Gilbert Kalish (born July 2, 1935) is an American pianist. He was born in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

and studied with Leonard Shure, Julius Hereford and

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 ...

. He was a founding member of the Contemporary Chamber Ensemble, a pioneering new music group that flourished during the 1960s and '70s. He was a pianist of the Boston Symphony Chamber Players from 1969 to 1998. He is noted for his partnerships with other artists, particularly his thirty-year collaboration with mezzo-soprano Jan DeGaetani, but also including cellists Timothy Eddy and Joel Krosnick, and soprano

Dawn Upshaw Dawn Upshaw (born July 17, 1960) is an American soprano. She is the recipient of several Grammy Awards and has released a number of Edison Award-winning discs; she performs both opera and art song, and her repertoire spans Baroque to contempo ...

. Kalish is Leading Professor and Head of Performance Activities at the

State University of New York at Stony Brook Stony Brook University (SBU), officially the State University of New York at Stony Brook, is a public university, public research university in Stony Brook, New York, United States, on Long Island. Along with the University at Buffalo, it is on ...

. From 1968 to 1997, he was a faculty member of the Tanglewood Music Center and served as the "Chairman of the Faculty" at Tanglewood from 1985 to 1997. He has also served on the faculties of the

Banff Centre Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity (formerly Banff Centre) is an arts and culture educational institution in Banff, Alberta, Banff, Alberta. It offers arts programs in the Performing arts, performing and fine arts, as well as leadership trai ...

and the Steans Institute at Ravinia, and is renowned for his master class presentations. Kalish has a large discography, encompassing classical repertory, 20th-century masterworks and new compositions. These include his solo recordings of

Charles Ives Charles Edward Ives (; October 20, 1874May 19, 1954) was an American modernist composer, actuary and businessman. Ives was among the earliest renowned American composers to achieve recognition on a global scale. His music was largely ignored d ...

' ''Concord Sonata'' and sonatas of

Joseph Haydn Franz Joseph Haydn ( ; ; 31 March 173231 May 1809) was an Austrian composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. He was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions ...

, vocal music with Jan DeGaetani and landmarks of the 20th century by composers such as

Elliott Carter Elliott Cook Carter Jr. (December 11, 1908 – November 5, 2012) was an American modernist composer who was one of the most respected composers of the second half of the 20th century. He combined elements of European modernism and American " ...

George Crumb George Henry Crumb Jr. (24 October 1929 – 6 February 2022) was an American composer of avant-garde contemporary classical music. Early in his life he rejected the widespread modernist usage of serialism, developing a highly personal musical ...

, Ralph Shapey and

Arnold Schoenberg Arnold Schoenberg or Schönberg (13 September 187413 July 1951) was an Austrian and American composer, music theorist, teacher and writer. He was among the first Modernism (music), modernists who transformed the practice of harmony in 20th-centu ...

. He made the world premiere recordings of Charles Ives' ''Largo for Violin and Piano'', ''In Re Con Moto et al.'', ''Largo Risoluto'' No. 1 & 2, ''A Set of Three Short Pieces,'' and songs ''The All-Enduring'', ''The Innate'', and ''Song (She is not fair)''. Kalish appeared on Charles Schwartz's 1979 jazz symphony '' Mother______! Mother______!!'' with

Clark Terry Clark Virgil Terry Jr. (December 14, 1920 – February 21, 2015) was an American Swing music, swing and bebop trumpeter, a pioneer of the flugelhorn in jazz, and a composer and educator. He played with Charlie Barnet (1947), Count Basie (1948� ...

and

Zoot Sims John Haley "Zoot" Sims (October 29, 1925 – March 23, 1985) was an American jazz saxophonist, playing mainly tenor but also alto (and, later, soprano) saxophone. He first gained attention in the "Four Brothers" sax section of Woody Herman's big ...

. Kalish has given many first performances, and has had many works written for him. He gave the first solo piano recital in the newly renovated

Miller Theatre Miller Theatre at Columbia University is located on the Morningside Heights, Manhattan, Morningside Heights campus of Columbia University. It is a performing arts producer dedicated to developing and presenting new music. Originally named the ...

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

. He has received many honours, including four

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 ...

nominations, and the 2022 Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Classical Composition for his performance on composer Caroline Shaw’s “Narrow Sea” along with singer

and So Percussion. In 1995, he was presented with the Paul Fromm Award by the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...

Music Department for distinguished service to the music of our time.

Notes

References

Stony Brook: Gilbert Kalish
July 15, 1999 {{DEFAULTSORT:Kalish, Gilbert American male classical pianists Jewish classical pianists Arabesque Records artists Living people 1935 births Musicians from New York City Stony Brook University faculty 20th-century American pianists Classical musicians from New York (state) 21st-century American classical pianists 20th-century American male musicians 21st-century American male musicians