Biography

Internationally renowned violinist Alice Schoenfeld was educated in Berlin. At age ten she made her debut with the Berlin Philharmonic under the baton of P. Scheinpflug. A protégé of the eminent professor Karl Klingler, the heir of the great Joachim tradition, she rose quickly to the top ranks of violinists.

After moving to Los Angeles, she continued her career extensively as a recitalist and soloist with the major Philharmonic and Radio Orchestras in Europe, Australia, Canada, the Far East and the U.S., performing many times under the baton of Zubin Mehta, Lawrence Foster, Hans Swarowsky, F. Leitner, C. Dragon, Hans H. Schmidt-Isserstedt, Otvos, E. von Rezniek, J. Keilberth, Eschenbach, Albert, J. Koetsier and E. Jochum, among others. She also concertized internationally with Eleonore Schoenfeld, cello, as the Schoenfeld Duo. Alice Schoenfeld has performed more than 300 radio recordings for the European networks, including 34 violin concerti from the classical to the contemporary literature.

Ms. Schoenfeld is a frequent guest artist at national and international festivals such as Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival (Germany), Centre d’Arts Orford (Canada), Bowdoin Summer Festival (U.S.), Summer Festival in Hvar (Croatia), Asian Youth Orchestra (Hong Kong), chamber music festivals under the auspices of the National German Music Council and the Klingler Foundation.

A renowned pedagogue, Alice Schoenfeld has given master classes and lectures worldwide. As professor emerita of violin at the USC Thornton School, she has attracted talented students from all over the world. Her students have been top prize winners in national and international competitions, and many of them have performed repeatedly as soloists with the New York Philharmonic, Concertgebow Orchestra, Vienna Symphony, Israeli Chamber Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic and the Hollywood Bowl Symphony Orchestra, under such eminent conductors as Zubin Mehta, Kiril Kondrashin, Joseph Krips, Horst Stein, Sergiu Comissiona, Sir George Solti and Carl St.Clair. Her students have appeared on national radio and television, including The Dick Cavett Show (with Arthur Rubinstein), That’s Incredible, and The Johnny Carson Show.

Ms. Schoenfeld has received the USC Ramo Music Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching. She frequently serves as chairperson and American juror in national and international solo and chamber music competitions.

Most recently, Alice Schoenfeld and her sister, Eleonore Schoenfeld, posthumously, were honored by the American String Teacher’s Association. They were presented with the coveted emblem as National Winners of the 2008 Artist-Teacher Award.