Since his solo debut with the Philadelphia Orchestra at the age of nine, violinist Timothy Schwarz has been hailed by critics around the world for his exemplary technique and passionate musicianship. In 1986 he began his studies with Dorothy DeLay at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music under a Starling Scholarship. He continued his studies at the Peabody Conservatory, where the National Endowment of the Arts gave him an award for Best Individual Artist in Maryland in 1994. The next year Mr. Schwarz won the Artistic Ambassador Competition in Washington, D.C., which resulted in a nine-week solo tour throughout Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. The concerts were a tremendous success, and resulted in several other tours between 1996 and 2001. During this time Mr. Schwarz performed over 75 recitals in 20 different countries, performed and spoke on dozens of television and radio stations, commissioned numerous works combining Arab and American melodies, and received accolades from American Ambassadors and Middle East Ambassadors for his contribution to the Peace Process. In addition to his performances as Artistic Ambassador, Schwarz has performed numerous concertos and recitals in South America and has toured Europe as a violinist in the Serafin String Quartet. In 2007 Mr. Schwarz completed his Doctorate in Violin Performance from Temple University under the direction of Helen Kwalwasser, and that same year was appointed Head of the String Department at Lehigh University, where he currently teaches.

Mr. Schwarz’s recording career spans ten years, with solo albums distributed by EMI, Marquis Classics, and Centaur Records. His CD of live performances (produced by Centaur Records), was hailed by the American Record Guide as “Good enough to be the only recording in your collection if you can only have one”. His wide range of styles is reflected in his CD output, which include albums featuring Schwarz on baroque violin, contemporary music, American works, and several chamber music CD’s. In 2005 he joined the Serafin String Quartet, which performs regularly throughout the United States and abroad, including venues such as Carnegie Hall in New York and Saint John’s Smith Square in London. He plays a violin by Carlo Antonio Testore (1741), generously on loan from Dr. William Stegeman.