The pianist Neil Galanter began his musical studies at the
age of seven. He gave his first recital at the age of nine, and made his debut
at twelve with orchestra. He has since gone on to play many recitals and
concerts spanning four continents including appearances throughout the USA, Mexico, Canada, Europe, Australia, New Zealand and Asia. His concerts have brought him to such venues as
Centenary Hall in Leeds, Salle Cortot in Paris, McCain Hall in Dublin, Ulster
Hall in Belfast, the Sydney Opera House and the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam.
He received his Bachelor of Music with minors in French Language and
Journalism from the University of Michigan
at Ann Arbor, and a MM in Piano
Performance in Philadelphia where he was a
student of Alexander Fiorillo, student of Horowitz. He received his Doctoral degree in Music from the University of Southern California(USC). He also
studied at the Juilliard School of Music and Manhattan School of Music in New
York. His teachers have included such well-known
pianists as Adele Marcus, Theodore Lettvin, Robert Goldsand, Jerome Rose, and
Nicholas Zumbro.
Dr. Galanter was the recipient of a fellowship and Spanish Music Prize two
years in a row from the commission for "Musica en Compostela" from
the Spanish Government in Santiago Spain.
He has done extensive research in the origins of Spanish Piano Music of
the
19th and 20th centuries, which is one of his specialties. He has been
on the faculties of Temple University, University of Arizona,
Settlement School in Philadelphia, Bethesda University, Muzikschule-Habichtswald in
Germany, and also as a Visiting Artist in Residence at A&M
University in Huntsville, Alabama.
Other awards include a first prize in the Jackson Symphony Piano
Competition, the Young Artists Award from the Detroit Symphony, the silver
medal from the Amsterdamse Regio Muziek Concurrentie and fellowships and
scholarships at the New England Conservatory of Music, Manhattan School of Music, Temple
University Philadelphia,
and at the University of Southern
California in Los Angeles.
His recital activities have included complete performances of
Goyescas the Spanish Piano Suite of Enrique Granados, Iberia
of Albeniz, as well as varied recital programs including many of the important
Spanish, English, French and Belgian composers. He has performed recitals of
Spanish music and English music in England,
Ireland, Holland
and Paris and has made two tours to
Australia and New
Zealand where he played concerts in Melbourne,
Brisbane, Perth,
Sydney, Toowoomba, Christchurch
& Dunedin. A recent tour of Ireland
and the UK
included a performance of the Liszt E Flat Concerto with the Cork Symphony
Orchestra.
He is a researcher and exponent of music of many major Spanish, English,
French and Belgian composers: Albeniz, Absil, Bax, Bliss, Blancafort, Granados,
De Falla, Poot, Turina, Mompou and Montsalvatge among others. Senor Montsalvatge
himself has lauded Mr. Galanter's interpretations of Spanish Music and invited
Mr. Galanter recently to Spain
to meet him and his wife after the composer heard Mr. Galanter's
interpretations of his works on his newly released CD of all Spanish Music.
William Blezard of the UK
wrote a piano work especially for Mr. Galanter during one of his Australian Tours.
He also has played the French, Russian, American, English, Spanish and Belgian Repertoires extensively
and as well as the works of the Australian composers Percy Grainger and Arthur
Benjamin. He is also a linguist & has worked as an interpreter/translator being fluent in five languages: French, German, Dutch, Swedish and English.
His
musical interests are varied and broad and stretch from many unusual
and neglected repertoires of Western European composers all the way to
myriads of Pop/Rock, Indie, alternative, Folk and Brazilian Music. His
library of recordings equally includes music of the great Rock and Pop
Stars such as Elton John, Billy Joel, Queen, Police, Duran Duran, The
Beatles, ABBA,The Kinks, The Smiths, Zappa, etc. just as it does the
great Classical Standards. He also has a voracious interest in
singer/songwriters such as Jacques Brel, Serge Gainsbourg, Antonio
Carlos Jobim (Tom Jobim), David Bowie, Arno, and brilliant living young
talents such as Sondre Lerche and MIKA.
In recent seasons, he collaborated in a series of chamber music and solo
concerts with members of the LA Philharmonic, including several performances of
the TURINA Piano Quartet. In October he gave the American Premiere of the
Belgian Composer Marcel Poot's Piano Concerto in Los
Angeles with the Los Angeles Valley Symphony
Orchestra. He has been a professor and lecturer at many institutions including Temple University, A&M University in Alabama, and USC. He currently lectures and teaches at Loyola Marymount University and records for Disques Pyrennes.
personal representative: Richard Poundstone
Poundstone & Cameron Associates
poundcam@yahoo.co.uk
