David Frühwirth

Biography

Austrian-born violinist Univ.-Prof. David Frühwirth is acclaimed by The Strad as “one of the most refined violinists appearing in recital today.” He has performed at prestigious venues including Musikverein Vienna, Wigmore Hall London, Mozarteum Salzburg, Pompidou Centre Paris, Prinzregenten Theater Munich, Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Herkulessaal Munich, and Gewandhaus Leipzig.

He has appeared with leading orchestras such as the Mariinsky Orchestra, Mozarteum Symphony, Yomiuri Symphony Tokyo, Radio Symphony Berlin, China National Orchestra, MPO Malaysia, Vienna Chamber Orchestra, Janacek Philharmonic, and New York Symphonic Ensemble, collaborating with conductors including Valery Gergiev, Alexander Lazarev, Philippe Auguin, and Kozuhiro Koizumi. Frühwirth has also premiered works by contemporary composers including Olga Pochikhina, Jörg Widmann, David Noon, Sarah Nemtsov, and Marcello Nisinmann.

A devoted chamber musician, he has performed with Jörg Widmann, Steven Isserlis, Tatjana Masurenko, Herbert Schuch, Wen-Sinn Yang, Julius Berger, Claudio Bohorquez, Milana Chernyavska, Adrian Brendel, and Lawrence Power, and serves as first violinist of the Klenze String Quartet in Munich. His recordings with Capriccio, OEHMS Classics, Crystal Classics, Hungaroton, EDA, and AVIE Records—including the award-winning Trails of Creativity—have received critical acclaim. Frühwirth studied at the Salzburg Mozarteum with Ruggiero Ricci, in Germany with Zakhar Bron, and in New York with Pinchas Zukerman, finishing his postgraduate diplomas with honors. He has won numerous national and international competitions, received the 2004 Millennium Award in London, and has given masterclasses and lectures across Europe, Asia, and South America. In 2021, he was appointed University Professor at the Vienna University of Music and Art (MDW) and in 2025 became Head of Department at the Alma Rose Institute.