Duncan Gifford
Encyclopedia
Duncan George Gifford is an Australia
n-born award-winning concert pianist and teacher. He has been a professor of piano at the Conservatory of Palma in Majorca since 2006. Musica Viva
describes him as a "major artist of his generation". The Sydney Morning Herald
described him as "a virtuosic and musically eloquent soloist".
and educated at Newington College
(1985–1990), the Sydney Conservatorium of Music
and in Russia at the Moscow Conservatory
.
. He was the highest placed Australian competitor in the history of the competition (this has since been equalled by Daniel Hill, who placed 3rd at the 2004 competition). He won 4th Prize in the 1994 Dublin International Piano Competition and 3rd Prize in the 1996 Montreal International Piano Competition. He was awarded 1st Prize, and the Beethoven
and Chopin
Prizes, in the 1998 José Iturbi International Piano Competition
in Spain
, 1st Prize in the 1999 Concours Prix Mozart in Lausanne
, and 1st Prize in the 2000 Maria Callas
Grand Prix de Piano in Athens
.
, Russia
, Japan
, Australasia
, and in the United States
where he gave his Carnegie Hall
debut recital in 1999. In 1993 he released his first CD
featuring the music of Tchaikovsky
and Rachmaninoff
.
, where he is professor of piano.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n-born award-winning concert pianist and teacher. He has been a professor of piano at the Conservatory of Palma in Majorca since 2006. Musica Viva
Musica Viva Australia
Musica Viva Australia is the oldest independent performing arts organisation in Australia and the world's largest entrepreneur of chamber music. It was formed in 1945 in Sydney by violist Richard Goldner...
describes him as a "major artist of his generation". The Sydney Morning Herald
The Sydney Morning Herald
The Sydney Morning Herald is a daily broadsheet newspaper published by Fairfax Media in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1831 as the Sydney Herald, the SMH is the oldest continuously published newspaper in Australia. The newspaper is published six days a week. The newspaper's Sunday counterpart, The...
described him as "a virtuosic and musically eloquent soloist".
Early life
Gifford was born in SydneySydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
and educated at Newington College
Newington College
Newington College is an independent, Uniting Church, day and boarding school for boys, located in Stanmore, an inner-western suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia....
(1985–1990), the Sydney Conservatorium of Music
Sydney Conservatorium of Music
The Sydney Conservatorium of Music is one of the oldest and most prestigious music schools in Australia...
and in Russia at the Moscow Conservatory
Moscow Conservatory
The Moscow Conservatory is a higher musical education institution in Moscow, and the second oldest conservatory in Russia after St. Petersburg Conservatory. Along with the St...
.
Piano competitions
Gifford's impressive record of international piano competition awards began in 1992, when he won the 3rd Prize in the Sydney International Piano CompetitionSydney International Piano Competition
The Sydney International Piano Competition of Australia is a music competition, presented by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation in association with the University of Sydney and broadcast live throughout Australia. It is held every four years, over a three-week period in July-August, and is...
. He was the highest placed Australian competitor in the history of the competition (this has since been equalled by Daniel Hill, who placed 3rd at the 2004 competition). He won 4th Prize in the 1994 Dublin International Piano Competition and 3rd Prize in the 1996 Montreal International Piano Competition. He was awarded 1st Prize, and the Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven was a German composer and pianist. A crucial figure in the transition between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western art music, he remains one of the most famous and influential composers of all time.Born in Bonn, then the capital of the Electorate of Cologne and part of...
and Chopin
Frédéric Chopin
Frédéric François Chopin was a Polish composer and virtuoso pianist. He is considered one of the great masters of Romantic music and has been called "the poet of the piano"....
Prizes, in the 1998 José Iturbi International Piano Competition
José Iturbi International Piano Competition
The José Iturbi Competition is an international piano competition named after the famed Spanish virtuoso José Iturbi, who later became a famous Hollywood actor. Created in 1981, it has been held ever since in the month of September and is part of the World Federation of International Music...
in Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, 1st Prize in the 1999 Concours Prix Mozart in Lausanne
Lausanne
Lausanne is a city in Romandy, the French-speaking part of Switzerland, and is the capital of the canton of Vaud. The seat of the district of Lausanne, the city is situated on the shores of Lake Geneva . It faces the French town of Évian-les-Bains, with the Jura mountains to its north-west...
, and 1st Prize in the 2000 Maria Callas
Maria Callas
Maria Callas was an American-born Greek soprano and one of the most renowned opera singers of the 20th century. She combined an impressive bel canto technique, a wide-ranging voice and great dramatic gifts...
Grand Prix de Piano in Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
.
Performance career
Gifford has performed with orchestras and in recitals throughout EuropeEurope
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, Australasia
Australasia
Australasia is a region of Oceania comprising Australia, New Zealand, the island of New Guinea, and neighbouring islands in the Pacific Ocean. The term was coined by Charles de Brosses in Histoire des navigations aux terres australes...
, and in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
where he gave his Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, United States, located at 881 Seventh Avenue, occupying the east stretch of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street and West 57th Street, two blocks south of Central Park....
debut recital in 1999. In 1993 he released his first CD
Compact Disc
The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...
featuring the music of Tchaikovsky
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (Russian: Пётр Ильи́ч Чайко́вский ; often "Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky" in English. His names are also transliterated "Piotr" or "Petr"; "Ilitsch", "Il'ich" or "Illyich"; and "Tschaikowski", "Tschaikowsky", "Chajkovskij"...
and Rachmaninoff
Sergei Rachmaninoff
Sergei Vasilievich Rachmaninoff was a Russian composer, pianist, and conductor. Rachmaninoff is widely considered one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a composer, one of the last great representatives of Romanticism in Russian classical music...
.
Teaching career
Since 1996, Gifford has been based in MadridMadrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
, where he is professor of piano.