Piatigorsky autobiography

Gregor Piatigorsky
(–)

Gregor Piatigorsky was born on April 17, in Ekaterinoslav, Ukraine. He began the cello at the age of 7, and shortly thereafter supported his entire family by playing in cafés, brothels and silent movie houses.

Piatigorsky autobiography pdf

Two years later, Piatigorsky left home and made his way to the Moscow Conservatory of Music. By the age of fifteen he was both principal cellist of the Bolshoi Opera Orchestra and a member of the famed &#;Beethoven String Quartet&#;, later renamed the &#;Lenin String Quartet.&#;

In , unhappy with the oppressive political climate in Russia, Piatigorsky escaped into Poland.

There are many wonderfully colorful accounts of this border crossing. The stories usually describe him swimming the Zbruch River with cello held high amidst gunfire emanating from both sides.

Piatigorsky autobiography

One of these accounts can be read in Piatigorsky&#;s autobiography, Cellist. The countless variations on this escape can be attributed in part to his incredible story-telling ability. Piatigorsk