Grammy Award winning violinist James Ehnes joins the Annapolis Symphony Orchestra for their Masterworks concert, “A Symphony of Colors,” at Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts on Friday, March 24 and Saturday, March 25, 2017 at 8pm. Music Director José-Luis Novo will conduct the orchestra and Mr. Ehnes in Samuel Barber’s Violin Concerto. The concert will also feature Ludwig van Beethoven’s Fidelio Overture, Richard Wagner’s Prelude and Lovedeath from Tristan and Isolde, and Igor Stravinsky’s Firebird Suite.
Known for his virtuosity and probing musicianship, Ehnes has performed in over 35 countries on 5 continents, appearing regularly in the world’s great concert halls and with many of the most celebrated orchestras and conductors. His recordings have been honored with many international awards and prizes, including a GRAMMY, a Gramophone, and 11 Juno Awards.
Ehnes first gained national recognition in 1987 as winner of the Grand Prize in Strings at the Canadian Music Competition. The following year he won the First Prize in Strings at the Canadian Music Festival, the youngest musician ever to do so. At age 13, he made his major orchestral solo debut with the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal.
He has won numerous awards and prizes including the first-ever Ivan Galamian Memorial Award, the Canada Council for the Arts’ Virginia Parker Prize, and a 2005 Avery Fisher Career Grant. James has received honorary doctorates from Brandon University and the University of British Columbia and in 2007 he became the youngest person ever elected as a Fellow to the Royal Society of Canada. James Ehnes plays the “Marsick” Stradivarius of 1715.