Biography (read more)
Murray Perahia was born in 1947 in New York City and began piano studies at age four. He attended Mannes College and later the Marlboro Music School and Festival, where he worked closely with Rudolf Serkin, Alexander Schneider, and Pablo Casals, and he also served as Serkin’s assistant at the Curtis Institute. In 1972 he became the first North American to win the Leeds International Piano Competition, launching a major international career.
Perahia is regarded as one of the leading pianists of his generation, especially celebrated for his interpretations of Bach, Mozart, and Beethoven. He has won three Grammy Awards and nine Gramophone Awards including the inaugural Gramophone Piano Award, was inducted into the Gramophone Hall of Fame in 2012, and was made an honorary Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 2004.
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