Simon Tedeschi | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Background information | |
| Born | 1 May 1981 Gosford, Australia |
| Occupation | Pianist |
| Website | simontedeschi |
Simon Tedeschi (born 1 May 1981) is an Australian classical pianist and writer.
Simon Tedeschi | |
|---|---|
| | |
| Background information | |
| Born | 1 May 1981 Gosford, Australia |
| Occupation | Pianist |
| Website | simontedeschi |
Simon Tedeschi (born 1 May 1981) is an Australian classical pianist and writer.
Tedeschi was born in Gosford to Mark Tedeschi QC, Senior Crown Prosecutor for New South Wales, [1] and doctor Vivienne Tedeschi, the daughter of a Polish Holocaust survivor, Lucy Gershwin. [2]
Raised in a Jewish household, he grew up on the North Shore of Sydney [3] and attended Beaumont Road Public School in West Killara [4] and St Andrew's Cathedral School in Sydney where the headmaster discouraged him from taking part in sports lest he damage his hands. [5]
His teachers were Neta Maughan in Australia, Noretta Conci in England and Peter Serkin in the United States.
When he was 9 years old, Tedeschi performed Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 19, K.459 in the Sydney Opera House. At age 13, he played for Luciano Pavarotti. [6]
Tedeschi signed with Sony Music Australia in 2000. [7] His debut CD, Simon Tedeschi, was nominated for at the ARIA Music Awards of 2000 for Best Classical Album. [8] In 2004 he recorded Tchaikovsky's 1st Piano Concerto and Grieg's Piano Concerto with the Queensland Symphony Orchestra with Richard Bonynge. His album, Grieg / Tchaikovsky – Piano Concertos, peaked at No. 12 on the ARIA Classical chart in October 2005. [9]
In November 2012 he released his next album, Gershwin and Me (Universal Music Group/ABC), which reached No. 4 on the ARIA Classical, No. 5 on the ARIA Hitseekers Albums, No. 68 on the ARIA Top 100 Physical Albums charts in January 2013. [10] In that year, a follow-up album, Gershwin Take 2, by Tedeschi with James Morrison and Sarah McKenzie was issued. [11] It received two ARIA Award nominations in 2014 for Virginia Read's work as engineer and producer. [12]
He released a recording of Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition for ABC/Universal [13] and performed Rachmaninoff's Piano concerto no. 4 with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra. [14]
He appeared regularly on the TV show Spicks and Specks on ABC TV, [15] and he participated in the Oscar-winning movie Shine , where he played the hands of David Helfgott. [16] [17]
In 2022, Tedeschi published his first book entitled Fugitive, an unclassifiable work encompassing prose poetry, philosophy, memoir, meditation, aphorism and essay; the title is a reference to Prokofiev's collection of piano miniatures, Visions fugitives . [18] It was shortlisted for the 2023 Victorian Premier's Prize for Poetry. [19] In May 2022, Tedeschi was announced as the winner of the Australian Book Review 's Calibre Prize for his essay "This woman my grandmother". [20] Fugitive was shortlisted for the Judith Wright Calanthe Award for a Poetry Collection at the 2023 Queensland Literary Awards. [21]
He played the role of Mozart in Sydney Opera House's Babies Proms, [22] and performed a show based on his childhood, Simon Tedeschi: Pianist and Prankster at the Monkey Baa Theatre Company. [23]
Tedeschi currently lives in Sydney with his wife, painter Loribelle Spirovski. [18]
| Title | Details |
|---|---|
| Simon Tedeschi |
|
| Piano Concertos: Tchaikovsky, Grieg (with The Queensland Orchestra & Richard Bonynge) |
|
| Simon Tedeschi & Ian Cooper (with Ian Cooper) |
|
| Gershwin & Me |
|
| Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 23, KV488 (with Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra & Alexander Briger) |
|
| Gershwin & Me: Take Two |
|
| Tender Earth: Australian Music for Piano |
|
| Enoch Arden (with Alfred Tennyson, Richard Strauss & John Bell) |
|
| A Winter's Tale (with Roger Benedict) |
|
Tedeschi was awarded the ABC Young Performer of the Year in 1998, [24] performing the Ginastera Piano Concerto no. 1 with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Jun Märkl. He was also the winner of the top prize in the keyboard section of the Royal Over-Seas League Music Competition in London (2002). [25]
In January 2001 Tedeschi was awarded a Centenary of Federation Medal by the then Prime Minister of Australia John Howard with a citation, "For service as a Young Australian of the Year Finalist." [26]
The ARIA Music Awards is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of Australian music. They commenced in 1987.
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Simon Tedeschi | Best Classical Album | Nominated | [27] |
| 2006 | Piano Concertos: Tchaikovsky, Grieg (with The Queensland Orchestra & Richard Bonynge) | Best Classical Album | Nominated | |
| 2014 | Virginia Read for Gershwin: Take Two | Engineer of the Year | Nominated | |
| Producer of the Year | Nominated | |||
| 2023 | Debussy – Ravel (with Roger Benedict) | Best Classical Album | Nominated | [28] |
The competition has been an important launch-pad for many successful music careers, unearthing an extraordinary number of talents including Simon Tedeschi
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