穆特1963年生于德国莱茵菲尔顿，自幼天资超群，7岁就参加了德国的青少年音乐比赛并获得特别头等奖。1976年穆特13岁时，音乐大师赫伯特·冯·卡拉扬在柏林聆听了她的演奏，兴奋异常，当即 决定让她参加1977年萨尔斯堡维松艺术节的演奏会，同年又让她在夏季艺术节上演出。第二年2月，穆特有幸在音乐大师卡拉扬指挥下，由柏林爱乐交响乐团协奏，演出莫扎特《G大调协奏曲》，听众为她报以雷鸣股的掌声。数日后，她又在柏林音乐厅再次成功地演出了莫扎特《c大调协奏曲》和《A大调协奏曲》，并录制了她的第一张唱片。卡拉扬盛赞穆特为“自青年梅纽因之后最杰出的小提琴天才”。自此，穆特的演奏遍及世界各地，她在著名的音乐殿堂受到人们的欢呼。20余年来穆特演奏录制的唱片先后获得过国际迪斯科唱片大奖和日本东京录音学院大奖。1985年英国伦敦皇家音乐学院授予穆特小提琴金交椅获得者称号，翌年穆特被授命为该院名誉研究员。\r \r \r One of the most charismatic and best-loved violinists of modern times, Germany's Anne-Sophie Mutter began her studies on the piano at the age of five. She shortly added violin lessons with Erna Hornigberger. In 1970 and again in 1974, she won first place in the Jugend Musiziert contest for young musicians. Herbert von Karajan heard her play at the age of 13 and paved the way for her international career. This began in 1977 with appearances at the Salzburg Festival and with her English debut under Daniel Barenboim. The next year, 1978, she made her debut with the Berlin Philharmonic and released her first recording, of the Mozart Third and Fifth Concertos. In 1980, she debuted in America under Zubin Mehta, then made her first Carnegie Hall recital appearance in 1988. In spite of a difficult personal life (she lost her husband in 1995, leaving her with two small children to care for), Mutter has accelerated an already successful career to the level of super-stardom. She is currently one of the most sought after violinists and her recordings are always eagerly awaited best sellers.\r \r Mutter is best known for her rich tone and her impassioned and exciting performances of the classic violin repertory, but she has also been instrumental in commissioning and performing new works for the violin. Among the composers she has worked with are Wolfgang Rihm, Sebastian Currier, Norbert Moret, Witold Lutoslawski, and Krzysztof Penderecki. Both before and, for a time, after Mutter's marriage to septuagenarian conductor André Previn in 2002, the pair performed and recorded together frequently. In September 2006, the couple quietly announced their divorce, and in October 2006 Mutter announced that she would be retiring from the concert stage on her 45th birthday in June 2008.\r