Stern, Lya (1950-Present)

Teacher and violinist born in Cluj, Romania, who emigrated to the United States while still in her teens and attended the Manhattan School of Music and the University of Southern California, where she studied with Jascha Heifetz.

She went on to set up her own private studio teaching practice, and is highly lauded by her students. In 1999, she was honoured as String Teacher of the Year by the American String Teachers Association. She was also instrumental—pun intended—in the establishment of ASTA’s Certificate Program for Strings.

In addition to her educational efforts, Lya has had an extremely prolific recording career. Some of the artists and groups with whom she has worked include Jackson Browne, Glen Campbell, Captain & Tennille, The Carpenters, Stanley Clarke, Rita Coolidge, Randy Crawford, John Davidson, Donny & Marie, Earth, Wind & Fire, Neil Hefti, The Jacksons, Quincy Jones, Tom Jones, Carole King, Gladys Knight, Chuck Mangione, The Osmond Brothers, Nelson Riddle, Linda Ronstadt, Frank Sinatra, Barbra Streisand, Donna Summer, Tom Waits, and Wendy Waldman.

Being a part of the L.A. session scene also led to a large amount of film and television work: Lya can be heard on the soundtracks of Back to the Future, Beau Geste, The Blues Brothers, The Buddy Holly Story, Caddyshack, Capricorn One, Grease, The Hindenburg, Hook, King Kong, The Muppet Movie, New York, New York, Ordinary People, Psycho II, Robin and Marian, Rocky, Star Trek, The Trial of Billy Jack, and Waiting to Exhale. She has also performed on a number of television soundtracks, including Barnaby Jones, The Bionic Woman, Columbo, Dallas, Hawaii Five-O, Kojak, Little House on the Prairie, Marcus Welby, Quincy, The Six Million Dollar Man, and The Streets of San Francisco. That is not to say she has eschewed her classical upbringing: Lya has worked with the American Ballet Theater, the Hollywood Chamber Orchestra, and the Los Angeles Pops, just to name a few.

In July 2007, she was picked as ASTA’s Member of the Month. She is a past president of AFTA and chairs its Certificate Program in Maryland and serves as an adjudicator in a number of musical competitions in the District of Columbia and Maryland, where she continues to pass along her knowledge to a new generation of violinists.

Sources:

Stern, Lya (1950-Present)

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