Toby Saks
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New York City, New York, U.S.
Seattle, Washington, U.S.
New York Philharmonic
Toby Saks | |
|---|---|
| Born | January 8, 1942 New York City, New York, U.S. |
| Died | August 1, 2013 (aged 71) Seattle, Washington, U.S. |
| Occupation(s) | Founder and Artistic Director of Seattle Chamber Music Society New York Philharmonic |
| Instrument | Cello |
Toby Saks (January 8, 1942 – August 1, 2013) was an American cellist, the founder of the Seattle Chamber Music Society and a member of the New York Philharmonic.[1][2]
Born in New York City to an immigrant family, Saks began music lessons at the age of five, first on the piano and then, at age nine, on the cello.[1] She studied at New York's High School of Performing Arts and later at the Juilliard School with Leonard Rose.[1][2] She gave prize-winning performances at the International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow and the Casals Competition in Israel.[3] In 1964, she won a Young Concert Artists's award.
In 1971, she joined the New York Philharmonic, one of the first women to do so.[1][2] However, over the years, Saks grew to dislike playing in an orchestra and, in 1976, accepted a faculty position in the University of Washington's music department, where she replaced the retiring Eva Heinitz.[3]
