One of the world’s leading violinists, Julia Fischer is a versatile musician also known for her extraordinary abilities as a concert pianist, a chamber musician and a violin teacher. Born in Munich to German-Slovakian parents, Julia received her first violin lessons at the age of 3 and her first piano lessons shortly after from her mother, Viera Fischer. At the age of 9 she started studying with the renowned violin professor Ana Chumachenco, later becoming her successor at the University of Munich. The first prize at the international Yehudi Menuhin Competition in 1995 was one of the milestones in her early career and she has since performed with top orchestras worldwide, frequently working with renowned conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Alan Gilbert, Jakub Hrůša, Vladimir Jurowski, Juanjo Mena, Riccardo Muti, Vasily Petrenko, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Thomas Søndergård, Yuri Temirkanov, Michael Tilson-Thomas, and Franz Welser-Möst. (JuliaFischer.com)