Aza Raykhtsaum

Aza Raykhtsaum was born in St. Petersburg, Russia, and began playing piano at a very early age. Her formal violin training began at age 6, and later she was accepted to one of the most prestigious music schools in the country. Raykhtsaum is a graduate of the famous St. Petersburg Conservatory, where she studied with renowned violinist and teacher Yakov Ryabinkov. In 1980 she immigrated to the United States, where she joined the Houston Symphony as a first violin, and in 1982 joined the violin section of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Raykhtsaum has appeared as soloist in Glazunov's Violin Concerto with the Boston Pops Orchestra conducted by John Williams. She teaches privately and is an established chamber musician; she performed frequently with her late husband, former BSO principal cellist Jules Eskin.