Grammy nominated artist Robert McDuffie has appeared as soloist with most of the major orchestras of the world, including the New York and Los Angeles Philharmonics, the Chicago, San Francisco, National, Atlanta, Houston, Dallas, St. Louis, Montreal, and Toronto Symphonies, the Philadelphia, Cleveland, Minnesota Orchestras, the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, the North German Radio Orchestra, the Düsseldorf Symphony, the Frankfurt Radio Orchestra, the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, the Hamburg Symphony, Orchestra del Teatro alla Scala, Santa Cecilia Orchestra of Rome, Venice Baroque Orchestra, Jerusalem Symphony, Orquesta Sinfonica Nacional de Mexico, Orquesta Sinfónica de Mineria, and all of the major orchestras of Australia.

His recent appearances abroad have been at the Royal Festival Hall in London with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, the Philharmonie in Cologne, the Seoul Arts Center in Korea, the National Concert Hall in Taipei, the Tonhalle Düsseldorf and at the Musikhalle in Hamburg.

He gave the World Premiere of Philip Glass’ Violin Concerto No. 2, “The American Four Seasons” a work written for Robert McDuffie with the Toronto Symphony. During the 2010–2011 season, McDuffie completed a 30-city U.S. tour with the Venice Baroque Orchestra, pairing the Glass Four Seasons with the Vivaldi Four Seasons. He has also played the Glass with the National Symphony of Mexico, the Düsseldorf Symphony, the Hamburg Ballet, the Nashville, Louisiana, San Diego, Dallas, San Antonio, and Colorado Symphonies, the Poznan Philharmonic of Poland, the Prague Philharmonia at the Prague Spring Festival, with the Scottish Ensemble in Glasgow, the Amsterdam Sinfonietta in Holland and Belgium, at the Belgrade Music Festival, and, paired with the Vivaldi Four Seasons, with the Zürich Chamber Orchestra at the Zürich Tonhalle.

Robert McDuffie recorded “The American Four Seasons” with the London Philharmonic and Marin Alsop on Philip Glass’ Orange Mountain Music label. His acclaimed Telarc and EMI recordings include the violin concertos of Mendelssohn, Bruch, Adams, Glass, Barber, Rozsa, Bernstein, William Schuman, and Viennese violin favorites. His future recording project is the chamber version of “The American Four Seasons,” paired with the Vivaldi Four Seasons, on Philip Glass’ Orange Mountain Music label. He has been profiled on NBC’s “Today,” “CBS Sunday Morning,” PBS’s “Charlie Rose,” A&E’s “Breakfast with the Arts,” and in The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal.

He has recently performed “The American Four Seasons” with the Robert McDuffie Center for Strings Ensemble in New York City at (Le) Poisson Rouge, and, paired with the Vivaldi Four Seasons, with the Israel Chamber Orchestra in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.

Future plans include a collaboration with Mike Mills, of the iconic rock band R.E.M. He will play several performances of ‘The American Four Seasons” with the Hamburg Ballet, and, paired with the Vivaldi Four Seasons, performances at the St. Christopher Festival in Vilnius, Lithuania, a U.S. tour with the Zurich Chamber Orchestra, as well as a tour of Australia with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. He will tour with the McDuffie, Dutton, Kirshbaum Trio and will perform the Barber Concerto with the Bruckner Orchestra Linz in Austria.

Robert McDuffie is the founder of the Rome Chamber Music Festival. He was recently awarded the prestigious Premio Simpatia by the Mayor of Rome, in recognition of his contribution to the city’s cultural life. He served for 10 years on the board of directors of the Harlem School of the Arts in New York City where he was chairman of the artistic and education committee. Mr. McDuffie holds the Mansfield and Genelle Jennings Distinguished University Professor Chair at Mercer University in his hometown of Macon, Georgia. Robert McDuffie lives in New York with his wife and two children. He plays a 1735 Guarneri del Gesù violin, known as the “Ladenburg.”

©2013 Rome Chamber Music Festival

Artistic Director

Robert McDuffie, violin