Chalifour Selected as L.A. Concertmaster : Music: The Cleveland Orchestra violinist is named to fill the Philharmonic’s second slot, a ‘very big post.’

Martin Chalifour, acting concertmaster of the Cleveland Orchestra, has been named principal concertmaster of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra.

Appointed by Philharmonic music director Esa-Pekka Salonen, Chalifour will become the orchestra’s second-in-command, setting the tone of the first violin section, serving as liaison between the conductor and the strings and performing orchestral solos.

“Mr. Chalifour was very popular among the orchestra as well as having a lot of support in the (violin) section,” Salonen said in a phone interview Wednesday. “We’re all very excited. We’re pleased to have him.”

Ernest Fleischmann, executive vice president and managing director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Assn., called the position “a very big post--the most important position in the orchestra besides music director.” He added that the selection was made after an international search and rigorous auditions that resulted in five finalists. “It was very, very close--he won over some incredibly gifted and qualified candidates,” Fleischmann said.

The principal concertmaster position has been open since spring, when Sidney Weiss, 65, the Philharmonic’s principal violinist since 1979, resigned the position and left the orchestra for personal reasons. Concertmaster Alexander Treger stepped into the position of principal concertmaster in the interim, leading the Philharmonic on its 1994 summer European tour.

In a prepared statement, Chalifour said: “I was very impressed with the quality of the orchestra when I was a guest concertmaster for two weeks last October. The dynamic interaction between the orchestra and its music director is inspiring, and I look forward to a long and fruitful relationship with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and Esa-Pekka Salonen.”

Chalifour joined the Cleveland Orchestra in 1990 as associate concertmaster, coming from the same post at the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. He became the Cleveland Orchestra’s acting concertmaster in 1993.

Born in Montreal, Canada, Chalifour graduated at 18 from the Montreal Conservatory with a unanimous First Prize. He is also a graduate of the Curtis School of Music. He was awarded a Certificate of Honor at the 1986 Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow and was a Laureate of the 1987 Montreal International Competition. Chalifour, a frequent soloist and recital performer, has been a concerto soloist with the Cleveland Orchestra, Atlanta Symphony, the National Arts Center Orchestra of Quebec, L’Orchestre du Capitole in Toulouse, France and the Ohio Chamber Orchestra.

Times staff writer Chris Pasles contributed to this report.