• 1960 – 1964

    Conservatory in Uzhhorod (violin – Ľudovít Tóth)

  • 1964 – 1969

    Academy of Music in Kiev (Olga Parchomenko)

  • 1968

    master classes with David Oistrakh in Kiev

  • 1966 – 1976

    concert master and soloist of Kiev Chamber Orchestra

  • since 1977

    lives in Slovakia

  • 1977 – 1986

    concert master and soloist of Slovak Chamber Orchestra

  • since 1983

    pedagogue of violin at the Academy of Performing Arts and Conservatory in Bratislava

After finishing his concert activities, Jozef Kopelman is mainly devoted to the teaching as a renowned violin pedagogue. He studied in the surroundings of the so-called Soviet, respectively Russian school (a student of Oistrakh's student Olga Parchomenko). These stimuli were enriched with incentives of the so-called Hungarian school which he supplements with his own performing experiences thanks to a rich concert activity in the past. Even as an active violinist, he started in 1983 teaching at the Academy of Performing Arts in Bratislava and Conservatory Bratislava. At both these schools he currently teaches as associate professor. He raised a number of violinists which have implemented excellence not only at home (Peter Šaray, Karol Daniš, Juraj Tomka, Jarolím Ružička and many others) but also abroad (Juraj Čižmarovič, Antal Zalai, Ondrej Jánoška and others).

He used to teach at the Conservatory of Béla Bartók and Franz Liszt Music Academy in Budapest.

He is also an artistic adviser to the orchestra Chamber Soloists Bratislava. In addition to his pedagogical work he is devoted to conducting. He is regularly invited to the juries of significant international competitions. He is an artistic director and founder of International Performing Courses Musica Arvenzis in Dolný Kubín.

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