Saul Bitran

I use a basic vocabulary of technical and musical concepts with my students, from which we can find solutions to almost any problem. A great deal of progress can be made with a clear goal, minimal tension, and focused energy.   

Saul Bitran joined the Conservatory in 2019 and is an associate professor of violin. Bitran has been the first violinist of the award-winning Cuarteto Latinoamericano since 1986. He has received some of Mexico and Chile’s highest artistic awards, including the Bellas Artes Medal and Order of Merit Pablo Neruda.

The Cuarteto Latinoamericano is one of the world’s foremost string quartets and champions of new music from Latin America. Founded in 1982, the Cuarteto has toured extensively throughout Europe, North America, South America, Asia, and New Zealand, and has premiered over one hundred new works composed for the quartet. Accolades include winning two Latin Grammy Awards and the prestigious Diapason d’Or. 

A devoted pedagogue, many of Bitran’s former students populate some of the world’s leading orchestras and conservatories. Bitran was an associate professor at Carnegie Mellon University from 1987 to 2008, and teaches regularly at numerous music festivals, including the Cremona International Music Academy, Dartington International Summer School, Centre d’Arts Orford, Grenoble Festival, Festival de Música de Cámara de San Miguel de Allende, and many others. 

Bitran’s noted solo appearances have included the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Seattle Symphony, San Antonio Symphony, and National Arts Center Orchestra in Ottawa, and Mexico’s National Symphony, with conductors such as Esa-Pekka Salonen, Gerard Schwarz, Eduardo Mata, and Keith Lockhart, among others.

Bitran is a magna cum laude graduate of the Samuel Rubin Academy of Music in Tel Aviv, Israel, where he studied under the tutelage of Yair Kless. Currently, Bitran divides his time between Mexico City and Boston.

Reviews

"Bitran's staggering virtuosity in the live violin part was jaw-dropping"—Florida Sun-Sentinel

Professional Awards and Recognitions

• Latin Grammys—two wins
• Multiple Grammy Awards nominations
• Diapason d'Or, Diapason Magazine
• Bellas Artes Medal, Mexico
• Order of the Artes Pablo Neruda Medal, Chile