Maurice Hasson

{{Short description|French-Venezuelan violinist}}

Maurice Hasson (born 6 July 1934 in France) is a French-Venezuelan{{cite web |url=http://www.fesnojiv.gob.ve/es/prensa/14-conciertos/290-maurice-hasson-y-dietrich-paredes.html |title=Maurice Hasson toca junto a la Sinfónica Juvenil Caracas - Sistema Nacional de las Orquestas Juveniles e Infantiles de Venezue |website=www.fesnojiv.gob.ve |access-date=2010-07-08 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20111006024621/http://www.fesnojiv.gob.ve/es/prensa/14-conciertos/290-maurice-hasson-y-dietrich-paredes.html |archivedate=2011-10-06 }}{{cite web |url=http://www.tiempo.uc.edu.ve/tu263/General/Maurice/maurice.html |title=Maurice Hasson de Nuevo en Valencia |website=www.tiempo.uc.edu.ve |access-date=2010-07-08 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100518211952/http://www.tiempo.uc.edu.ve/tu263/General/Maurice/maurice.html |archivedate=2010-05-18 }}{{cite web |url=http://www.francia.org.ve/spip.php?article461 |title=article461 |website=www.francia.org.ve }}{{dead link|date=January 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}{{Cite web |url=http://www.ram.ac.uk/study/selectadepartment/biogs/Pages/Maurice%20Hasson.aspx |title=Royal Academy of Music - Study & Departments > Select a department > biogs > Maurice Hasson |website=www.ram.ac.uk |access-date=2009-07-18 |archive-date=2009-06-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090609150224/http://www.ram.ac.uk/study/selectadepartment/biogs/Pages/Maurice%20Hasson.aspx |url-status=dead }} violinist.{{cite web | author= | title=Maurice Hasson's 70th birthday recital | url=http://www.mvdaily.com/articles/2005/06/hasson.htm | publisher=Music and Violin | date= | accessdate=17 July 2009 | archive-date=26 April 2011 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110426025831/http://www.mvdaily.com/articles/2005/06/hasson.htm | url-status=live }}

He studied at the Paris Conservatoire with Line Talluel and Joseph Calvet, winning a First Prize for Violin, "Grand Prix" for chamber music, and the first “Prix d'Honneur" Prize awarded in 60 years. He was a laureate of the Thibaud Violin Competition 1953, where he met Henryk Szeryng, who would become his teacher for many years. He emigrated with his first wife, pianist Monique Duphil, and their two daughters to Venezuela from 1960 to 1973.{{cite web| author=| title=Concierto en honor a Maurice Hasson (in Spanish)| url=http://www.francia.org.ve/spip.php?article459 |website=www.francia.org.ve | publisher=| date=| access-date=17 July 2009}}{{Dead link|date=May 2019 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}

Upon his move to London in 1973, he made his debut at the Royal Albert Hall Promenade Concerts, playing Paganini Concerto No. 1 and his USA debut with the Cleveland Orchestra conducted by Lorin Maazel in 1978. He has since performed with virtually all the major orchestras in Europe, Israel and the United States under the baton of Sir Colin Davis, Yehudi Menuhin, Kurt Masur, Eliahu Inbal, David Zinman, Sir Simon Rattle, Sir Andrew Davis and Gustavo Dudamel to name only a few. In 1976, he recorded the Bach Double Concerto with Szeryng and the Academy of St. Martin’s in the Fields, directed by Sir Neville Marriner.{{cite web| author=| title=Royal Academy of Music, staff| url=http://www.ram.ac.uk/study/selectadepartment/biogs/Pages/Maurice%20Hasson.aspx| publisher= |website=www.ram.ac.uk | date=| access-date=2009-07-18| archive-date=2009-06-09| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090609150224/http://www.ram.ac.uk/study/selectadepartment/biogs/Pages/Maurice%20Hasson.aspx| url-status=live}}

The violin concerto by Castellanos Yumar was dedicated to Hasson.{{cite web |title=Maurice Hasson: 90th Birthday Celebration |url=https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/maurice-hasson-90th-birthday-celebration-tickets-893591735937 |website=Eventbrite |access-date=13 August 2024 |language=en-us |date=12 September 2024}}

Hasson has been awarded the Medaille de Vermeil from the city of Paris, and refused honours from the Venezuelan government.

He owned the 1727 'Benvenuti, Halphen' Stradivarius until 2005.

Hasson resides in London with his second wife, Janet Hoogesteijn, with whom he has two children and five grandchildren, and held a professorship of violin at the Royal Academy of Music from 1986 - 2015.