This website is dedicated to the life, artistry and career of the distinguished and much admired viola player Cecil Aronowitz (1916-1978).
The site is jointly maintained by Nicola Grunberg (Cecil's widow) and Michael Stewart, but we very much hope that colleagues and those who knew Cecil will be encouraged to contribute to the website as it expands and grows to form a comprehensive survey of this remarkable musician. We are currently working on a complete discography of Cecil's recordings which we will publish within these pages. At present discography section includes only the currently available CD recordings which is actually only small amount of his recorded output.
If you knew or worked with Cecil and would like to contribute to this website please feel free to get in touch with us via the contact page - we would love to hear from you.
Michael Stewart - March 2006 |
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Cecil was my husband for the last eleven years of his life and father of my two children. I first met Cecil in 1963 when I was a raw young student at the Royal College of Music. My piano professor, Lamar Crowson, said to me one day: “You should go to Cecil Aronowitz for chamber music coaching - he’s very good”. Well, he was more than very good. Cecil was an inspiration to musicians of all ages and standing. I was very nervous when I first approached him but he quickly put me at my ease and, like everyone who came into contact with him, I was mesmerised by his sheer exuberance and love of music. It turned out we were living just round the corner from each other and it wasn't long before we became friends and colleagues and four years later we were married.
Nicola Grunberg 2004
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| "It was while working with the Melos Ensemble, with Cecil Aronowitz playing the viola, at Cranbourne Chase Summer Music School in 1964, on my Seven in Nomine, dedicated to them, that I fell in love with the instrument. Thanks very much to him, that love has remained with me all my life, and I hope this shows even in the string quartets I have been writing recently, reflecting his strong, singing tone, his unmatched intense musicality, and his passionate love of, and commitment to the viola. It was a great privilege to know him, and his influence is lifelong."
Sir Peter Maxwell Davies - April 2006 |
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