Violinists: Performers & Composers (OOL)
Osher Online | Registration opens Tuesday, February 3, 2026 10:00 AM
Why do so many great violinists also become composers? This course will explore the fascinating legacy of violinist-composers, including Baroque virtuosos like Heinrich Biber, Romantic legends like Niccolò Paganini, and 20th century innovators like George Enescu and Grazyna Bacewicz. Through listening and discussing, we will examine how these artists wrote music tailored to their instruments and themselves. Taught by a professional violinist, this course offers a behind-the-strings look at how performance and composition intertwine.
MONDAYS, APRIL 6 THROUGH MAY 11 -- Each live session (via Zoom) is 90 minutes
Monday, April 6
Monday, April 13
Monday, April 20
Monday, April 27
Monday, May 4
Monday, May 11
Class schedule: Live lectures will take place via ZOOM
As this class is delivered by the National Resource Center for OLLIs (NRC) at Northwestern University, you will receive a welcome email from osheronline@northwestern.edu. The email will include your credentials (username & password) as well as a hyperlink to the Osher Online Website through which you will access your course website. Please save the link once you receive it. Multi-session courses will use this same link each week.
Ilana Zaks
Ilana Zaks is a professional violinist, educator, and interdisciplinary artist currently serving as first violinist with the Seattle Symphony and Seattle Opera. A graduate of the New England Conservatory and Yale School of Music, she has performed across the U.S. and Europe. Ilana’s artistic work bridges classical music with storytelling, history, and cultural memory, and she is passionate about engaging diverse communities through performance, education, and collaboration.