Henrik Shering Mexican violinist, teacher, social activist Date of Birth: 22.11.1918 Country: Mexico

Biography of Henryk Szeryng

Henryk Szeryng was a Polish violinist, educator, and public figure who lived and worked in Mexico from the mid-1940s. He began his musical training on the piano in his childhood, but soon switched to the violin. In 1928, on the recommendation of renowned violinist Bronislaw Huberman, he traveled to Berlin to study with Carl Flesch. In 1933, Szeryng had his first major solo performance in Warsaw, where he played Beethoven's Violin Concerto with an orchestra conducted by Bruno Walter. Later that year, he moved to Paris to further refine his skills, studying with George Enescu and Jacques Thibaud. He also took private composition lessons from Nadia Boulanger for six years.

At the start of World War II, Szeryng, who was fluent in several languages, obtained a position as a translator in the Polish government in exile in London. With the support of Władysław Sikorski, he helped hundreds of Polish refugees relocate to Mexico. Szeryng donated the proceeds from over 300 concerts he performed during the war in Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas to support the Anti-Hitler Coalition. After one of his concerts in Mexico in 1943, Szeryng was offered the position of Chair of the String Department at the University of Mexico. Following the war, he began his new role.

Having obtained Mexican citizenship, Szeryng focused mostly on teaching for the next ten years. It wasn't until 1956, at the invitation of Arthur Rubinstein, that he returned to performing in New York, which brought him international recognition once again. For the next thirty years until his death, Szeryng balanced his teaching career with active concert work. He passed away while on tour in Kassel and was buried in Mexico. Szeryng was known for his virtuosity, elegant performance style, and a keen sense of musical interpretation. His repertoire included classical violin compositions as well as works by contemporary composers, including those from Mexico, which he actively promoted. Szeryng was the first performer of compositions dedicated to him by Bruno Maderna and Krzysztof Penderecki. In 1971, he premiered Niccolò Paganini's Third Violin Concerto, a score that had been considered lost for many years until its discovery in the 1960s.

Szeryng's discography is extensive and includes an anthology of violin music by Mozart and Beethoven, as well as concertos by Bach, Mendelssohn, Brahms, Khachaturian, Schoenberg, Bartók, Berg, and numerous chamber compositions, among others. In 1974 and 1975, he received Grammy Awards for his performances of Schubert and Brahms' piano trios with Arthur Rubinstein and Pierre Fournier.