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Hadelich Overcomes Injury, Attains Greatness

Schmidt Artists

Doctors told 15-year-old violin prodigy Augustin Hadelich he would never play again. A tractor fire at his family's farm had badly burned his upper body, including his bowing arm. But after many months of physical therapy Hadelich came back - and now, at age 29, he has won top international awards, been entrusted with two consecutive Stradivarius violins, and earned praise from critics like Alex Ross, who wrote in The New Yorker that Hadelich has not only "fast-fingered brilliance" but also "the musicality and freewheeling fantasy that... cannot be taught." On Tuesday night's SymphonyCast, he plays one of the supreme violin concertos, that of Beethoven. The Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra also premieres two new works, and conductor Jeffrey Kahane plays and conducts the Ravel piano concerto. Tune in at 7PM Tuesday.

Barney Sherman is a Senior Music Producer and Classical Music Host