"Violinist and educator Efrem Zimbalist (1890-1985) led a legendary life in music in an age of violin legends. Among the dazzling stars to emerge from the Russian School at the beginning of the twentieth century, Zimbalist earned a special place. One of the world's greatest violin virtuosos, he is also regarded as one of the century's great teachers, devoting forty years to the renowned Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia and serving as its director from 1941-1968." "His journey, from his early music roots as a young child in the Ukraine, where he began his professional career at the age of nine, to love at first sight and marriage to the beautiful and celebrated soprano Alma Gluck, to author Roy Malan's final visit with him shortly before his death, is recorded in hundreds of hours of taped interviews and Zimbalists's student at the Curtis Institute. The result is this authentic portrait, taken from Zimbalist's own words, which gives readers a close-up look at a golden era in music through the eyes of one of its most brilliant protagonists."--BOOK JACKET.