Background
Soyer, David was born on February 24, 1923 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Son of Samson and Esther (Faggin) Soyer.
Soyer, David was born on February 24, 1923 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Son of Samson and Esther (Faggin) Soyer.
Student public schools, New York City. Doctor of Fine Arts (honorary), University South Florida, 1976. Doctor of Fine Arts (honorary), State University of New York, 1983.
At 11, he started the cello. He debuted with the Philadelphia Orchestra under Eugene Ormandy in 1942, playing Ernest Bloch"s Schelomo. Chamber music was a special love of his.
He gave the New York premieres of the Solo Cello Sonatas by Zoltán Kodály and George Crumb.
With David Tudor he premiered Earle Brown"s Music for Cello and Piano. Before joining the quartet he played in various venues including the Navy Band (**) during World World War II and later with the National Broadcasting Company Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Arturo Toscanini.
Soyer was on the faculty of the Curtis Institute of Music, the Manhattan School of Music, and the Juilliard School. Many of his students, such as Ronald Thomas, have gone on to have successful performing careers.
He taught many of today"s most prominent contemporary cellists and musicians.
He spent many summers teaching and performing at the Marlboro Music Festival in Vermont. David Soyer received an honorary degree from Binghamton University.
He was a founding member of the Guarneri Quartet in 1964 and played with them until retiring from the quartet in 2002. As a member of the Guarneri he collaborated with many of the world"s most famous classical musicians, including Leonard Rose, the Budapest String Quartet, Pinchas Zukerman, and Arthur Rubinstein.
Married Janet Putnam, June 23, 1957. Children: Daniel, Jeffrey.