Praised by the Chicago Tribune for his ” incredible performance” violist Elias Goldstein has distinguished himself as one of the great instrumentalists of his generation. Prize winner in the leading viola competitions of the world, including the 2011 International Primrose Competition, the 2010 Lionel Tertis Competition, he is also the first American to be awarded a top prize in the Bashmet International Competition in Moscow. He has achieved recognition and critical acclaim as a champion of his instrument, as the first violist invited to Carnegie Hall to perform all 24 Caprices by Paganini, a program that later toured the United States and Europe.
As a solo recitalist he has performed in many of the greatest halls of the world including Carnegie, Seattle Symphony’s Benaroya Hall, George Enescu Philharmonic, Musikiitalo Helsinki. He frequently collaborates with artistic partners including Nobuko Imai, Eli Eban, and the Pro Arte, Shanghai, Latin American, Arianna, and Cavani Quartets.
His concert appearances include Enescu, Valdres, Aspen, Beijing, and Chautauqua festivals, and he is currently on faculty in the summer at Rocky Ridge Music Festival where he teaches viola and chamber music. He is also the Artistic director of the Goldstein Young Artist Program, which presents specialized courses in Puebla Mexico in the summer. As a pedagogue and coach, his students have won positions in major orchestras including the Dusseldorf, San Diego, North Carolina, Sarasota and Alabama Symphonies. Under his mentorship, he has also guided students to success and recognition of prizes in the ARD, Primrose, Tertis and Aronowitz International Viola competitions.
Dedicated to the music of our time, he gave the world premiere of Grammy winning composer Jennifer Higdon’s Viola Songs and in 2018 was personally invited by William Bolcom to perform for the composer’s 80th anniversary concert at Merkin Hall in New York. He is currently professor of viola at University of Delaware, and was recently appointed principal viola of the Delaware Symphony and ProMusica Chamber Orchestra.