“[Itzhak Perlman] creates that music
from all of the experiences and love and
emotion that he has in his heart, and
it flows through his hands.”

— ALISON CHERNICK

CAP

& GOWN

Ad deadline is
May 10, 2018
Issue date May 24, 2018

Perlman and his wife, Toby, on Shelter island

[especially] for the Jewish commu-
nity.”
For Perlman, seen celebrating
Shabbat in the film, his Jewish iden-
tity is paramount. “Everything else
comes after that,” Toby said, apply-
ing the statement to both of them.
Although she describes herself as
“culturally Jewish, not religious at
all,” filmmaker Chernick said that it
was helpful to have an “understand-
ing of Shabbat and what makes a
Jewish person a Jewish person” in
connecting with the Perlmans. It
was important to her to convey their
connection to Judaism, Israel “and
how much that connects to family
and his value system.”
Perlman visits Israel at least once
a year (he is headed there later
this month) to perform, conduct
and teach students in conjunction
with the Perlman Music Program,
which Toby founded in 1995. In the
documentary, he visits his child-
hood neighborhood in Tel Aviv and
accepts the 2016 Genesis Prize from
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu. Perlman donated the $1
million he received to fund arts edu-
cation in Israel and disability initia-
tives in North America.
At age 4, Perlman contracted polio
and gets around today on crutches
and a motorized scooter. But travel
— or as seen in the film, navigating a
snowy street — can be very difficult
for him. He finds that “awareness has
improved, but there’s still a lack of
knowledge” about access in public
areas for the disabled. While well-
intentioned, the Americans with
Disabilities Act, he believes, makes

matters worse by taking a one-size-
fits-all approach. Putting “a couple
of bars in a bathroom is not enough,”
he said.
Born in 1945 to Zionist parents
who had separately fled from Poland
to Palestine and met there, Perlman
relocated with his family to New
York in 1958 so he could study at the
Juilliard School. He was 17 when he
met Toby, also a violinist, in a sum-
mer music program. They’ve been
on the same wavelength for five
decades.
“Something that always happens
with us, if we listen to music, for
example, we don’t have to discuss
how we feel about it because we
speak the same language. We think
the same way,” Perlman said. “It’s
understood, with no words.”
“I think it helps when you have the
same values,” his wife said. “Respect
is very important. I may be annoyed
with my husband almost all the
time, but he’s the best person I know,
and that sustains me through all the
annoyance.” Both of them laughed
at that.
Parents to five children, including
a professional pianist, and grandpar-
ents to 12, one of whom plays clas-
sical cello, the Perlmans have one
child’s wedding and a grandson’s bar
mitzvah to look forward to this fall.
“I’m not just playing the violin.
I’m teaching and conducting, and
that keeps my interest level high and
keeps me excited,” Perlman said, sat-
isfied with his full plate. “The most
important thing is not to be jaded
by what you’ve done for such a long
time.” •

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Issue date
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March 29 • 2018

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