Sondra Bianca (17 November 1930) is an American born

concert pianist A pianist ( , ) is a musician who plays the piano. A pianist's repertoire may include music from a diverse variety of styles, such as traditional classical music, jazz, blues, and popular music, including rock and roll. Most pianists can, to ...

and

pedagogue Pedagogy (), most commonly understood as the approach to teaching, is the theory and practice of learning, and how this process influences, and is influenced by, the social, political, and psychological development of learners. Pedagogy, taken ...

who retired early in her career from recording and live performances.

Career

A child

prodigy Prodigy, Prodigies or The Prodigy may refer to: * Child prodigy, a child who produces meaningful output to the level of an adult expert performer ** Chess prodigy, a child who can beat experienced adult players at chess Arts, entertainment, and m ...

, Bianca first studied with her mother and then with Frank Sheridan at Mannes Music School and Isabella Vergerova at the

Curtis Institute of Music The Curtis Institute of Music is a private conservatory in Philadelphia. It offers a performance diploma, a Bachelor of Music, Master of Music in opera, and a Professional Studies Certificate in opera. All students attend on a full scholarshi ...

. This led to what is documented as an amazing performance as a nine-year-old of a

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791) was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition and proficiency from an early age ...

piano concerto, played from memory, for 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 ...

- which led to her later appearing with this orchestra as a soloist. Her career, therefore, started before the age of ten, at which time she was a soloist with the Schenectady Symphony Orchestra and performed over

CBC Radio CBC Radio is the English-language radio operations of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. The CBC operates a number of radio networks serving different audiences and programming niches, all of which (regardless of language) are outlined below ...

in their French division. Later in her career, she performed in Europe with the

Hamburg Symphony Orchestra The Symphoniker Hamburg (''Hamburg Symphony Orchestra'') is a German orchestra based in Hamburg, Germany. Founded in 1957, it is one of the city's three largest orchestras. The Hamburg Symphony Orchestra is the orchestra in residence in the Lae ...

conducted by Hans-Jurgen Walther, the

conducted by Carl-August Bünte and the New Symphony Society Orchestra conducted by

Walter Goehr Walter Goehr (; 28 May 19034 December 1960) was a German composer and conductor who from 1937, lived and worked in the UK. He was the father of composer Alexander Goehr. Biography Goehr was born in Berlin, where he studied with Arnold Schoenberg a ...

among others. One of her notable American performances was on January 20, 1955, when she was the guest soloist with the Florida Symphony conducted by

Frank Miller Frank Miller (born January 27, 1957) is an American comic book artist, comic book writer, and screenwriter known for his comic book stories and graphic novels such as his run on ''Daredevil'', for which he created the character Elektra, and ...

. The programme included Andre Bloch's "Concerto No. 1",

Liszt Franz Liszt (22 October 1811 – 31 July 1886) was a Hungarian composer, virtuoso pianist, conductor and teacher of the Romantic period. With a diverse body of work spanning more than six decades, he is considered to be one of the most pro ...

's "Concerto in E flat", Glinka's Overture to "Russian and Ludmilla",

Handel George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel ( ; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque composer well-known for his operas, oratorios, anthems, concerti grossi, and organ concerti. Born in Halle, Germany, H ...

's "

Water Music The ''Water Music'' (German: ''Wassermusik'') is a collection of orchestral movements, often published as three Suite (music), suites, composed by George Frideric Handel. It premiered on 17 July 1717, in response to George I of Great Britain, ...

" and Georges Enesco's "Roumanian Rhapsody No. 1". Another notable performance was the piece Rhapsody 21 for the

Century 21 Exposition The Century 21 Exposition (also known as the Seattle World's Fair) was a world's fair held April 21, 1962, to October 21, 1962, in Seattle, Washington, United States.Paul Whiteman Paul Samuel Whiteman (March 28, 1890 – December 29, 1967) was an American Jazz bandleader, composer, orchestral director, and violinist. As the leader of one of the most popular dance bands in the United States during the 1920s and early 193 ...

. One of the specialties in her

repertoire Repertory or repertoire () is the list or set of works a person or company is accustomed to performing. Whether the English or French spelling is used has no bearing, but it was the French word, with an accent on the first e, , that first took ho ...

was

George Gershwin George Gershwin (; born Jacob Gershwine; September 26, 1898 – July 11, 1937) was an American composer and pianist whose compositions spanned jazz, popular music, popular and classical music. Among his best-known works are the songs "Swan ...

's "Piano Concerto in F". Due to its ban in

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

it was unpopular in that country for many years. Recent study has shown that she may have been the first to perform the concerto in that country after the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. After retiring from live performances, she continued teaching other young pianists. Due to her early exit from performing, she is regarded as something of a mystery by modern enthusiasts of her surviving recordings.

Pseudonym recordings

For reasons unclear, her recordings were released on various budget record labels under a handful of

pseudonyms A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true meaning (orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individual's ow ...

. Some of these names include: Albert Cohen, Karl Bernhard, Frederick Antenelli, David Haines and Suzanne Auber.

Partial discography

Ravel Joseph Maurice Ravel (7 March 1875 – 28 December 1937) was a French composer, pianist and conductor. He is often associated with Impressionism in music, Impressionism along with his elder contemporary Claude Debussy, although both composer ...

- '
Mother Goose Suite
'' - Piano Solo *

Grieg Edvard Hagerup Grieg ( , ; 15 June 18434 September 1907) was a Norwegian composer and pianist. He is widely considered one of the leading Romantic era composers, and his music is part of the standard classical repertoire worldwide. His use of N ...

- Piano Concerto in A minor - Pro Musica Hamburg Conducted by Hans Jurgen Walther Parlophone LP PMC1034 (1953) *

Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer during the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music made a lasting impression internationally. Tchaikovsky wrote some of the most popular ...

- Piano Concerto No. 1 in B flat minor - Carl Bamberger Conducting (Columbia Records HS 11012, 1950s) * Toni Mineo &

Paul Whiteman Paul Samuel Whiteman (March 28, 1890 – December 29, 1967) was an American Jazz bandleader, composer, orchestral director, and violinist. As the leader of one of the most popular dance bands in the United States during the 1920s and early 193 ...

- Rhapsody 21 (World'd Fair Records XTV 82079) * Chopin waltzes (Concert Hall Records), (

Musical Masterpiece Society Concert Hall Society, Inc., was a New York City-based membership-subscription-oriented record production and distribution company founded in 1946 by Samuel Mulik Josefowitz (1921–2015) and David Josefowitz (1918–2015), brothers. The New York ...

MMS 2131) *

Richard Addinsell Richard Stewart Addinsell (13 January 190414 November 1977) was an English composer, best known for film music, primarily his '' Warsaw Concerto'', composed for the 1941 film ''Dangerous Moonlight'' (also known under the later title ''Suicide Sq ...

Warsaw Concerto The ''Warsaw Concerto'' is a short work for piano and orchestra by Richard Addinsell, written for the 1941 British film ''Dangerous Moonlight'', which is about the Polish struggle against the 1939 invasion by Nazi Germany. In performance it norma ...

(Lion Records L 70110, 1954) *

- Hungarian Fantasy -

Jean Martinon Jean Francisque-Étienne Martinon (also known as Jean Martinon (); 10 January 19101 March 1976) was a French conductor and composer. Biography Martinon was born in Lyon, where he began his education, going on to the Conservatoire de Paris to ...

conducting the Lamoureux Orchestra of Paris (Plymouth Records P12.37, 1952) *

- Hungarian Fantasy - Carl Bamberger conducting the Norddeutsche Symphonie Orchester (

MMS-166, Germany) *

- Piano Concerto No. 1 -

conducting the Lamoureux Orchestra of Paris (Plymouth Records P12.38, 1952) * George Gershwin - Piano Concerto in F, Variations on "

I Got Rhythm "I Got Rhythm" is a piece composed by George Gershwin with lyrics by Ira Gershwin and published in 1930, which became a jazz standard. Its chord progression, known as the " rhythm changes", is the foundation for many other popular jazz tunes su ...

" (

MMS-161, Germany) * Sondra Bianca - Piano Favorites (Tops Records L-912-69)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bianca, Sondra 1930 births Musicians from Brooklyn American classical pianists American women classical pianists American music educators American women music educators Piano educators Living people 20th-century American pianists 20th-century American women pianists Educators from New York City 21st-century classical pianists 21st-century American women pianists Mannes School of Music alumni Curtis Institute of Music alumni 21st-century American pianists