Name Emanuel Ax Role Classical pianist | ||
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Emanuel ax brahms piano concerto no 2 in b flat major op 83
Emanuel Ax (born 8 June 1949) is a Grammy-winning Soviet-born naturalized American classical pianist. He is a teacher on the faculty of the Juilliard School.
Contents
- Emanuel ax brahms piano concerto no 2 in b flat major op 83
- Mendelssohn piano trios itzhak perlman yo yo ma emanuel ax album promo
- Early life
- Musical style
- Personal life
- Awards and recognitions
- References
Mendelssohn piano trios itzhak perlman yo yo ma emanuel ax album promo
Early life
Ax was born to a Polish-Jewish family in Lviv, Ukraine, (then in the USSR) to Joachim and Hellen Ax, both Nazi concentration camp survivors. Ax began to study piano at the age of six; his father was his first piano teacher. When he was seven the family moved to Warsaw, Poland (where he studied piano playing at Miodowa school) and then two years later to Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada where he continued to study music, including as a member of The Junior Musical Club of Winnipeg. In 1961 the family moved to New York City and Ax continued his studies at the Juilliard School under Mieczysław Munz. In 1970 he received his B.A. in French at Columbia University and became an American citizen. In 1973 he won the Young Concert Artists International Auditions.
Musical style
Ax is a particular supporter of contemporary composers and has given three world premieres in the last few seasons; Century Rolls by John Adams, Seeing by Christopher Rouse and Red Silk Dance by Bright Sheng. He also performs works by such diverse figures as Michael Tippett, Hans Werner Henze, Joseph Schwantner and Paul Hindemith, as well as more traditional composers such as Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, and Chopin.
Ax has been the main duo recital partner of cellist Yo-Yo Ma since August 3, 1973 when the pair performed its first public recital at the Marlboro Music School and Festival. They have recorded much of the cello/piano repertoire together. Ax also played quartets briefly with Ma and violinists Isaac Stern and Jaime Laredo. Before the quartet disbanded in 2001 due to the death of Stern, they recorded works for Sony by Brahms, Fauré, Beethoven, Schumann and Mozart. Ax is also a featured guest artist in a documentary film about the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and Peter Oundjian, Five Days in September; the Rebirth of an Orchestra.
In 1997, Ax was the Music Director of the Ojai Music Festival alongside the conductor Daniel Harding.
He holds honorary doctorates of music from Yale University (awarded in May 2007) and Columbia University. He is a recipient of Yale University's Sanford Medal.
Personal life
Ax lives in New York City with his wife, pianist Yoko Nozaki, and has two children, Joey and Sarah. He continues to speak fluent Polish and uses it with his family at home.
He co-constructed the April 19, 2017 New York Times Crossword Puzzle
Awards and recognitions
Grammy Award for Best Chamber Music Performance:
Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Soloist Performance (without orchestra):