Virtuoso
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A virtuoso (from the Latin virtus meaning: skill, manliness, excellence) is an individual who possesses outstanding mechanical ability at operating a musical instrument. The plural form is: virtuosi. Virtuosi are often musical composers as well. During the age of Baroque music many, if not most, composers were also virtuosi on their respective instrument.
An inevitable discussion surrounding virtuosos is whether the mere skillful operation of an instrument constitutes art. For most people, this is a matter of taste and will likely remain a point of contention in the future.
Although whether an individual's musical skills constitute virtuosity is a matter of opinion, there is a general list of individuals who have been generally recognized as virtuosi. These include:
Bass Guitar: Jeff Berlin, Avishai Cohen, Charlie Haden, Dave LaRue, Tony Levin, Geddy Lee, John Paul Jones, Michael Manring, Edgar Meyer, Charlie Mingus,John Myung, Jaco Pastorius, John Patitucci, Victor Wooten.
Fiddle: Stephane Grappelli, Alison Krauss, Yehudi Menuhin, Mark O'Connor, David Ragsdale.
Guitar: Jimmy Page, Vicente Amigo, Manuel Barrueco, Jeff Beck, Jason Becker, Eric Clapton, Lenny Breau, Robert Fripp, Paul Gilbert, David Gilmour, Steve Hackett, Michael Hedges, Jimi Hendrix, Allan Holdsworth, Alex Lifeson, Albert Lee, Yngwie J. Malmsteen, Brent Mason, Pat Metheny, Steve Morse, Joe Pass, Django Reinhardt, Joe Satriani, John Scofield, Mike Stern, Ron Thal, Steve Vai, John Williams, Eddie Van Halen, John Petrucci.
Harpsichord: Hendrik Bouman, Ketil Haugsand, Ton Koopman, Gustav Leonhardt, Trevor Pinnock, Andreas Staier.
Piano: Keith Jarrett, Martha Argerich, Jordan Rudess, Franz Liszt, Charles-Valentin Alkan, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Marc-André Hamelin, Frédéric Chopin
Keyboard: Chick Corea, Joey DeFrancesco, Keith Emerson, Brian Eno, Lyle Mays, John Medeski, Jordan Rudess, Rick Wakeman, Richard Wright, Joe Zawinul.
Keyboard-Carnatic: N.Muralikrishnan.
Percussions: John Bonham, Brian Blade, Bill Bruford, Terry Bozzio, Vinnie Colaiuta, Phil Collins, Steve Gadd, Trilok Gurtu, Neil Peart, Roy Haynes, Horacio "El Negro" Hernandez, Jack DeJohnette, Elvin Jones, Keith Moon, Rod Morgenstein, Helge Andreas Norbakken, Simon Phillips, Mike Portnoy, Max Roach, Antonio Sanchez, Dave Weckl.
Violin: Pietro Locatelli, Niccolò Paganini, Antonio Vivaldi, Lalgudi Jayaraman.de:Virtuose