Felix Slatkin, born Felix Zlotkin on December 22, 1915 in Saint Louis, Missouri, is an American conductor and violinist. He began studying the violin at age nine and started his professional career at ten. Slatkin earned a scholarship to the Curtis Institute of Music, where he studied under Efrem Zimbalist and Fritz Reiner. At 17, he joined the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra. In 1935, Slatkin won a competition with the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra. During World War II, he served as a musician at Santa Ana Air Force Base and conducted the Army Air Force Tactical Command Orchestra. After moving to Los Angeles, he became a violinist for 20th Century Fox Studios. In 1939, Slatkin founded the Hollywood String Quartet, which produced over 21 albums for Capitol Records and toured extensively, winning a Grammy Award in 1958 for their performance of Beethoven's late string quartets. As a conductor, Slatkin established the Concert Arts Orchestra and led the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra. He was Frank Sinatra’s preferred violinist and conductor during the 1950s, recording over 25 albums with various orchestras for Capitol Records, including Gaîté Parisienne by Offenbach, which won a Grammy Award in 1958. Slatkin also recorded more than a dozen albums for Liberty Records. His 1962 recording "Hoedown" received a Grammy nomination. Felix Slatkin died from a heart attack on February 8, 1963 at age 47.
