Gilbert Kalish, American Pianist

Gilbert Kalish, American Pianist chronicles the life and work of a celebrated performer and teacher. This unique volume combines memoirs; tributes by friends, family and colleagues; and personal reflections on music by one who has been at the forefront of American chamber music, contemporary music and piano pedagogy for more than a half-century. As a soloist and as a member of various ensembles, Gil has appeared at Tanglewood, Marlboro, Music@Menlo, the Yellow Barn Music Festival, and with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, among other venues, and has premiered many works of the music of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, as his voluminous discography indicates. He writes about his fascinating career, during which he has appeared with such notable singers as Jon Vickers, Jan DeGaetani, and Dawn Upshaw. Gil also muses on his role as a pedagogue-on the faculty of Stony Brook University (SUNY) for more than fifty years, where he has taught, coached and mentored many hundreds of talented musicians, and at numerous music festivals, colleges and universities worldwide. All of the above is intertwined with Gil's life story- much of it told in his own words-which details his view of the coincidences, luck and hard work that have brought him a rewarding family life and an outstanding career.