Antonín Kubálek (November 8, 1935January 18, 2011) was a

Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus' Places * Czech, ...

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

classical pianist.

Life and career

Kubálek was born in Libkovice,

Most District Most District ( cs, okres Most) is one of seven districts ('' okres'') located within the Ústí nad Labem Region in the Czech Republic. Its capital is the city of Most. List of municipalities Bečov - Bělušice - Braňany - Brandov - Česk� ...

Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...

and studied in

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and List of cities in the Czech Republic, largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 milli ...

with Czech pianist František Maxián. He emigrated to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

in 1968 and settled in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

. During his time in Canada, Kubálek performed in solo, chamber and orchestral concerts. Antonin Kubálek's artistry and musicianship commanded respect and admiration from audiences and critics internationally. He received three

standing ovation A standing ovation is a form of applause where members of a seated audience stand up while applauding after extraordinary performances of particularly high acclaim. In Ancient Rome returning military commanders (such as Marcus Licinius Crassus a ...

s following his performance in the

Rudolfinum The Rudolfinum is a building in Prague, Czech Republic. It is designed in the neo-renaissance style and is situated on Jan Palach Square on the bank of the river Vltava. Since its opening in 1885, it has been associated with music and art. Curr ...

at the 2002

Prague Spring Festival The Prague Spring International Music Festival ( cs, Mezinárodní hudební festival Pražské jaro, commonly cs, Pražské jaro, Prague Spring) is a classical music festival held every year in Prague, Czech Republic, with symphony orchestras an ...

. In November 2002, Kubálek was recognized by the Czech Music Council with a

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

honorary award. His exceptionally wide repertoire contained Czech and

music, including contemporary pieces; but also romantic works by Chopin,

Schumann Robert Schumann (; 8 June 181029 July 1856) was a German composer, pianist, and influential music critic. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest composers of the Romantic era. Schumann left the study of law, intending to pursue a career a ...

, and especially

Brahms Johannes Brahms (; 7 May 1833 – 3 April 1897) was a German composer, pianist, and conductor of the mid-Romantic period. Born in Hamburg into a Lutheran family, he spent much of his professional life in Vienna. He is sometimes grouped with ...

, for which he is considered to be one of the foremost performers of recent times. A respected educator, Kubálek served on the faculties of

The Royal Conservatory of Music The Royal Conservatory of Music (RCM), branded as The Royal Conservatory, is a non-profit music education institution and performance venue headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded in 1886 by Edward Fisher as The Toronto Con ...

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 ...

York University York University (french: Université York), also known as YorkU or simply YU, is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's fourth-largest university, and it has approximately 55,700 students, 7,0 ...

, the

Prague Conservatory The Prague Conservatory or Prague Conservatoire ( cs, Pražská konzervatoř) is a music school in Prague, Czech Republic, founded in 1808. Currently, Prague Conservatory offers four or six year study courses, which can be compared to the level ...

and the Prague Academy of Performing Arts. He chaired the Fred Gaviller Memorial Foundation, a Toronto organization whose mission was to sponsor debut recitals of young artists. Kubálek also served as chair of the Advisory Committee of the Kapralova Society in

and participated in the first Canadian documentary on

Vítězslava Kaprálová Vítězslava Kaprálová (; 24 January 191516 June 1940) was a Czech composer and conductor of 20th-century classical music. Life and career Vítězslava Kaprálová was born in Brno, Austro-Hungarian Empire (now Czech Republic), a daughte ...

for the CBC Radio 2 in 2001. In 2003 he established an annual festival in Zlaté Hory in the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...

, The International Kubalek Piano Courses, for young pianists. Among his most important pupils of that time were Richard Pohl and Birute Bizeviciute. Kubálek was twice nominated for the Juno Award in Canada. He died in Prague after surgery for a brain tumour.CBC News, 23 January 2011
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Discography

Kubálek was a best-selling international recording artist, having over a dozen CDs available at the time of his death and two dozen LP titles to his credit. His award-winning CD recordings on the

Dorian Recordings Dorian Recordings was a record label based in Troy, New York, most noted for its extensive series of early music recordings. Dorian made many of its recordings at the Troy Savings Bank Music Hall, and supported the local all-classical radio stat ...

label won him praise in such publications as the ''American Record Guide'', ''Fanfare Magazine'', ''CD Review'', and ''Gramophone Magazine''.

Glenn Gould Glenn Herbert Gould (; né Gold; September 25, 1932October 4, 1982) was a Canadian classical pianist. He was one of the most famous and celebrated pianists of the 20th century, and was renowned as an interpreter of the keyboard works of Johann ...

made a unique contribution to this Canadian artist's career. Gould's only foray into the role of producer was inspired by Kubálek's playing: the ''Second Piano Sonata'' by

Erich Wolfgang Korngold Erich Wolfgang Korngold (May 29, 1897November 29, 1957) was an Austrian-born American composer and conductor. A child prodigy, he became one of the most important and influential composers in Hollywood history. He was a noted pianist and compo ...

was the fruit of this singular musical union.

Notes

References

* Tomáš Knopp: Děti neklidné Evropy (''Children of restless Europe''), 2003, .

External links

Official page
*
Biography in Czech

International Festival - Kubalek Piano Courses
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kubalek, Antonin 1935 births 2011 deaths People from Most District Canadian classical pianists Male classical pianists Czech pianists The Royal Conservatory of Music faculty Czechoslovak emigrants to Canada Academic staff of the Prague Conservatory 20th-century classical pianists 20th-century Canadian pianists 20th-century Canadian male musicians