David Nadien (born 1926, Brooklyn, New York - died 2014, Manhattan, New York) was an American classical violinist and teacher. Nadien’s father, George Nadien, was a Russian immigrant and professional boxer who founded a neighborhood music school, and his mother, Bertha, was a secretary. At the age of six, Nadien auditioned for David Mannes, violinist, conductor, and founder of the David Mannes Music School. Mannes offered Nadien a full scholarship to receive lessons at the school, and by the mid-30s, Nadien was studying under Mannes violin faculty Adolfo Betti. With private patronage, Nadien went with Betti to Italy to study with him during the summers of 1938 and 1939. At the outbreak of World War II in Europe, Betti sent Nadien back to New York, where Nadien eventually continued his studies privately with Adolf Busch. By 1943, Nadien was studying with Ivan Galamian, at the recommendation of renowned soloist Jascha Heifetz. Nadien studied with Galamian until the age of 18, when he was drafted into the United States infantry.

Nadien was due to be sent to Europe to fight on the front lines, but he was recognized by Sol Schoenbach, principal bassoonist with the Philadelphia Orchestra, who arranged a transfer for Nadien from the infantry to the music division, where Nadien was made concertmaster for the Armed Services Orchestra. After the war, Nadien continued to study with Galamian, and in 1946, at Galamian’s upstate New York summer school, the Meadowmount School of Music, Nadien met pianist and composer Margot Bollon, whom he later married in 1950.

Nadien won the Leventritt Competition in 1946, at the age of 20, with Arturo Toscanini on the panel of judges, and made his Carnegie Hall debut that same year with the New York Philharmonic under conductor George Szell. During the 1950s, he established himself as a freelance violinist, working with several television and radio stations. In 1960, Nadien entered the prestigious Naumburg Violin Competition, and was one of three finalists. The judges chose Joseph Silverstein, who was later quoted as saying he thought Nadien should have won.

In 1965, Nadien auditioned for the position of concertmaster of the New York Philharmonic, to replace retiring concertmaster John Corigliano, Sr. He won the position, although he had never played in a major professional orchestra. Nadien regularly performed as a soloist with the New York Philharmonic under conductor Leonard Bernstein and made several recordings during this period, including featured performances in Bernstein’s televised Young People’s Concerts in 1968 and 1969. Nadien left the orchestra after Bernstein’s last season in 1970 and resumed his career as a freelance soloist. Among the motion pictures in which Nadien is credited as a musician are: Serpico (1973), You Light Up My Life (1977), Carlito's Way (1993), and Caught (1996). Nadien also participated in the recording of John Lennon’s 1971 solo album, Imagine, as well as recording violin solos for entertainers such as Barbara Streisand and Tony Bennett.

Nadien joined the violin faculty of the Mannes College of Music in 1985 and taught there until 2006. He died in Manhattan in 2014 at the age of 88.

Bibliography

Course Catalogs. “Mannes College of Music.” 1986-2006. College of Performing Arts Course Catalog Collection. The New School Archives Digital Collections, New York, New York.

Internet Movie Database. “David Nadien.” Accessed November 11, 2021. https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0618899/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1.

Schweitzer, Vivien. “David Nadien, Philharmonic Concertmaster, is Dead at 88.” New York Times, June 8, 2014. https://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/09/arts/music/david-nadien-philharmonic-concertmaster-is-dead-at-88.html.

Nadien, David. “David Nadien - Life and Music.” Interview by Mordecai Shehori. 2007. Video, 1:08:04. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3GJudivS9FM.

The Paley Center for Media, Paley Archive Database. “David Nadien.” Accessed November 11, 2021. https://www.paleycenter.org/collection-2/CollectionSearchForm/?Query=david+nadien&Category=all&Field=all&action_doSearch=Search.

Wen, Eric. “David Nadien, 1926-2014.” The Strad 126 no. 1501. (May 2015): 60-65.

Wise, Brian. “How Moonlighting Classical Musicians Contributed to Motown, R&B, Pop, and Rock Music History.” Strings Magazine. (July-August 2021). Accessed November 11, 2021. https://stringsmagazine.com/moonlighting-classical-musicians-contributed-to-motown-rb-pop-and-rock-history/.