Although Efrem Zimbalist is a familiar figure on the concert platforms of the world, he will make his debut as conductor of an orchestra when he mounts the podium of Mecca Auditorium on Sunday evening, February 24, to direct Tschaikowsky’s opera, “Eugen Onegin.” However, it will not be the first time that the noted violinist has exchanged his bow for a baton.
When Zimbalist was twelve years old and first violinist in a Russian opera orchestra, he conducted the orchestra, he recalled here. For three years prior to that he had been studying opera scores and knew many of them by heart.
Naively he informed the other members of the orchestra how well he knew the scores and was laughed at. A bet with a fellow member of the orchestra and with the permission of the conductor, young Zimbalist mounted the stand, tapped for attention, and for half an hour rehearsed the orchestra. After that he was frequently called upon to wield the baton.
After many years of violin playing, Zimbalist accepted the offer to conduct a series of Russian operas. He will conduct the orchestra for “Le Coq d’Or,” “Pique Dame” and “Boris Gudonoff.”
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