Piano
Gilbert Kalish has had a profound influence on the U.S. music community as both an educator and a pianist.
A native New Yorker and graduate of Columbia University, Mr. Kalish studied with Leonard Shure, Julius Hereford, and Isabella Vengerova. Since 1969 he has been the pianist of the Boston Symphony Chamber Players. A founding member of the Contemporary Chamber Ensemble, a group devoted to new music that flourished during the 1960s and '70s, Mr. Kalish is a frequent guest artist with many of the world's most distinguished chamber ensembles. His 30-year partnership with the great mezzo-soprano Jan DeGaetani has been universally recognized as one of the most remarkable artistic collaborations of our time. He often performs with the cellists Timothy Eddy and Joel Krosnick, and with soprano Dawn Upshaw.
Mr. Kalish currently is a professor and director of performance activities at the State University of New York, Stony Brook. From 1968-1997 he was a faculty member at the Tanglewood Music Center, serving as faculty chairman from 1985-1997. He often serves as a guest faculty member at distinguished music institutions such as the Banff Centre and the Steans Institute at Ravinia, and is renowned for his masterclass presentations.
Mr. Kalish's discography of some 100 recordings encompasses classical repertory, 20th century masterworks, and new compositions. Of special note are his solo recordings of Charles Ives' Concord Sonata and sonatas by Joseph Haydn, an immense discography of vocal music with Jan DeGaetani, and landmarks of the 20th century by composers such as Carter, Crumb, Shapey, and Schoenberg. In 1995 he was presented with the Paul Fromm Award by the University of Chicago Music Department for distinguished service to the music of our time. In January 2002, he received Chamber Music America's Service Award for his contributions in the field of chamber music.