Called “A violinist who can do anything” by The Philadelphia Inquirer, Grammy-winning violinist and producer Johnny Gandelsman integrates a wide range of creative sensibilities into a style unique amongst today’s violinists. Richard Brody of The New Yorker has called Johnny “revelatory” in concert, placing him in the company of “radically transformative” performers like Maurizio Pollini, Peter Serkin and Christian Zacharias. He is a 2024 MacArthur Fellow. 

Johnny's recording of JS Bach’s complete Sonatas and Partitas for Solo Violin, which reached #1 on the Billboard Classical Chart, and made it onto NY Magazine and NY Times Best of the Year lists.  Johnny’s next release, featuring Bach’s complete Cello Suites, transcribed for violin was enthusiastically received by audiences and critics alike. His interpretation was described by The New York Times as “weightless, at times seemingly improvisatory, and completely grounded in dance.”

A passionate advocate for new music, Johnny has premiered over 80 new compositions.  As a founding member of Brooklyn Rider and a former member of the Silkroad Ensemble, Johnny has closely worked with such luminaries as Bela Fleck, Martin Hayes, Kayhan Kalhor, Yo-Yo Ma, Mark Morris, Anne Sofie von Otter, Alim Qasimov & Fargana Qasimova, Joshua Redman, Suzanne Vega, Abigail Washburn and Damian Woetzel. 

Johnny has been producing records since starting his label, In a Circle Records in 2008. Recent credits include music from Ken Burns, Sarah Botstein and David Schmidt’s PBS documentary film, The American Revolution, and Brooklyn Rider’s The Four Elements.

Johnny was born in Moscow in 1978, and immigrated to Israel with his family in 1990. He’s lived in New York since 1999.