The long-time bond between Peter Oundjian and Itzhak Perlman brings intrigue to the Colorado Symphony’s upcoming performance at Carnegie Hall in New York City.
This story begins with a single sound, one so beautiful and so tender that it changed the course of an aspiring musician’s life. When Peter Oundjian was just twelve years old growing up in South London, his father took him to hear a young violinist who was already being hailed as a sensation: Itzhak Perlman. That evening, sitting spellbound in the hall, Peter heard music unlike anything he’d ever imagined, and felt, perhaps for the first time, the full power of a truly transcendent performance.
“The sound of the first phrase of the Franck Sonata still rings in my ears decades later,” Oundjian recalls. “I had never heard anything so tender and personal coming out of a violin.”
That evening, the music changed him, and so did the musician.
Seven years later, at nineteen, Oundjian was preparing to audition for Juilliard. Days before flying to New York, he called an acquaintance in London — someone who wouldn’t hesitate to criticize his playing — and asked if he could play through his audition repertoire for him.
“I have a much better idea,” the acquaintance replied. “Come over to my house right now. You can play for Itzhak Perlman.”
Oundjian could hardly believe it. But that night, he found himself playing for the same man whose music had inspired him as a boy. Oundjian walked away after 45 minutes, feeling that Perlman had transformed his bow arm and thrust his technique forward in a way he didn’t know was possible. Not only did the star violinist offer words of encouragement, he handed Oundjian his personal phone number, saying, “Call me when you get to New York if you have any problems.” Oundjian was gobsmacked.
“And boy, did I have problems,” Oundjian says with a smile.
“What impressed me about him was, first of all, he was a very nice fellow. That always makes a difference to me.”
Itzhak Perlman
Perlman remembers the encounter and the “obviously very talented” young violinist. “What impressed me about him was, first of all,” Perlman said, “he was a very nice fellow. “That always makes a difference to me.”
After three years studying with Ivan Galamian, Oundjian was invited to study with Perlman at Brooklyn College. There, he came to know Perlman not just as a genius of the violin but as a brilliant teacher — and a brilliant prankster too.
One day, during a lesson on the Brahms concerto, Oundjian was wrestling with a famously tricky passage of three-note chords. Perlman grabbed Oundjian’s violin, picked up his own bow, and produced the most horrendous, scratchy sound Oundjian had ever heard. He sat in stunned silence. A furious Perlman hurled his bow across the room.
Oundjian froze. Then Perlman turned suddenly remorseful, and said, “Oh no, my Tourte. Can you get it and see if I’ve broken it?”
Terrified he’d somehow been the cause of this disaster, Oundjian crept to the back of the room to retrieve the bow, only to hear Perlman laughing.
The bow, it turned out, was made of fiberglass, not his priceless François Tourte bow – just the kind of prank Perlman is known for. It was not only a lesson in humility but a reminder that having a sense of humor is as essential as music itself – a point Perlman takes very seriously.
“When Itzhak Perlman enters the stage nowadays, there is always a standing ovation,” Oundjian says. “And yet, I look at him and see the most modest reaction you could imagine, full of genuine gratitude. He has a unique way of making us all love what we do and feel that it is a privilege to be a musician.”
For many years, Oundjian relished that privilege in his own decorated career as a violinist, serving as the first violinist of the world-renowned Tokyo String Quartet, recording extensively, and performing on the world’s greatest stages. But in his late thirties, his performing career was cut short by a neurological condition called focal dystonia, which made it impossible to continue playing at the highest level.
“What pulled me through and guided me to find another path back into music is all I had learned — not only about music, but about humanity — from people like Itzhak.”
Peter Oundjian
“It was devastating at the time,” Oundjian admits. “But what pulled me through and guided me to find another path back into music is all I had learned — not only about music, but about humanity — from people like Itzhak. I knew I couldn’t leave it behind.”
So he turned to conducting, channeling everything he had learned from his teachers, colleagues, and mentors into a new chapter of his musical life. Over the years, he became a sought-after conductor, leading major orchestras across the world, and today serves as the music director of the Colorado Symphony where he continues to share the inspiration and generosity he first encountered in that South London recital hall, when he heard Perlman play the violin.
For Oundjian and countless others who have had the good fortune to study with or perform alongside Itzhak Perlman, that privilege is bound up in something deeper than music alone.
“Itzhak invites us all to be part of the magic of the musical experience,” Oundjian says. “Whether we are players or listeners, the level of dedication he has always had to mentorship, to teaching us not only about musical values but how to care for others, is itself a huge inspiration.”
That lifelong bond between student and mentor, violinist and conductor, will come full circle as Oundjian and Perlman reunite on one of the world’s most iconic stages.
Perlman, who turned 80 in August 2025, will perform works that have become synonymous with his artistry — including the poignant theme from Schindler’s List, Dvořák’s Romance in F minor, and selections by Fritz Kreisler and Carlos Gardel. Conducted by Oundjian, the evening will also feature the New York debut of John Adams’ Frenzy and Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition, spotlighting the power and brilliance of the Colorado Symphony.
“The best teachers don’t just show you how to play. They show you how to love what you do, and how to pass that love on to others.”
Peter Oundjian
“To collaborate with Itzhak Perlman is always a profound joy, both musically and personally,” says Oundjian. “In fact, every time I share the stage with Itzhak, it is a reminder that the best teachers don’t just show you how to play. They show you how to love what you do, and how to pass that love on to others. Sharing the stage with him at Carnegie Hall, with this orchestra, will be one of the most meaningful moments of my career.”
Decades after that first recital, Peter Oundjian still carries with him the memory of that tender, personal sound of the violin and the quiet generosity of the man who made it. It’s a relationship built not just on music but on kindness, humor, and a shared belief in the transformative power of art.
“He is an extraordinary person on many, many levels,” Oundjian said. “I can’t believe what he gives to all of us. To be on the stage with him is just a thrill.”
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