Violinist FRITZ GEARHART has performed for audiences from coast to coast. He has appeared in major halls around the country including the Kennedy Center, the 92nd Street Y in NYC, Alice Tully Hall, and Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie (six times since 1998). He is heard frequently on National Public Radio, including past live broadcasts on WFMT Chicago, WQXR in New York as well as Public Radio’s nationally syndicated program Performance Today. A sampling from the press: "...a sizzling performance..." (The Wall Street Journal), "...supple and imaginative..." (The New York Times), "...a superlative evening of musicmaking..." (New York Concert Review), and "Gearhart is a bold assertive player..." (Strad).
Gearhart was a member of the Chester Quartet in the early 90s, the Oregon String Quartet since 1998 and has since recorded numerous compact discs for Albany, Koch Entertainment, Centaur Records and Bridge Records. His 2014 release on Centaur Records, Music of a Lifetime, features the music of his father Livingston Gearhart. An active chamber musician, recitalist, soloist and composer, Mr. Gearhart collaborates with colleagues from around the country. Gearhart has an extensive repertoire in sonatas and chamber music and has performed complete cycles of the Beethoven String Quartets and the Beethoven Violin Sonatas.
Currently a faculty member at the University of Oregon School of Music, Gearhart has taught at the university level since 1990, including previous appointments at East Carolina University and Indiana University at South Bend. Gearhart has been a featured clinician at music conventions and workshops for National Association for Music Education (NAfME) Conference, American String Teachers Association (ASTA), and National School Orchestra Association (NSOA), and has presented master classes at music schools all around the country, including Texas Christian University, Boise State University, Ithaca College, UNC Greensboro, University of Oklahoma, Eastman School of Music, and the Hartt School, among many others. He is a frequent adjudicator, and was a judge for the National Fischoff Competition in 2008. Gearhart has been a featured clinician at several national conventions including ASTA in Detroit, Kansas City and Santa Clara, CA where he was also the featured chamber music coach. In addition to his many performing and teaching activities, Gearhart has also appeared as a guest conductor several string festivals around the country, including South Carolina All-State String Orchestra, Northern Virginia Honors Orchestra, Wyoming String Clinic, and All-City Strings in Salem, OR. Professor Gearhart has recently started a new summer music festival, the Redfish Music Festival, on the southern coast of Oregon.
Gearhart received his Master's Degree and prestigious Performer’s Certificate from the Eastman School of Music where he studied with Donald Weilerstein. Earlier studies at the Hartt School included work with Charles Treger and members of the Emerson Quartet.