Murray Perahia: The Legendary Pianist and Conductor from Ealing

Brought to you by:

Sam Habeeb

"Shadow MP Campaigner of Ealing North"

Murray Perahia: The Legendary Pianist and Conductor from Ealing
Credit: The Cross-Eyed Pianist

Murray David Perahia was born on April 19, 1947. He is an American pianist and conductor. He has been considered one of the greatest living pianists. He was the first North American pianist to win the Leeds International Piano Competition, in 1972. Known as a leading interpreter of Bach, Handel, Scarlatti, Mozart, Beethoven, and Schumann, among other composers, Perahia has won numerous awards, including three Grammy Awards from a total of 18 nominations, and 9 Gramophone Awards in addition to its first and only “Piano Award”.

Early life

Murray (Moshe) was born in the Bronx borough of New York City to a family of Sephardi Jewish origin. According to the biography on his Mozart piano sonatas CD, his first language was Judaeo-Spanish or Ladino. The family came from Thessaloniki, Greece. His father moved to the United States in 1935.

He began taking piano lessons at age four with a teacher, he said, who was “very limiting” because she made him play a single piece until it was perfect. He said his musical interests blossomed at age 15 for reasons he can’t explain, and he began to practice seriously.

At age 17, Perahia attended Mannes College, where he studied keyboard, conducting, and composition with his teacher and mentor Mieczysław Horszowski. During the summer, he also attended the Marlboro Music School and Festival, where he studied with musicians Rudolf Serkin, Alexander Schneider, and Pablo Casals, among others. He played duets for piano four hands with Serkin, who later made Perahia his assistant at the Curtis Institute in Philadelphia, a position he held for over a year.

In 1965, Perahia won the Young Concert Artists International Auditions. In 1972, he was the first North American to win first prize at the Leeds Piano Competition, helping to cement its reputation for advancing the careers of young pianists.

Career

In 1973, Perahia worked with Benjamin Britten and Peter Pears at the Aldeburgh Festival, and with fellow pianist Radu Lupu. He was co-artistic director of the Festival from 1981 to 1989.

In the 1980s, Perahia was invited by Vladimir Horowitz, an admirer of his art, to work with him. Perahia says that this had a defining influence on his pianism. He became very close to Horowitz, to whom he regularly visited during his last four years to play for him.

From 1973 to 2010, Perahia has recorded exclusively for Columbia Masterworks, now Sony Classical. He first recorded all of Mozart’s 27 piano concertos conducted from the keyboard with the English Chamber Orchestra. In the 1980s, he recorded Beethoven’s five piano concertos with Bernard Haitink and the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra.

Does Murray Perahia have any hand injuries?

In 1990, Perahia suffered a cut to his right thumb, which became septic. He took antibiotics for this condition, but they affected his health. In 1992, his career was threatened by a bone abnormality in his hand causing inflammation, requiring several years away from the keyboard and a series of operations. During that time, he says, he found solace through studying the music of J.S. Bach. After his recovery, he made a series of award-winning recordings of Bach’s keyboard works in the late 1990s, including a notable rendition of the Goldberg Variations.

During the early months of 2005, Perahia’s hand returned to causing trouble, and it was decided in consultation with doctors that he withdraw from the concert platform. Canceled appearances for the Barbican Centre and a ten-city national tour around the United States were followed in 2006 by recitals around German cities. He returned, however, and gave recitals at the Barbican in April 2007.

In 2007 he completed a second ten-city American tour. Due to his hand problem, and on the advice of his doctor, Perahia canceled a February 2008 solo recital at the Barbican Centre and a tour in the United States with the Academy of St Martin in the Fields (March and April 2008). He returned to the platform in August 2008, touring with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra under the direction of Bernard Haitink, and had an Asian recital tour in October and November.

What is Murray Perahia doing now?

Perahia has made recordings of Chopin’s études, and Schubert’s late piano sonatas. He is presently editing a new Urtext edition of Beethoven’s piano sonatas. In addition to his solo work, Perahia is involved in chamber music and frequently performs with the Guarneri and Budapest String Quartets. He is also Principal Guest Conductor of the Academy of St Martin in the Fields, with whom he records and tours.

In January 2009, Murray Perahia became the president of the Jerusalem Music Center founded by violinist Isaac Stern. He stated in an interview with Haaretz newspaper, “Music is an ideal world where all dissonances resolve, where all modulations-that are journeys-return home, and where surprise and stability coexist.

On April 1, 2014, Perahia played Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 20 with the Academy of St Martin in the Fields under Marriner at that conductor’s 90th birthday concert.

Perahia joined Deutsche Grammophon in 2016, and his first recording for the label was Bach’s French Suites, which was released in October 2016. On April 16, 2024, Perahia played at Wigmore Hall in return after a six-year health absence.

Is Murray Perahia a teacher?

Upon graduation from Mannes, Perahia was appointed to the faculty and taught there from 1969 to 1979. Perahia was invited to teach at the International Piano Foundation Theo Lieven (known today as the International Piano Academy Lake Como) to selected students.

He has given masterclasses at such institutions as Juilliard School, Stanford University, and Peabody Institute, among many others. He annually conducts a summer course at the Jerusalem Music Centre for young Israeli pianists, aged 12 to 18.

He continues to give frequent masterclasses as president of the JMC. Perahia plans to hold a series of masterclasses in Munich on Beethoven’s piano sonatas, hosted by the publisher G. Henle Verlag, with ten young professional pianists.

Where Does Murray Perahia Live?

Perahia lives in London with his wife, Ninette Shohet, who is of Iraqi-Jewish heritage. He has two adult sons, Benjamin and Raphael.

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Brought to you by:

Sam Habeeb

"Shadow MP Campaigner of Ealing North"

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