GENEVA, Switzerland (AP) -- Helmut Zacharias, a German composer and musician
dubbed the "magic violinist'' for his fast-flowing jazz, classical and popular
renditions, died Thursday.  He was 82.

Zacharias also earned the title of "Germany's Mr. Violin,'' during a prolific
career in which he produced and performed some 1,400 pieces of music, sold 14
million records and picked up awards all over the world.

He learned to play music before he could write or read and made his first
public performance in a German cabaret at age 6.  He started touring Germany
when he was 14 and joined the Berlin Philharmonic on a European tour as war
clouds gathered in 1939.

In 1941, Zacharias branched out into swing.  He set up his own ensemble after
being drafted into the German army and serving four years during World War II.

He achieved international fame in the 1950s. His jazz interpretation of a 1930
tune, "When the White Lilac Blooms Again'' was in the American Top 10 for six
weeks in 1956.  In 1964, "Ask The Wind'' topped the British charts.

He won awards in several European countries and as far away as Venezuela, and
became known as one of the world's best violinists.

In Germany, he had his own television variety shows from 1968 to 1973, often
appearing alongside violin virtuoso Yehudi Menuhin.

Zacharias withdrew from public life in 1996 to his home in Ascona, a lakeside
town in the Italian-speaking part of Switzerland.

AP-NY / 03-01-02 18:13 EST

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