent.

Already consecrated as an instrumentalist, he began his career as a composer and had to abandon the violin at the age of 53 due to a health problem. I continue composing but without being able to interpret his works.

Henryk Wieniawski (1835 -1880, Poland)

He was one of the most prominent violinist in Poland, his image appeared on banknotes in his country and he was paid a variety of tributes after his death at age 45 for being one of the most valued musicians of the time.

He is credited with having been the creator of vibrato, an undulation of sound to intensify the initial vibration of the string, which served as an element of tonal color on the violin.

Pablo de Sarasate (1844 - 1908, Spain)

Subtle and fast, Sarasate was one of the most outstanding Spanish violinists of his time and of all time. His technical ability to interpret the instrument earned him recognition from his peers, especially for his ability to achieve unique sound without showing too much effort.

This trait also distinguishes him as a composer, whose works stand out for the technical difficulty they represent. Before dying he donated one of his violins to the Madrid Conservatory, for the organization of a musical contest, which today is known as the Pablo Sarasate National Violin Prize.

Eug

His career as a violinist began with the first lessons his father gave him, with whom he admitted "he learned everything he needed about the instrument." When he was of age, he entered the conservatory but was quickly expelled for "not presenting sufficient progress."

Despite this episode, Ysaye continued to perfect herself and Henri Vieuxtemps was her main mentor. Vieuxtemps overheard him play the violin as he passed his house and was surprised by his talent.

This earned him a second chance at the conservatory, from which he graduated, later became a teacher, and after his death he would receive different honors for his career as a soloist.

Fritz kreisler

Owner of a unique style, he gave the violin a new life in modernity by its ability to achieve hitherto unknown sounds. Noted for his vibrato and his use of portamento (transition from one sound to another, without any discontinuity), Kreisler is one of the most recognized violinists of all time.

He was the youngest student at the Vienna National Conservatory, aged 7, and is the composer of two classics of this instrument such as "Liebesleid" and "Liebesfreud".

Joseph Szigeti (1892-1973, Hungary)

Considered a prodigal child of the violin, Szigeti stood out for his analytical capacity about music and his constant search for new melodies.

For him, the four strings were different domains, because not only did they have their own register, but also their own tonal qualities, and from that, he made the violin "speak" with himself and with other instruments.

Those who shared stages with him, highlight his ability to imitate the sounds of other instruments with the violin.

Jascha heifetz

He began his career as a concert player at the age of 6 and is considered one of the great violinists of the 20th century. A Jew by birth, he was the victim of a Semitic attack for performing works by authors identified with Nazism, but for Heifetz, music was only divided into good and bad.

In his 65 years as a player he developed a unique style that still inspires new violinists today. Nicknamed "The King", he was a social activist and is one of the greatest arrangers of classical works for violin.

Nathan milstein

"I started playing the violin not because it appealed to me, but because my mother made me do it," explained Milstein about his beginnings. But over time he fell in love with the instrument and it went down in history for its technical ease, the flexibility of its movements and its tonal perfection.

He believed that anyone could acquire the fundamentals of mechanical technique with enough practice, and stressed that the only truly original thing was in the expression of the sound of each musician.

David Oistrakh (1908 - 1974, Russia)

He was considered the best violinist of the first half of the 20th century, but despite this recognition, it was difficult for him to earn the respect of his peers. With a particular talent for playing any sheet music at high speed at sight, Oistrakh was called the ideal violinist with fingers of steel and a heart of gold.

His style was characterized by making any melody simple, thanks to his technical ease and an innate talent to achieve the right sound for each score.

Itzhak Perlman (1945, Israel)

Renowned for his virtuosity, he was a member of the world's leading orchestras and won 15 Grammy Awards. But its sound is its distinctive mark, defined as warm, luminous and with a pure tuning. He is also a prolific musician, with more than 70 albums released in his career.

Andr

He is one of the most popular violinists today and stands out for his relaxed style and for his desire to bring classical music to a mass audience with his own orchestra. He is capable of making the melody of his violin sing to a packed football stadium.

He is known as the “King of Waltz”, he has fans all over the world and he owns his own musical style and a life full of eccentricities. He lives in a 14th century castle, built by Charles de Batz-Castelmore D'Artagnan (the person who inspired Alexander Dumas for the novel The Three Musketeers).

Anne Sophie Mutter

She is one of the best violinists today, she surprised the world with her talent, even before she came of age and since then her career has been on a continuous ascent.

Winner of two Grammy Awards, and another ten artistic recognitions, she recorded almost fifty records. She is characterized by wearing a sleeveless dress during performances and by not using her shoulder to support the instrument.

Samvel Yervinyan (1966, Armenia)

He began to stand out from a young age for having won all the competitions he participated in before completing his musical training. Virtuous as a violinist and composer, he has the ambition to be the best player in the world, which leads him to be an extreme violin perfectionist.

Joshua Bell (1967, United States)

One of the most famous violinist of today, he surprised the world in 2007 when, disguised as a tramp, he played as a busker in the Washington subway to the surprise of thousands of people.

He began studying the violin at the age of 4 when his mother discovered that with stretched rubber bands she tried to imitate the sound of the piano. Known for his television appearances, Bell is the owner of a unique talent and a particular charisma. Awarded for his performance, he is recognized for his ability to readapt works for violin.

Vadim Repin (1971, Russia)

Virtuous and methodical, he is a specialist in Russian and French violin music. For many years he used a violin that belonged to Pablo Sarasate and is one of the most acclaimed players in the world.

Maxim Veng

Virtuous and controversial, Vengérov was born into a family of musicians and is one of the most recognized violinists in the world but also one of the most criticized. Since he was little, he was recognized in the main competitions, thanks to his technical and sound skills.

With the growth of his career, his style was mutating until he established himself as a violent and nervous interpreter. Lover of physical activity and obsessive of the muscles, he had to abandon his career for a few years due to a shoulder injury.

This forced him to reinvest himself as a violinist, modifying his style, which made him one of the most sought-after musicians by today's best conductors.

Janine Jansen

She was also born into a family of musicians and was inclined to the violin since she was little. Delicate, ethereal and adventurous, she possesses dazzling dexterity and makes each performance unique thanks to an original style. "Each person carries within her own sound" sound ", is the phrase with which she defines herself.

Vanes

Possessing a unique natural talent, she began to play the violin as a child while taking dance classes, which gave her exceptional body dexterity.

She was the youngest violinist, at 13 years old, to perform the Beethoven and Tchaikovsky violin concertos, earning her a place in the Guinness Book of Records. In addition, she competed in the Winter Olympics in alpine skiing.

Hilary hahn

Talented and charismatic, Hahn won three Grammy Awards in her short career mixing classical performances with contemporary music. Its main objective is to be able to transmit musical emotions to a mass audience. She is also a star of social networks.

Ray chen

He is one of the new talents of the violin, with a pure style, a youthful tone and surprising technical ability. His ability to interpret great classical works makes him compare in style with Maxim Vengérov, one of the favorites of directors.

Young and talented, Chen seeks to bring classical music to new generations using social media, where he has thousands of followers.