DAVID RUSSELL - Violin Teacher

Distinguished Professor of Violin at UNC Charlotte

Violinist David Russell is widely considered to be one of the top violin pedagogues of our time. While still in his teens, Professor Russell was appointed to the violin faculty of Ivan Galamian’s Meadowmount School of Music, a school which produced violinists such as Itzhak Perlman, Michael Rabin, Pinchas Zuckerman, Joshua Bell, and many others of international acclaim. Russell currently serves as the Anne Reynolds Belk Distinguished Professor of Violin at UNC Charlotte.

Violin faculty of The Cleveland Institute of Music

Professor Russell’s career highlights also include serving on the violin faculty of The Cleveland Institute of Music for 24 years, as well as being a Visiting Violin Faculty member at Oberlin College Conservatory of Music. He has also been a faculty member at some of the world’s most important summer music festivals and academies, including the renowned ENCORE School for Strings, a program whose faculty produced international concert soloists, the Concertmasters of the New York Philharmonic and the Chicago Symphony, and leaders in the profession across the globe. He has served on many other world-class violin faculties in the U.S, Canada, England, Wales, France, Spain, and Israel. 

Success for his Students

Professor Russell’s students have won major international violin competitions, including the Menuhin Competition, have been signed with prestigious managements, and have been awarded coveted positions with the top orchestras in the United States (The Cleveland Orchestra, Boston Symphony, New York Philharmonic, Minnesota Orchestra) as well as notable orchestras abroad. His students have performed as soloists at the Kennedy Center and Carnegie Hall, and have consistently been invited to participate in the world’s foremost music festivals, including the Aspen Music Festival and the National Orchestral Institute, among others. 

A Born Pedagogue in Every Way

Former Concertmaster of the Pittsburgh Symphony, renowned soloist, conductor, and Distinguished Professor of Violin, Andrés Cárdenes, has said of Professor Russell: 
“David is a born pedagogue in every way. His grasp of fundamentals, his ability to communicate and connect with students, and his deep understanding of all things violin are truly inspiring, even (especially) to his colleagues. Watching him teach, analyze, and address a young person’s needs is a clinic unto itself. He has an uncanny ability to instantly recognize students’ strengths, build on them, and then calmly organize even the most poorly trained pupil, getting them to improve very quickly with just a few suggestions. He is not prone to long discourses; he builds up the student and gives them the confidence to correct their flaws. His knowledge of the repertoire is superb, and he is equally at home teaching every genre and period of music presented to him.”

International Festival and Masterclass Series in Granada, Spain

Professor Russell has also created and currently directs an international festival and masterclass series in Granada, Spain. Masterclass Al-Andalus focuses on the impact of 800 years of Spanish history, during which Christians, Jews, and Muslims coexisted in relative peace, creating a dynamic culture that remains a lasting legacy, offering a positive path for our world today. In Masterclass Al-Andalus, Russell has created an education-based music festival focused on the example of tolerance exemplified between traditionally opposed ethnic and religious groups during the period of history when Spain was known as “Al-Andalus.”

His recent album, “Andalusian Legacy,” has been released on the Albany Records/Parmarecordings label and is currently receiving airplay worldwide.