James Crawford
James Crawford is a native of Charleston, SC, where he began violin studies at the age of seven as a pupil of Col. Charles Waid. He made his first solo appearance with the Charleston Symphony at age ten. At age twelve, he was awarded a full scholarship to attend the North Carolina School of the Arts where his principal teacher was Elaine Lee-Richey, the 1959 Walter Naumburg Competition winner and assistant to Ivan Galamian at the Curtis Institute. Mr. Crawford then continued his musical studies at the Curtis Institute of Music under the instruction of Aaron Rosand. Mr. Crawford’s studies as a violinist and chamber musician have included the renowned artists Jaime Laredo, Joseph Silverstein, Franco Gulli, Arnold Steinhardt, Catherine Tate, and Felix Galimir.
James joined the Grand Rapids Symphony as Concertmaster in January of 1994. He came to Grand Rapids from North Carolina, where he was Concertmaster of the Western Piedmont Symphony and Associate Concertmaster of the Winston-Salem and Salisbury Symphonies. Some of Mr. Crawford’s orchestral and chamber music experiences include performances and tours with the New York Pops, Warner Brothers Symphony Orchestra, North Carolina Symphony, Charlotte Symphony, Curtis Symphony Orchestra, Gamper Contemporary Music Festival, and the Razoumovsky and Devos String Quartets. Other previously held positions include faculty member and Artist-in-Residence with the Saugatuck Chamber Music Festival, and assistant faculty member of the Bowdoin Summer Music Festival.
Mr. Crawford has been the recipient of many honors including First Prize in the National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts "Arts Recognition and Talent Search (ARTS) Competition," and the North Carolina School of the Arts Giannini Award. He was also a winner of the International Music Program (IMP) Concerto Competition and was soloist on its European tour through Germany and Italy. In 1985, Mr. Crawford was a United States Presidential Scholar Finalist.
Mr. Crawford resides in Grand Rapids and is married to Symphony Violinist Megan Reiter-Crawford. They have three children, Julia, Orion and Naomi
Send an email to James Crawford