Daniel Levy (born 1947) is a classical pianist from Argentina. He is also an author, radio broadcaster and educator.

Early life

Levy was born in

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

, Argentina. He began playing the piano at age six and received a musical education under the tutorship of Ana Gelber and

Vincenzo Scaramuzza Vincenzo Scaramuzza (also known as Vicente Scaramuzza; 1885–1968) was an Italian pianist and music teacher. Biography Scaramuzza was born in Crotone, Italy, on June 19, 1885. Introduced to the piano by his father, Francesco, a renowned piano tea ...

, whose former pupils include

Martha Argerich Martha Argerich (; Eastern Catalan: �ɾʒəˈɾik born 5 June 1941) is an Argentine classical concert pianist. She is widely considered to be one of the greatest pianists of all time. Early life and education Argerich was born in Buenos Ai ...

and

Bruno Leonardo Gelber Bruno Leonardo Gelber (born 19 March 1941) is an Argentine classical pianist. Biography Gelber is an Argentine pianist born in Buenos Aires, with Austrian and French-Italian descent. His father was a violinist, his mother a pianist. He made hi ...

. He gave his debut performance at age 16, playing a piano recital with works by

Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard w ...

, Chopin and

Schumann Robert Schumann (; 8 June 181029 July 1856) was a German composer, pianist, and influential music critic. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest composers of the Romantic era. Schumann left the study of law, intending to pursue a career a ...

. In 1967 he won the piano competition and in 1969 was announced the winner of the Mozarteum piano competition.

Professional career

Levy has recorded extensively over a 43-year career, with a catalogue of over 50 recordings for the

Nimbus Records Nimbus Records is a British record company based at Wyastone Leys, Ganarew, Herefordshire. They specialise in classical music recordings and were the first company in the UK to produce compact discs. Description Nimbus was founded in 1972 by t ...

, Edelweiss Emission and Syntony record labels. His recording career has included a number of notable collaborations with artists that include

Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau (28 May 1925 – 18 May 2012) was a German lyric baritone and conductor of classical music, one of the most famous Lieder (art song) performers of the post-war period, best known as a singer of Franz Schubert's Lieder, ...

, the

Philharmonia Orchestra The Philharmonia Orchestra is a British orchestra based in London. It was founded in 1945 by Walter Legge, a classical music record producer for EMI. Among the conductors who worked with the orchestra in its early years were Richard Strauss, W ...

, Wolfgang Holzmair and Franco Maggio Ormezowski. Levy has performed in some of the world's most famous concert halls, including

Royal Festival Hall The Royal Festival Hall is a 2,700-seat concert, dance and talks venue within Southbank Centre in London. It is situated on the South Bank of the River Thames, not far from Hungerford Bridge, in the London Borough of Lambeth. It is a Grade I l ...

(London),

Teatro Colón The Teatro Colón (Spanish: ''Columbus Theatre'') is the main opera house in Buenos Aires, Argentina. It is considered one of the ten best opera houses in the world by National Geographic. According to a survey carried out by the acousti ...

(Buenos Aires) and

Teatro La Fenice Teatro La Fenice (, "The Phoenix") is an opera house in Venice, Italy. It is one of "the most famous and renowned landmarks in the history of Italian theatre" and in the history of opera as a whole. Especially in the 19th century, La Fenice bec ...

(Venice). His piano playing has been praised for its "lovely, crystalline tone" (Bernard Jacobson, ''

Fanfare A fanfare (or fanfarade or flourish) is a short musical flourish which is typically played by trumpets, French horns or other brass instruments, often accompanied by percussion. It is a "brief improvised introduction to an instrumental perfo ...

''), while he himself has been described as "a sensitive yet assertive musician who is profoundly committed to his art" (Ian Lace, ''Fanfare'').

Other activities

Daniel Levy is the author of the books ''

Euphony Phonaesthetics (also spelled phonesthetics in North America) is the study of beauty and pleasantness associated with the sounds of certain words or parts of words. The term was first used in this sense, perhaps by during the mid-20th century and ...

– The Sound of Life'' (Cassiopeia, 1986), ''Eternal Beauty'' (Cassiopeia, 1988) and ''Echoes of the Wind'' (Editorial Dunken, 2007). The book ''Euphony – The Sound of Life'' is currently being used as the main text in the Euphony – Implementing Teacher Knowledge project (2005–2007) as part of the European Union's Socrates- Grundtvig programme. Levy is also the main tutor of this programme. Levy's latest literary offering, ''Echoes of the Wind'', is an introspective novel that is accompanied by a CD of selected classical pieces chosen by the author. Levy is the co-founder of the International Academy of Euphony, an organization dedicated to the study of sound and its effects on the human psyche.

Discography

Edelweiss Emission recordings

* BRAHMS: Variations On A Theme by R. Schumann Op. 9, 3 Intermezzi Op. 117, 6 Klavierstücke Op. 118 * BRAHMS: THE SONATAS FOR VIOLIN AND PIANO, D.Levy – piano, N.Chumachenco – violin * SCHUMANN: THE COMPLETE PIANO WORKS Vol.1, Papillons Op.2, Impromptu on a theme by Clara Wieck Op. 5, Fantasie in C major, Op.17 * SCHUMANN: THE COMPLETE PIANO WORKS Vol.2, Drei Romanzen Op.28, Allegro Op.8, Sonata in F Sharp Minor Op.11 * SCHUMANN: THE CHAMBER MUSIC WITH PIANO, Violinsonaten Op. 105 & 121, '' Märchenerzählungen'' Op. 132, ''Drei Romanzen'' Op. 94, Adagio and Allegro Op. 70, '' Fantasiestücke'' Op. 73, '' Märchenbilder'' Op. 113, Daniel Levy – piano, N. Chumachenco – violin, viola, A. Morf – clarinet, P. Borgonovo – oboe, M. Rota – horn (2 CD) * SCHUMANN: LIEDER on poems by Heine, Lenau and Geibel, Wolfgang Holzmair – baritone, Daniel Levy – piano * CLARA WIECK SCHUMANN: Piano Works * SCHUBERT: Piano Sonata in G Major D894, Impromptus D899 * GRIEG: LYRIC PIECES, 66 LYRIC PIECES, SONATA Op. 7 (3 CD) * GRIEG: THE SONATAS FOR VIOLIN AND PIANO, Sonata in F Major, Sonata in G Major, Sonata in C Minor, Nicolás Chumachenco – violin, Daniel Levy – piano * CHOPIN: NOCTURNES * WALZER: BRAHMS, 16 Walzer Op.39; CHOPIN, 5 Walzer; LISZT, Valse Impromptu, Mephisto Waltz No.1; SCRIABIN, Valse Op.1, Valse Op.Post., Valse op.38 * A PIANO RECITAL FOR ITALY, music by Liszt * A PIANO RECITAL FOR THE WORLD'S CHILDREN, various composers (LIVE RECORDING) * A PIANO RECITAL FOR VENICE, various composers * BRAHMS: PIANO CONCERTO No.1, CHACONNA By Bach For The Left Hand, Daniel Levy – piano, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau – conductor, Philharmonia Orchestra * SCHUMANN: PIANO CONCERTO Op. 54 in A Minor, Konzertstücke Op.92 (Introduzione ed Allegro Appassionato); Schön Hedwig Op.106, Zwei Balladen for declamation and piano, Daniel Levy – piano, Philharmonia Orchestra, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau – conductor and declamation, (Daniel Levy's Edition – A Piano for Human Concord) * SCHUBERT: Piano Sonata in B Flat D960, Moments Musicaux D780, (Daniel Levy's Edition – A Piano for Human Concord) * BRAHMS: CELLO SONATAS, Sonata No.1 in E Minor Op.38, Sonata No.2 in F Major Op.99, Franco Maggio Ormezowski – cello, Daniel Levy – piano, (Daniel Levy's Edition – A Piano for Human Concord) * ALMA ARGENTINA: GUASTAVINO Mariana, El Ceibo, Bailecito, La Siesta, Tres Preludios: El Patio, El Sauce, Los Gorriones, La Casa, Tierra Linda; GINASTERA Tres Danzas Argentinas, Milonga; RAMIREZ

Alfonsina y el mar "Alfonsina y el mar" () is a zamba composed by Argentine pianist Ariel Ramírez and written by Argentine writer Félix Luna. It was first released as part of Mercedes Sosa's 1969 album ''Mujeres argentinas''. The song is a tribute to Argentine ...

; GARDEL El día que me quieras; PIAZZOLLA Tres preludios, Contrabajísimo (Daniel Levy's Edition – A Piano for Human Concord)

Nimbus Records recordings

* ''

: Piano Music'' Vol. 1, ''

Davidsbündlertänze ''Davidsbündlertänze'' (''Dances of the League of David''), Op. 6, is a group of eighteen pieces for piano composed in 1837 by Robert Schumann, who named them after his music society Davidsbündler. The low opus number is misleading: the work ...

'' Op. 6, ''

Kinderszenen ' (, "Scenes from Childhood"), Opus number, Op. 15, by Robert Schumann, is a set of thirteen pieces of music for piano written in 1838. History and description Schumann wrote 30 movements for this work but chose 13 for the final version. Th ...

'' Op. 15 * ''Schumann: Piano Music'' Vol. 2, ''

Album für die Jugend ''Album for the Young'' ('), Op. 68, was composed by Robert Schumann in 1848 for his three daughters. The album consists of a collection of 43 short works. Unlike the ', they are suitable to be played by children or beginners. The second part, s ...

'' Op. 68 * ''Schumann: Piano Music'' Vol. 3, '' Fantasiestücke'' Op. 12, Piano Sonata No. 2 Op. 22, ' Op. 32 * ''Schumann: Piano Music'' Vol. 4, ' Op. 133, ''

Waldszenen ''Waldszenen'' (''Forest Scenes''), Op. 82, is a set of nine short solo piano pieces composed by Robert Schumann in 1848–1849, first published in 1850–1851 in Leipzig by Bartholf Senff. On the set, Schumann wrote: "The titles for pieces of ...

'' Op. 82, ''

Nachtstücke The '' Nachtstücke'' or ''Night Pieces'' are a set of four character pieces for piano by the German composer and pianist Robert Schumann. Historical background The ''Nachtstücke'' (''Night Pieces''), Op. 23, were composed in 1839 together ...

'' Op. 23 * ''Schumann: Piano Music'' Vol. 5, '' Carnaval'' Op. 9, ''

Faschingsschwank aus Wien ''Faschingsschwank aus Wien'' (''Carnival Scenes from Vienna'' or ''Carnival Jest from Vienna''), Op. 26, is a solo piano work by Robert Schumann. He began composition of the work in 1839 in Vienna. He wrote the first four movements in Vienna, ...

'' Op. 26, '' Arabeske'' Op. 18

Syntony Recordings

The 7 Tones of Balance and Musical Ecology of the Mind: * Vol. 1: Strength * Vol. 2: Positive Optimism * Vol. 3: Courage * Vol. 4: Enthusiasm * Vol. 5: Joy * Vol. 6: Stillness * Vol. 7: Compassion * Vol. 8: Musical Ecology of the Mind

References

* Lace, Ian. "Daniel Levy – A Complete Musician", ''

'', Vol. 20, No. 6, July/August 1997 * Jacobson, Bernard. "Daniel Levy Talks About Music,

, Argentina, and (Briefly) Himself", ''Fanfare'', Vol. 24, No. 3, January/February 2001

External links

*
Daniel Levy's International Academy of Euphony

Edelweiss Emission Record’s website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Levy, Daniel Argentine classical pianists People from Buenos Aires Living people 1947 births Jewish classical pianists 21st-century classical pianists