Viola champion Kim Kashkashian complements her deep familiarity with the classical repertoire (particularly Mozart) with consistently fascinating contemporary and folk projects. Born in Detroit in 1952, Kashkashian counts among her first musical memories hearing her father sing Armenian folk songs. After studying violin, she switched to viola at age 12. She earned her Master of Music degree from Philadelphia’s New School of Music and taught during the 1980s, while also recording sensitively supportive albums of Mozart (DG) and Johann Strauss (Philips, now Decca) with violinist Gidon Kremer. In 1985 she began a long relationship with the ECM label that resulted in releases focusing on Shostakovich, Bartók, Hindemith, and famed Armenian composer Tigran Mansurian. After winning a Grammy for Kurtág & Ligeti in 2013, Kashkashian consummated her lifelong love of Bach in 2018 with an almost mystical viola reinterpretation of the composer’s six solo Cello Suites. Another album featuring works by Kurtág, whom she considers the modern Bach, followed in 2021.