David Greilsammer (10 August 1977) is a

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 ...

and conductor.

Biography

David Greilsammer is the eldest of five brothers, and lives nowadays between

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...

and

Medellín Medellín ( or ), officially the Municipality of Medellín ( es, Municipio de Medellín), is the second-largest city in Colombia, after Bogotá, and the capital of the department of Antioquia. It is located in the Aburrá Valley, a central re ...

. He studied at 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 ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, as a student of pianist

Yoheved Kaplinsky Yoheved "Veda" Kaplinsky (born March 23, 1947 in Tel Aviv, British Mandate of Palestine ow Israel">Israel.html" ;"title="ow Israel">ow Israel is a lecturer and professor of music at the Juilliard School. She heads the Pre-College department at Juil ...

. At Juilliard, he received a Bachelor and Master’s degree, and later on he studied with American pianist

Richard Goode Richard Goode (born June 1, 1943) is an American classical pianist who is especially known for his interpretations of Mozart and Beethoven. Early life Goode was born in the East Bronx, New York. He studied piano with Elvira Szigeti, Claude Fra ...

, in New York. In 2004, David Greilsammer made his debut at

Lincoln Center Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (also simply known as Lincoln Center) is a complex of buildings in the Lincoln Square neighborhood on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. It has thirty indoor and outdoor facilities and is host to 5 millio ...

in New York, in a performance that was praised by The

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

. He then signed his first recording contract with

Vanguard Records Vanguard Recording Society is an American record label set up in 1950 by brothers Maynard and Seymour Solomon in New York City. It was a primarily classical label at its peak in the 1950s and 1960s, but also has a catalogue of recordings by a n ...

, releasing his first album, dedicated to

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his ra ...

's Early Piano Concertos, which he played and conducted. It is at that period of his life that he started appearing also as a conductor, in addition to his engagements as pianist. Shortly after his first album was released, David Greilsammer started performing in a variety of concert halls and festivals internationally as pianist and conductor, like the Wigmore Hall in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

Suntory Hall The is a concert venue in the central Akasaka district of Tokyo, Japan. Part of the Ark Hills complex, it consists of a main concert hall, widely considered one of the finest in the world for its acoustics — indeed Herbert von Karajan called i ...

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

Théâtre du Châtelet The Théâtre du Châtelet () is a theatre and opera house, located in the place du Châtelet in the 1st arrondissement of Paris, France. One of two theatres (the other being the Théâtre de la Ville) built on the site of a ''châtelet'', a s ...

, and the Forbidden City Theatre in Beijing. In 2006 David Greilsammer founded the Suedama Ensemble in New York. He recorded with this orchestra several albums, all dedicated to Mozart - a composer that he has been passionate about all his life. He was also appointed to the role of

Music Director A music(al) director or director of music is the person responsible for the musical aspects of a performance, production, or organization. This would include the artistic director and usually chief conductor of an orchestra or concert band, the d ...

of the Geneva Chamber Orchestra in 2009. Since 2013, David Greilsammer has served as Music and Artistic Director of the Geneva Camerata, an orchestra that presents eclectic multidisciplinary projects, in

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

and around the world. Swiss journalist Jean-Philippe Rapp is the President of the orchestra’s board. With the Geneva Camerata, David Greilsammer has performed at the

Berlin Philharmonie The Berliner Philharmonie () is a concert hall in Berlin, Germany, and home to the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra. The Philharmonie lies on the south edge of the city's Tiergarten and just west of the former Berlin Wall. The Philharmonie is on ...

, Hamburg Elbphilharmonie,

92nd Street Y 92nd Street Y, New York (92NY) is a cultural and community center located on the Upper East Side of Manhattan in New York City, at the corner of East 92nd Street and Lexington Avenue. Founded in 1874 as the Young Men's Hebrew Association, the ...

in New York, Théâtre des Champs-Elysées in Paris, Musashino Hall in Tokyo,

Sala São Paulo The Júlio Prestes Cultural Center, which is located in the Júlio Prestes Train Station in the old north central section of the city of São Paulo, Brazil, was inaugurated on July 9, 1999. The building has been restored and renovated by the Sã ...

Teatro Solis Teatro may refer to: * Theatre * Teatro (band) Teatro, Italian for "theatre", is a vocal group signed to the Sony BMG music label. The members of Teatro are Jeremiah James, Andrew Alexander, Simon Bailey and Stephen Rahman-Hughes. Band member ...

in Montevideo and the

Seoul Arts Center The Seoul Arts Center, also referred to as SAC, is an arts complex in the Seocho-gu district of Seoul, in South Korea. It consists of five main buildings: the Opera House, with three auditoriums; the Music Hall, with two concert halls; the Han ...

. Since 2022, David Greilsammer also serves as Chief Conductor and Music Director of the Medellín Philharmonic Orchestra in Colombia. As a conductor and pianist, David Greilsammer has appeared with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, the

San Francisco Symphony The San Francisco Symphony (SFS), founded in 1911, is an American orchestra based in San Francisco, California. Since 1980 the orchestra has been resident at the Louise M. Davies Symphony Hall in the city's Hayes Valley neighborhood. The San Fr ...

, Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France,

Hamburg Symphony Orchestra The Symphoniker Hamburg (''Hamburg Symphony Orchestra'') is a German orchestra based in Hamburg, Germany. Founded in 1957, it is one of the city's three largest orchestras. The Hamburg Symphony Orchestra is the orchestra in residence in the Laei ...

, the Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra, the Mozarteum Orchestra Salzburg, the Mexico National Symphony Orchestra, the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra, La Verdi Orchestra in Milano, the Beijing National Symphony Orchestra, and the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra. David Greilsammer's recitals - always featuring innovative and ground-breaking programmes - have been presented at the

Amsterdam Concertgebouw The Royal Concertgebouw ( nl, Koninklijk Concertgebouw, ) is a concert hall in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The Dutch term "concertgebouw" translates into English as "concert building". Its superb acoustics place it among the finest concert halls i ...

, Salle Pleyel in Paris, Mostly Mozart Festival in New York, Ravinia Festival in Chicago, Kennedy Center in Washington D.C, Hong Kong City Hall Concert Hall in

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

Shanghai Oriental Art Center The Shanghai Oriental Art Center (), abbreviated SHOAC, is one of the leading performance and cultural facilities in Shanghai. The five interconnected hemispherical halls or "petals" are shaped to resemble a butterfly orchid from above.SHOAC"Prel ...

, CENART in Mexico City, the Verdi Auditorium in Milano, the Picasso Museum in Malaga,

Centro Cultural de Belém Centro may refer to: Places Brazil *Centro, Santa Maria, a neighborhood in Santa Maria, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil *Centro, Porto Alegre, a neighborhood of Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil *Centro (Duque de Caxias), a neighborhood of Duqu ...

in Lisbon, and the Israeli Opera House.

Artistic vision and projects

David Greilsammer has always been passionate about innovation and about creating new, eclectic, and audacious musical projects. Throughout his life, his goal has been to bring

classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical music, as the term "classical music" also ...

to a wider and younger public, making it more accessible and more open. He has made several recordings dedicated to Mozart and in 2008, he decided to perform, in one single day in Paris all of Mozart’s Piano Sonatas, without any intermission, from 10am to 10pm. The same year, he also performed this Mozart “marathon" at the Verbier Festival in Switzerland and on tour in various other venues. David Greilsammer has created numerous projects that bring to life unexpected links between

Baroque music Baroque music ( or ) refers to the period or dominant style of Western classical music composed from about 1600 to 1750. The Baroque style followed the Renaissance period, and was followed in turn by the Classical period after a short transiti ...

and

Contemporary music Contemporary classical music is classical music composed close to the present day. At the beginning of the 21st century, it commonly referred to the post-1945 modern forms of post-tonal music after the death of Anton Webern, and included serial ...

. His " Scarlatti:

Cage A cage is an enclosure often made of mesh, bars, or wires, used to confine, contain or protect something or someone. A cage can serve many purposes, including keeping an animal or person in captivity, capturing an animal or person, and displayin ...

:Sonatas” recital is an example of such a project, creating a surprising encounter between past and present. He has also collaborated with many

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

and world music artists. Following his mission to open classical music to new audiences, he has also created a variety of projects bringing together classical music with

dance Dance is a performing art form consisting of sequences of movement, either improvised or purposefully selected. This movement has aesthetic and often symbolic value. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

and

visual arts The visual arts are art forms such as painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, ceramics, photography, video, filmmaking, design, crafts and architecture. Many artistic disciplines such as performing arts, conceptual art, and textile arts al ...

. In 2011, he signed an exclusive contract with Sony Classical, recording four award-winning albums for this label. In 2020, he signed an exclusive contract with

naïve Naivety (also spelled naïvety), naiveness, or naïveté is the state of being naive. It refers to an apparent or actual lack of experience and sophistication, often describing a neglect of pragmatism in favor of moral idealism. A ''naïve'' may b ...

, releasing a new solo album named “Labyrinth”. This album has been praised by The New York Times among other newspapers, magazines, and radio stations.

Discography

* Mozart, Early Piano Concertos - with Suedama Ensemble, David Greilsammer, piano and conductor (2006, Vanguard Records). * fantaisie_fantasme - piano solo (2007, naïve) * Mozart, Concertos No. 22 and 24 - with Suedama Ensemble, David Greilsammer piano and conductor (2009, naïve). * Gershwin/ Tansman/

Boulanger Boulanger () is a typical French and Francophone surname, equivalent of the English ''Baker'', the Italian ''Panettiere'', etc. It is shared by several notable persons: *André Boulanger (1886–1958), French professor of literature and Latin sch ...

- live concert at Salle Pleyel in Paris, with the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France (2010, naïve). * Baroque Conversations - piano solo (2011, Sony Classical) * Mozart In-Between (2012, Sony Classical) * Scarlatti:Cage:Sonatas - piano and prepared piano (2014, Sony Classical) * Sounds of Transformation, with the Geneva Camerata and jazz pianist

Yaron Herman Yaron Herman ( he, ירון הרמן; born 12 July 1981) is a French-Israeli jazz pianist Jazz piano is a collective term for the techniques pianists use when playing jazz. The piano has been an integral part of the jazz idiom since its incept ...

(2018, Sony Classical) * Labyrinth - piano solo (2020, naïve)

Awards and distinctions

* French Classical Awards "

Victoires de la Musique Classique The Victoires de la musique classique (; en, "Victories of Classical Music") are an annual French classical music award event founded in 1986. The awards are the classical equivalent of the popular music awards Victoires de la Musique and the Victo ...

": Revelation of the Year - Instrumental Soloist, 2008 * Mozart: Concertos de jeunesse, disque de l'année selon le

Daily Telegraph Daily or The Daily may refer to: Journalism * Daily newspaper, newspaper issued on five to seven day of most weeks * ''The Daily'' (podcast), a podcast by ''The New York Times'' * ''The Daily'' (News Corporation), a defunct US-based iPad new ...

, 2007 * fantaisie_fantasme, « Choc », Le Monde de la musique * fantaisie_fantasme, Album of the year,

Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, whi ...

, 2008 * fantaisie_fantasme, Maestro Prize, Pianiste Magazine, 2008 * Baroque Conversations, Selection "Best Classical Music Recordings of 2012", New York Times * Mozart In-Between, Selection "Times Critics Favorite Classical Recordings of 2013", New York Times * Scarlatti:Cage:Sonatas, "Un des dix plus importants événements musicaux de l'année", New York Times, 2014 * Scarlatti:Cage:Sonatas, Selection "NPR Music's 25 Favorite Albums Of 2014 (So Far)", NPR * Sounds of Transformation, Selection "Best Classical Releases of January 2018", WQXR * Best performance of the year, Geneva Camerata's "Dance of the Sun", New York Times, 2019 * Labyrinth, Selection "The Best Music Of 2020: NPR Staff Picks", NPR * Labyrinth, Selection "Top 10 classical music albums of 2020",

The Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...

, 2020 * Labyrinth, Selection "10 best classical albums of 2020",

Haaretz ''Haaretz'' ( , originally ''Ḥadshot Haaretz'' – , ) is an Israeli newspaper. It was founded in 1918, making it the longest running newspaper currently in print in Israel, and is now published in both Hebrew and English in the Berliner f ...

, 2020 * Labyrinth, Selection "The 25 Best Classical Music Tracks of 2020", The New York Times, 2020

References

External links

David Greilsammer’s Official Website

Geneva Camerata Official Website

Naïve’s Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Greilsammer, David 21st-century classical pianists Living people 1977 births