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The Australian pianist, composer, conductor and teacher, Albert Landa, made his debut as a child prodigy at Sydney Town Hall at age 10, and completed his AmusA at 11. From 1966 he studied at the Royal Academy of Music in London with Clifford Curzon. In 1967 he appeared on British television in the Daniel Barenboim Master Class series and for six months he was solo pianist with the Royal Ballet Company as well as with London’s Festival Ballet, conducting it on several occasions.
After his return to Australia in 1971, where his inaugural recital at the then NSW State Conservatorium of Music was received with ‘rave’ reviews in the press, he soon found himself in high demand as a concerto soloist, performing a total of 13 piano concertos with all the major Australian orchestras as well as local amateur orchestras. He is one of Australia’s most celebrated and acclaimed concert pianists. One of the highlights was to partner violinist Pinchas Zuckerman in a performance of the Alban Berg Concerto for Piano, Violin and 13 Wind Instruments with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra under Willem van Otterloo. Landa also gave the world premiere of Australian composer Raymond Hanson’s Piano Concerto. Around this time he also released several recordings of Popular Piano Classics on the EMI label - these were the most commercially successful albums of classical piano music recorded by an Australian pianist up to that date.
Albert Landa also made a mark as a chamber musician, performing with all the leading Australian artists, and in 1972 undertook a tour of South East Asia under the auspices of the Department of Foreign Affairs. He has given numerous broadcasts both on radio and television, including a recital with commentary on the life of Frédéric Chopin. Teaching came to take precedence over his performing career with his appointment to the position of Lecturer in Piano at the Sydney Conservatorium (1971-1995).
His recording of J.S. Bach's complete Well-Tempered Clavier, recorded in 2009 and realesed by ABC Classics in 2011, marks his return to the studio after some years of relative retirement. |
