Celebrated violinist rocks Astoria high schoolers with golden violin and his message

Award-winning violinist Alexander Markov gave a free concert to students at Frank Sinatra School of the Arts Wednesday as a part of his effort to spread classical music to youngsters.

Ahead of his Carnegie Hall concert on June 5, Markov played pieces by Bach and Paganini for about 50 students of an orchestra class at the Astoria high school.

The free performance was the latest of his series of outreach trips to city performing art schools.

“Nowadays if you go to classical concerts there aren’t many young people coming,” Markov said. “What I’m hoping is with this school outreach I’m doing before big concerts kids realize good music is good music.”

Markov took questions from the students and lectured them on a variety of subjects, such as how long to practice each day and about finding their own style.

Students enjoyed the violinist’s visit not only because of his performance, but also because he made jokes and surprised them.

For example, when someone asked about his bow, he pulled out one that lit up bright red like a light saber wielded by a villain from the dark side of the Force in the Star Wars universe, to their amazement.

They had the same reaction when Markov took out his custom gold-plated electric violin, which he uses for his “Rock Concerto” shows. It makes a sound similar to a rock guitar and reflects how he blends the classical and modern eras, showing students how to be open to a wide variety of music.

“That’s his style. It’s very attractive,” said Logan Vrankovic, a senior, who wants to be a composer and conductor. “He carved his own path and it’s a really inspiring message for young musicians.”

Although Markov stopped by to teach the children, he ended up learning something himself.

“The main thing I’m learning is that music should be fun,” he said. “If you do it right, it’s fun, you enjoy it and it becomes one big party.”

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