Program Notes: October 30, 2010
John Walz, cello
Hailed as one of the outstanding cellists of his generation, John Walz has excited audiences on three continents. Born in Southern California, John Walz began his studies with Eleanore Schoenfeld. In 1967, he heard the great French cellist, Pierre Fournier, play the Dvořák Concerto with Zubin Mehta and the Los Angeles Philharmonic, an event he says, “changed my life.” In 1973, he traveled to Switzerland to study with Fournier, becoming one of his finest pupils.
He has made 14 tours of Europe, playing recitals and concertos in such important musical centers as London, Zurich, Geneva, Lucerne, Rome, Vienna, Hamburg and Oslo. The year 1983 took Mr. Walz to Australia, where he played in Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide. His solo engagements with more than 120 symphony orchestras around the world have included performances of 25 different concertos. The Santa Monica Symphony has had him as soloist in the Dvořák Cello Concerto, which he later performed and recorded in Prague with the Czech National Symphony Orchestra. and released on Carlton Classics to great acclaim.
Equally at home in chamber music and orchestral playing, Mr. Walz currently holds the position of principal cellist in both the Long Beach Symphony and the Los Angeles Music Center Opera. As a chamber music artist, he has played with such luminaries as Leonard Pennario, Andre-Michel Schub, Mona Golabek, Nathan Milstein, Jean-Pierre Rampal and Pierre Fournier. In 1979, along with violinist Endre Balogh and pianist Edith Orloff, he formed the Pacific Trio. This renowned ensemble has played more than 800 concerts throughout North America and Europe. In addition, Mr. Walz is currently on the faculty of Idyllwild Arts Academy. In his spare time, when there is any, he enjoys raising dachshunds, singing opera and being an avid tennis player.