About Yury Bashmet
Yuri Abramovich Bashmet (born 24 January 1953) is a Russian conductor, violinist, and violist. == Biography == Yuri Bashmet was born on 24 January 1953 in Rostov-on-Don in the family of Abram Borisovich Bashmet and Maya Zinovyeva Bashmet (née Krichever). His paternal grandmother, Tsilya Efimovna, studied singing at the conservatory for two years in her youth. His maternal grandmother, Darya Axentyevna, interpreted native Hutsul songs. In 1971, he graduated from the Lviv secondary special music school. From 1971 till 1976, he studied at the Moscow Conservatory. His first viola teacher was Professor Vadim Borisovsky; after whose death in 1972 was succeeded by Professor Fyodor Druzhinin. Druzhinin was also the tutor of Yuri Bashmet for the probation period and for his postgraduate study at the Moscow Conservatory (1976–78). In 1972, Bashmet purchased a 1758 viola made by Milanese luthier Paolo Testore, which he uses for his performances to date. In the late 1970s through to the early 1980s, Bashmet developed his career as a solo performer.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.