Christina Petrowska Quilico (born December 30, 1948) is a Canadian

pianist A pianist ( , ) is an individual musician who plays the piano. Since most forms of Western music can make use of the piano, pianists have a wide repertoire and a wide variety of styles to choose from, among them traditional classical music, ja ...

. She is a professor emerita, senior scholar at

York University York University (french: Université York), also known as YorkU or simply YU, is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's fourth-largest university, and it has approximately 55,700 students, 7,0 ...

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

, Ontario, Canada. She was appointed to the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the ...

in 2020 “For her celebrated career as a classical and contemporary pianist and for championing Canadian music.” In 2021, she was named a

Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada Fellowship of the Royal Society of Canada (FRSC) is an award granted to individuals that the Royal Society of Canada judges to have "made remarkable contributions in the arts, the humanities and the sciences, as well as in Canadian public life ...

. In 2022, she was appointed to the

Order of Ontario The Order of Ontario () is the most prestigious official honour in the Canadian province of Ontario. Instituted in 1986 by Lieutenant Governor Lincoln Alexander, on the advice of the Cabinet under Premier David Peterson, the civilian order is adm ...

for having “opened the ears of music lovers internationally through numerous classical and contemporary performances…. As a Professor of Musicology and Piano at York University, she has received esteemed research awards. As a benefactor, she established The Christina and Louis Quilico Award at the Ontario Arts Foundation and the Canadian Opera Company.”

Early life and education

Petrowska Quilico was born on December 30, 1948, in Ottawa, Ontario. Barely four months after turning 14, she made her performance debut at The Town Hall in New York City (May 4, 1963). She was attending the

Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most el ...

, where she went on to obtain her

Bachelor of Music Bachelor of Music (BM or BMus) is an academic degree awarded by a college, university, or conservatory upon completion of a program of study in music. In the United States, it is a professional degree, and the majority of work consists of prescr ...

and

Master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

Career

After graduating from Juilliard, Petrowska Quilico went for post-graduate studies to Paris. She studied with

Karlheinz Stockhausen Karlheinz Stockhausen (; 22 August 1928 – 5 December 2007) was a German composer, widely acknowledged by critics as one of the most important but also controversial composers of the 20th and early 21st centuries. He is known for his groun ...

and Gyorgy Ligeti at the

Darmstädter Ferienkurse Darmstädter Ferienkurse ("Darmstadt Summer Course") is a regular summer event of contemporary classical music in Darmstadt, Hesse, Germany. It was founded in 1946, under the name "Ferienkurse für Internationale Neue Musik Darmstadt" (Vacation Cou ...

, and began teaching. She later taught at

The Royal Conservatory of Music The Royal Conservatory of Music (RCM), branded as The Royal Conservatory, is a non-profit music education institution and performance venue headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded in 1886 by Edward Fisher as The Toronto Con ...

Carleton University Carleton University is an English-language public research university in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Founded in 1942 as Carleton College, the institution originally operated as a private, non-denominational evening college to serve returning World ...

and University of Ottawa before joining the faculty of music at

in 1987. She is a leading performer of Canadian music, and has many recordings of solo repertoire as well as chamber works and concertos on the

Canadian Music Centre The Canadian Music Centre was founded in 1959 by a group of Canadian composers who saw a need to create a repository for Canadian music. It now holds Canada's largest collection of Canadian concert music, and works to promote the music of its As ...

's Centrediscs label. Her double album of the complete Glass Houses cycle by her late friend, composer

Ann Southam Ann Southam, (4 February 1937 – 25 November 2010) was a Canadian electronic and classical music composer and music teacher. She is known for her minimalist, iterative, and lyrical style, for her long-term collaborations with dance choreogra ...

, "remains Centrediscs’ best-selling CD of all time". As a duo with violinist

Jacques Israelievitch Jacques Israelievitch, CM (May 6, 1948 – September 5, 2015) was a French violinist, and one of Canada's foremost chamber musicians. Born in Cannes, France, at 11 years old he was the youngest graduate in the history of the Le Mans Conservatory. ...

, she recorded an album of Canadian music on Centrediscs and the Mozart violin and piano sonatas on the Fleur de Son label. In 1992, astronaut Steve MacLean brought her recording of

Alexina Louie Alexina Diane Louie, (born July 30, 1949) is a Canadian composer of contemporary art music. She has composed for various instrumental and vocal combinations in a variety of genres. She has fulfilled a number of commissions, and her works, whic ...

’s Star-Filled Night on his first mission to the Space Shuttle Columbia. In 2006, on board the

Space Shuttle Atlantis Space Shuttle ''Atlantis'' (Orbiter Vehicle designation: OV‑104) is a Space Shuttle orbiter vehicle which belongs to NASA, the spaceflight and space exploration agency of the United States. ''Atlantis'' was manufactured by the Rockwell Inte ...

, MacLean took the recording of her as soloist in the world premiere performance of David Mott's piano concerto Eclipse. A visual artist as well, she has created the covers for several of her Centrediscs CDs, notably Visions, which also features her paintings throughout the booklet. In 2007, Petrowska Quilico received the Friends of Canadian Music Award from the

and

Canadian League of Composers The Canadian League of Composers is an organization formed in 1951 of Canadian composers primarily interested in raising awareness and acceptance of Canadian music. Its activities are overseen and directed by an executive, and by a National Council ...

. In 2020, she was appointed as a member of the

. In May 2021, she was a winner of the York University Research Awards, and in September was named a

. The

was accorded her in 2022.

Personal life

Quilico was married to composer Michel-Georges Brégent until he died in 1993. She subsequently remarried, to baritone

Louis Quilico Louis Quilico, (January 14, 1925 – July 15, 2000) was a Canadian opera singer. One of the leading dramatic baritones of his day, he was an ideal interpreter of the great Italian and French composers, especially Giuseppe Verdi. He was often ...

, , who died seven years later. In his memory, she created The Christina and Louis Quilico Award, which is administered by the

Ontario Arts Foundation The Ontario Arts Foundation is a non-governmental not for profit organization established in 1991 under the Ontario Corporations Act to encourage and facilitate private giving to the arts in Ontario, Canada. The group is distinct from the Ontario ...

and held every two years under the auspices of the Canadian Opera Company.

Selected Discography

Orchestral / Concertos / Small Ensembles

* “Tapestries” Centrediscs, CD-CMCCD 17011. (2011) Heather Schmidt: Piano Concerto No. 2 with the

Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony Orchestra The Regional Municipality of Waterloo (Waterloo Region or Region of Waterloo) is a metropolitan area of Southern Ontario, Canada. It contains the cities of Cambridge, Kitchener and Waterloo (KWC or Tri-Cities), and the townships of North Dumf ...

, Daniel Warren, conductor. Concerto nominated for

Juno Award The Juno Awards, more popularly known as the JUNOS, are awards presented annually to Canadian musical artists and bands to acknowledge their artistic and technical achievements in all aspects of music. New members of the Canadian Music Hall of ...

, Juno Awards of 2012#Classical Composition of the Year * “3 Concerti” Centrediscs, CD-CMCCD 15610. (2010) Piano concerti by Violet Archer, Larysa Kuzmenko, and

with the

CBC Vancouver Orchestra The CBC Radio Orchestra was a Canadian orchestra based in Vancouver, British Columbia, that was operated by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Until the early 1980s CBC had a number of orchestras located in Winnipeg, Toronto, Montreal, and Hal ...

Sir John Eliot Gardiner Sir John Eliot Gardiner (born 20 April 1943) is an English conductor, particularly known for his performances of the works of Johann Sebastian Bach. Life and career Born in Fontmell Magna, Dorset, son of Rolf Gardiner and Marabel Hodgkin, Gard ...

, conductor; the

Toronto Symphony The Toronto Symphony Orchestra (TSO) is a Canadian orchestra based in Toronto, Ontario. Founded in 1906, the TSO gave regular concerts at Massey Hall until 1982, and since then has performed at Roy Thomson Hall. The TSO also manages the Toronto ...

with

Jukka Pekka Saraste Jukka-Pekka Saraste (born 22 April 1956) is a Finnish conductor and violinist. Biography Saraste was born in Heinola He was trained as a violinist. He later studied conducting at the Sibelius Academy with Jorma Panula in the same class as Esa-Pe ...

, conductor; and the National Arts Centre Orchestra, Alex Pauk, conductor. Kuzmenko concerto nominated for

, Juno Awards of 2011#Classical Composition of the Year * David Mott “Eclipse” Centrediscs, CD-CMCCD 12707. (2007) Piano concerto with the World Chamber Ensemble, Mark Chambers, conductor. Also, solo piano music. * “Mozart Sonatas and Variations for Piano and Violin Volumes 1 & 2” Fleur de Son/ Naxos, FDS58034 & FDS58040. (2016, 2017) With

, violin. American Record Guide Critic’s Choice (Vol. 2), 2018 * “Vocal Gems (live from New York)”, with

, baritone, Welspringe (2003)

* “Mr. Rigoletto: My Life in Music”

Analekta Analekta is Canada's largest independent classical music recording label. The label, which takes its name from the Greek word ''analekta'' ("a collection of the finest works"), was founded in 1988 by the Canadian music industry manager and entre ...

, FL 2 3143. (2000) Baritone

performs opera arias and art songs in Italian and French, some with Petrowska Quilico as pianist

Solo albums

* "Vintage Americana" Navona Records, NV6384. (2021) Works by

Lowell Liebermann Lowell Liebermann (born February 22, 1961 in New York City) is an American composer, pianist and conductor. Life and career At the age of sixteen, Liebermann performed at Carnegie Hall, playing his Piano Sonata, op. 1. He studied at the Juilliar ...

David Del Tredici David Walter Del Tredici (born March 16, 1937) is an American composer. He has won a Pulitzer Prize for Music and is a former Guggenheim and Woodrow Wilson fellow. Del Tredici is considered a pioneer of the Neo-Romantic movement. He has also bee ...

Frederic Rzewski Frederic Anthony Rzewski ( ; April 13, 1938 – June 26, 2021) was an American composer and pianist, considered to be one of the most important American composer-pianists of his time. His major compositions, which often incorporate social an ...

, David Jaeger,

Mario Davidovsky Mario Davidovsky (March 4, 1934 – August 23, 2019) was an Argentine-American composer. Born in Argentina, he emigrated in 1960 to the United States, where he lived for the remainder of his life. He is best known for his series of compositions ca ...

and Paul Huebner * "Retro Americana" Navona Records, NV6361. (2021) Works by

Henry Cowell Henry Dixon Cowell (; March 11, 1897 – December 10, 1965) was an American composer, writer, pianist, publisher and teacher. Marchioni, Tonimarie (2012)"Henry Cowell: A Life Stranger Than Fiction" ''The Juilliard Journal''. Retrieved 19 June 202 ...

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

, Bill Westcott,

Meredith Monk Meredith Jane Monk (born November 20, 1942) is an American composer, performer, director, vocalist, filmmaker, and choreographer. From the 1960s onwards, Monk has created multi-disciplinary works which combine music, theatre, and dance, recording ...

and Art Tatum * “Sound Visionaries” Navona Records, NV6358. (2021)

Debussy (Achille) Claude Debussy (; 22 August 1862 – 25 March 1918) was a French composer. He is sometimes seen as the first Impressionist composer, although he vigorously rejected the term. He was among the most influential composers of the ...

: Preludes Book 2;

Messiaen Olivier Eugène Prosper Charles Messiaen (, ; ; 10 December 1908 – 27 April 1992) was a French composer, organist, and ornithology, ornithologist who was one of the major composers of the 20th-century classical music, 20th century. His m ...

: 7 of the Vingt Regards sur l’Enfant Jésus;

Pierre Boulez Pierre Louis Joseph Boulez (; 26 March 1925 – 5 January 2016) was a French composer, conductor and writer, and the founder of several musical institutions. He was one of the dominant figures of post-war Western classical music. Born in Mont ...

: first and third sonatas *

“Soundspinning” Centrediscs, CD-CMCCD 26018. (2018) Early works * “Global Sirens” Fleur de Son/Naxos, FDS 58046. (2018) Rare works by women composers from around the world * “Worlds Apart” Centrediscs, CD-CMCCD 23717. (2017) 2-CD set, comprising “Classics with a Twist”: Works by

John Rea (composer) John Rea (born 1944) is a Montreal-based composer who won the Jules Léger Prize for New Chamber Music in both 1981 and 1992. He obtained his bachelor's degree at Wayne State University (1967), his Master of Music degree at the University of Tor ...

, Steven Gellman and

Peter Paul Koprowski Peter Paul Koprowski (born 24 August 1947, in Łódź) is a Canadian composer, conductor, music educator, and pianist of Polish descent. He became a Canadian citizen in 1976. As a composer he is chiefly known for his large output of symphonic wo ...

; and “Worlds Apart”: Works by David Jaeger, Diana MacIntosh, Micheline Coulombe Saint Marcoux, Patrick Cardy and Michel-Georges Brégent *

“Glass Houses Vol. 1 & 2” Centrediscs, CD-CMCCD 22215: the complete 15 Glass Houses, comprising “Glass Houses Volume 2” Centrediscs, CD-CMCCD 20114. (2014); and “Glass Houses Revisited” 9 revised Glass Houses. Centrediscs, CD-CMCCD 16511. (2011) Nominated for

, Juno Awards of 2012#Classical Composition of the Year *

Ernesto Nazareth Ernesto Júlio de Nazareth (March 20, 1863 – February 1, 1934) was a Brazilian composer and pianist, especially noted for his creative Maxixe and Choro compositions. Influenced by a diverse set of rhythms like the polka, the habanera, and the l ...

“Tangos Brasileiros” Marquis Classics, MAR81519. (2013) Two CD set * Constantine Caravassilis “Visions: The Complete Books of Rhapsodies and Fantasias” Centrediscs, CMCCD 18613. (2013) A two CD set, with cover and booklet art by Christina Petrowska Quilico *

“Pond Life” Centrediscs, CMCCD 14109. (2009) A 2 CD set * “Canadian Composers Portraits: Ann Southam” Centrediscs, CMCCD 10505. (2005) A 3-CD set of the cycle Rivers. * Michel-Georges Brégent “16 PORTRAITS” Centrediscs, CMCCD 10805. (2005) A 2 CD set of the Romantic Etudes

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Petrowska Quilico, Christina 1948 births Living people The Royal Conservatory of Music alumni The Royal Conservatory of Music faculty Juilliard School alumni Canadian classical pianists Canadian women pianists Musicians from Ottawa 21st-century classical pianists York University faculty Women classical pianists Members of the Order of Canada Musicians from Toronto 21st-century women pianists