Atar Arad

Atar Arad (Hebrew: עתר ארד; born 8 March 1945) is an Israeli American violist, professor of music, essayist and composer. Biography Arad and his brother, architect Ron Arad, were born in Tel Aviv, Israel. Arad began his training on the violin in Tel Aviv and received an Artist Diploma in 1966 from the Samuel Rubin Israeli Academy of Music. In 1968 he was selected for study at Chapelle Musicale Reine Elisabeth in Waterloo, Belgium, earning a Laureate there in 1971 and a Diplome Superieure from Brussels Conservatory in 1973. Having decided to devote himself to the viola in 1971, he entered the Carl Flesch International Competition in 1972 as a violist, winning the City of London prize (second prize) in his first public appearance with the instrument. Two months later he repeated, winning first prize in the International Viola Competition in Geneva, Switzerland. Arad has performed around the world as a soloist with orchestras and as a member of the Cleveland Quartet from 1980 to 1987, taking the seat previously established by founding member Martha Strongin Katz. He was succeeded by James Dunham.