Alan de Veritch
(1990-1994)
Alan de Veritch is one of the most respected violists in the world today. Often referred to as a true legend, he is generally considered to have been the very first “Young Virtuoso of the Viola” having made the first of many solo appearances with the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra at the age of thirteen. Almost immediately following that performance, Alan was invited by William Primrose to become his youngest student. By the age of seventeen, Alan had already collaborated in chamber music performances with such artists as Jascha Heifetz, Gregor Piatigorsky, Ralph Berkowitz, Josef Gingold, Pinchas Zuckerman, and Itzhak Perlman and by age thirty he had performed in almost every major concert hall in the United States and Europe and had appeared as soloist with many major orchestras including the Washington National Symphony and the Philadelphia Orchestra.
In addition to his many solo and chamber music performances, Alan’s career also included ten years as principal violist of the Los Angeles Philharmonic under Maestros Mehta and Giulini, guest principal violist of the New York Philharmonic and membership in An die Musik, the Aldanya String Quartet, and the White House Quartet. He has also performed on literally hundreds of motion picture soundtracks, and recorded for almost every major record label.
Throughout his career Alan additionally served as a faculty member of numerous music festivals and universities, including Indiana University, where from 1994-2012 he was Professor of Music (the professorship previously held by William Primrose). His students hold many of today’s most prestigious viola positions and include such names as Paul Neubauer, James Dunham, and Nokuthula Ngwenyama.
In 2017, a major celebratory “Alan de Veritch Tribute Weekend” was co-hosted by Brigham Young University and the Primrose International Viola Archive (PIVA) where a large collection of Mr. de Veritch’s personal memorabilia, recordings, photographs, correspondence, music, programs, publications and historic documents pertaining to his life, heritage and career is now permanently housed.