Daniel Ratush
About
Hi I'm Daniel and I've been teaching the violin with passion and dedication since 2010.
I've probably taught over a hundred of students of all ages, levels and walks of life, from very beginners and children to aspiring professionals and mature enthusiasts — I really enjoy working and interacting with everybody.
I've been playing violin since I was six, and was lucky to have amazing teachers and exceptional musicians from Russia, Israel, Poland, and USA, who tutored and mentored me over the years, contributing to my knowledge of almost every possible technique, style, and method of playing of this complex and challenging instrument.
I'm also a professional viola player and I could teach it happily as well.
My diverse interest, passion, and experience in the musical world has led me to collaborate and perform with some renowned international artists in the classical, pop, folk, klezmer, jazz, and rock genres — some of these names would include Zubin Mehta, Mischa Maisky, Andres Mustonen, Lord of the Dance, Ariel Zilber, Giora Feidman, Omri Mor, Yonatan Razel.
Teaching Style
With over a decade of experience teaching students of all ages and skill levels, I’ve developed a unique method that combines the essential skill of reading sheet music with learning to play basic tunes by ear. My approach is enhanced by a carefully curated selection of the most effective and engaging musical repertoire from around the world, offering students both a solid foundation and an enjoyable learning experience.
Credentials & Affiliations
Bachelor of Music and Master of Music from UNCSA (University of North Carolina School of the Arts).
Daniel Ratush is a classically trained independent violin and viola player, a pedagogue, musical arranger, musical events producer, composer, songwriter, painter and poetry writer.
Daniel started his musical education at the age of six, studying with his grandmother, coming from a family of musical professionals. He began his solo performances abroad in Poland and the US at the age of 15, and continued his professional studies in the Buchmann-Mehta School of Music in the University of Tel Aviv, where he also began his viola studies.
He later continued his viola studies in the US at the North Carolina School of the Arts.
Daniel has performed extensively in chamber music ensembles and orchestras, where he played both as a section and a lead player, thus acquiring a substantial amount of experience and expertise in orchestral settings.
His diverse musical interests and influences have led him to perform in Israel with some of the most known musicians and artists in the classical, klezmer, Balkan, jazz, and pop genres, both as an ensemble and as a solo player.
He is an active session player as well, and has recorded extensively for bands, independent singers, and instrumentalists.
As a musical pedagogue he has more than a decade of experience in teaching in elementary schools, conservatories, music courses, and private lessons. Some of his students have successfully continued their professional education in music performance, and some have even embarked on their own professional musical careers.
As an arranger and composer, Daniel has been writing music since high school years, and has written numerous arrangements for string ensembles, especially string quartets, some of which are to be found on his website; and has written his own original compositions for a variety of instrumentations, which are also available on the website.
Daniel is also a keen producer of his own original musical and cultural events that represent his unique taste and perspective of synthesizing different styles of music, different mediums of artistic expression, and conceptual themes that create an engaging and highly atmospheric and aesthetic experience for the audience.