Noted as “Intense” (American Record Guide), “Energetic” (Rome News Tribune) and “The principal purveyor of romance” (Richmond Times), violinist Timothy Schwarz is known throughout the world for his innovative and educational programming. As a collaborative artist, he has performed recitals and chamber music throughout North and South America, Europe, Africa, and Asia. His recording career spans 15 years, with solo and chamber music albums distributed by EMI, Marquis Classics, and Centaur Records. The American Record Guide praised his 2006 recording of the Bartok Sonata No. 2 as “good enough to be the only recording in your collection if you just want one”. His extensive concerto repertoire favors compositions with intricate and complex orchestra parts from a wide range of styles and periods.

Schwarz’s 2011-12 season will feature an All American program at Kingston College (London, UK), Saint Peter’s Church (Notting Hill, UK) and Lehigh University (Bethlehem, USA). As a member of the Serafin String Quartet, Schwarz will be releasing a CD of works by Jennifer Higdon under the Naxos label in 2012. Concerto performances in the 2011-12 season include several performances of the Brahms Violin Concerto.

In 1995 Schwarz (as part of the Upper Valley Duo with pianist Daniel Weiser) won the gold medal at the Artistic Ambassador Competition in Washington, DC. The resulting nine week solo tour of the Middle East, Southeast Asia and Northern Africa was a turning point for Schwarz. His All-American programs featured works from a wide range of American lifestyles, including works by African American, Native American, women, and homosexual composers. His magnetic personality and dynamic performances made him a huge success at every venue. The United States Information Agency requested a second tour in 1998 and an unprecedented third tour in 2001. During this period Schwarz had several compositions commissioned which featured Arab and American melodies within one work. His strong desire for communication between America and the Middle East led to several chamber music concerts with Egyptian and Syrian musicians, and a special concert at the Egyptian Embassy in Washington DC.

Other thematic programs have become a staple of Schwarz’s performance style, which often include short lectures or discussion about the concert’s topic. All of these express Schwarz’s desire to have the performers and audience expand their knowledge and understanding of themselves and people throughout history. His performances have taken him to many notable venues, including Carnegie Hall in New York, the Academy of Music in Philadelphia, Saint John, Smith’s Square in London, The Phillips Collection in Washington, DC, the Dame Myra Hess Series in Chicago, and The Cairo Opera House. Other solo recitals and concertos include venues in Boston, Baltimore, Nashville, New Orleans, Atlanta, Richmond, Porto Alegre (Brazil), and numerous tours of the Midwest and New England.

Schwarz made his debut with the Philadelphia Orchestra at the age of nine, one of the youngest violinists to have ever soloed with this legendary institution. Since then he has appeared regularly as a violin soloist in North and South America, with a strong emphasis on baroque and 20th Century composers. In 1994 the National Endowment for the Arts awarded Schwarz “Best Concert in Maryland” for his performance of Violin Concerto No. 2 by Béla Bartók. Most recently he has appeared as soloist with the Rome Symphony Orchestra, the Richmond Philharmonic, the Blue Ash/Montgomery Symphony, the Monocacy Chamber Orchestra, and the University of Delaware Symphony.

In 1986 Schwarz won a Starling Scholarship at the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, where he studied with the legendary pedagogue Dorothy DeLay. He went on to receive a Masters Degree in Violin Performance at the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore and a Doctorate of Musical Arts from Temple University, where he studied with Helen Kwalwasser.

Schwarz is currently Head of the String Department at Lehigh University in Bethlehem, PA. In 2005 he became a member of the Serafin String Quartet, which is the resident quartet at the University of Delaware, and in 2006 Schwarz was appointed Music Director of the Wilmington Community Orchestra. He is also a founding member of the clarinet trio Tripod.