The century's most famed violinist, Yehudi Menuhin, has died of a heart attack while on tour in Berlin. He was 82. A local promoter said he had cancelled a concert three days ago because of a health problem. Yehudi Menuhin was regarded as one of the world's greatest ever violinists. As a 7-year-old child prodigy, he was described by the composer Edward Elgar as "the most wonderful artist I ever heard”.
He was born in New York of Russian parents, but took British citizenship after settling in Britain. Menuhin began playing violin as a young child, by five he was playing in public and by seven he was famous. He was admired for his ability to get inside a composer’s mind. As well as playing, Menuhin loved teaching. In the 1970s his hands began to fail and as a result he turned to conducting. He worked with famous orchestras as well as the European Youth Orchestra and many other young bands. In Britain he was first made Sir Yehudi and then Lord Menuhin.
