Lilian Kallir (May 6, 1931 – October 25, 2004) was a Czech-born American pianist. Born in Prague in 1931, she moved to New York in 1940, where she studied the piano under

Isabelle Vengerova Isabelle Vengerova (; 7 February 1956) was a Russian, later American, pianist and music teacher. She was born Izabella Afanasyevna Vengerova (Изабелла Афанасьевна Венгерова) in Minsk (now in Belarus) in the family o ...

and Herman de Grab, and composition and theory under Hugo Kauder. She made her debut with the

New York Philharmonic The New York Philharmonic is an American symphony orchestra based in New York City. Known officially as the ''Philharmonic-Symphony Society of New York, Inc.'', and globally known as the ''New York Philharmonic Orchestra'' (NYPO) or the ''New Yo ...

in 1957, and in 1959 married fellow pianist

Claude Frank Claude Frank (born Claus Johannes Frank; December 24, 1925 – December 27, 2014) was a German-born American pianist. Biography Of Jewish ancestry, Frank was born in Nuremberg, Germany. His father emigrated to Brussels after the advent of the ...

, with whom she frequently performed together in her career. In 1975, Kallir became a teacher at the

Mannes School of Music The Mannes School of Music (), originally called the David Mannes Music School and later the Mannes Music School, Mannes College of Music, the Chatham Square Music School, and Mannes College: The New School for Music, is a music conservatory in T ...

, where she was once a student. She toured frequently and collaborated with a wide range of orchestras and musicians, and was nominated for a

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...

for a performance of Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 17. Kallir and Frank had one daughter, violinist

Pamela Frank Pamela Frank (born June 20, 1967) is an American violinist, with an active international career across a varied range of performing activity. Her musicianship was recognized in 1999 with the Avery Fisher Prize, one of the highest honors given ...

. Towards the end of her life, Kallir was diagnosed with

posterior cortical atrophy Posterior cortical atrophy (PCA), also called Benson's syndrome, is a rare form of dementia which is considered a visual variant or an atypical variant of Alzheimer's disease (AD). The disease causes atrophy of the posterior part of the cerebral ...

, a case that was documented by neurologist and writer

Oliver Sacks Oliver Wolf Sacks (9 July 1933 – 30 August 2015) was a British neurology, neurologist, Natural history, naturalist, historian of science, and writer. Born in London, Sacks received his medical degree in 1958 from The Queen's College, Oxford ...

in his book ''The Mind's Eye''. She died of ovarian cancer in 2004.

References

American women classical pianists Mannes School of Music alumni Mannes College The New School for Music faculty 2004 deaths 1931 births 20th-century American women pianists 20th-century American classical pianists American music educators American women music educators American women academics 21st-century American women {{US-classical-pianist-stub