He was born in Tabriz, Persia, but his family soon emigrated to Moscow, Russia. Galamian studied violin there under Konstantin Mostras (a student of Leopold Auer) between 1916 and 1922. He moved to Paris, France, during the Bolshevik Revolution and studied under Lucien Capet in 1922 and 1923. In 1924 he debuted in Paris.
In 1937 Galamian moved permanently to the United States of America. He taught violin at the Curtis Institute of Music, and became the head of the violin department at the Juilliard School. He wrote two violin method books, Principles of Violin Playing and Teaching (1962) and Contemporary Violin Technique (1962). Galamian founded the summer program Meadowmount. Some of his most well known pupils are Itzhak Perlman, Pinchas Zuckerman, and Michael Rabin. His most notable teaching assistants — later distinguished teachers in their own right — were Dorothy Delay, Sally Thomas and Margaret Pardee.
Galamian incorporated aspects of both the Russian and French schools of violin technique in his approach.
- The Violin Site - Video examples of Galamian-style exercises