HIS LIFE AND WORK: Israeli-born violinist Itzhak Perlman will perform, and talk about his life and career, at a special evening at New Brunswick’s State Theatre New Jersey.

New Brunswick’s State Theatre New Jersey presents “An Evening with Itzhak Perlman” on Saturday, February 5, at 8 p.m. Joined by pianist Rohan De Silva, the famed violinist shares the story of his life and career through anecdotes, musical pieces, and personal photos from his archives.  

Perlman is beloved for his charm as well as his talent and joy of music-making and communicating with audiences. Born in Israel in 1945, he completed his initial training at the Academy of Music in Tel Aviv. An early recipient of an America-Israel Cultural Foundation scholarship, he was propelled to national recognition on The Ed Sullivan Show in 1958. The 60th anniversary of this milestone was celebrated with a return to the Ed Sullivan Theater on November 2, 2018, in a special guest appearance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. 

Following Perlman’s studies at the Juilliard School with Ivan Galamian and Dorothy DeLay, he won the Leventritt Competition in 1964, which led to a worldwide career and performances with every major orchestra and at concert halls around the globe. 

Perlman has been honored with 16 Grammy Awards, four Emmy Awards, a Kennedy Center Honor, a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, a Genesis Prize, a National Medal of Arts by President Clinton, a Medal of Liberty by President Reagan, and a Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Obama which is the nation’s highest civilian honor. 

De Silva’s partnerships with violin virtuosos Perlman, Pinchas Zukerman, Cho-Liang Lin, Midori, Joshua Bell, Benny Kim, Kyoko Takezawa, Vadim Repin, Gil Shaham, Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg, and James Ehnes have led to performances at recital venues all over the world.

He has performed on the stages of Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center’s David Geffen Hall and Alice Tully Hall, Kennedy Center, Los Angeles’ Disney Concert Hall, Wigmore Hall and Barbican Centre in London, Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw, Philharmonie de Paris, Munich Gasteig, Mozarteum Salzburg, La Scala in Milan, and Suntory Hall in Tokyo.

The State Theatre New Jersey is at 15 Livingston Avenue in New Brunswick. Tickets range from $49-$99. Visit STNJ.org.