James Tocco
Encyclopedia
James Tocco is an American
concert pianist
. He is the youngest of thirteen children born to Vincenzo and Rose Tocco, both Sicilian immigrants.
. He won a scholarship to the Salzburg Mozarteum and a French government grant to study with Magda Tagliaferro in Paris. His classical music
education was completed with Claudio Arrau
in New York. Soon afterward, he became more prominent with his first-prize victory in the ARD International Music Competition
in Munich, followed being a replacement for Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli
as guest soloist for the Tchaikovsky First Piano Concerto at the Vienna Festival
.
, Japan, Australia, South Africa
, and the Middle East
. His orchestral engagements include:
and the BBC
London Symphony Orchestra
, and the Corigliano Piano Concerto.
The pianist’s performances included his Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
debut, performing the MacDowell Concerto and Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue
, both conducted by Leonard Slatkin. An especially accomplished recitalist, Mr. Tocco has performed interpretations of Beethoven, Chopin, and Liszt, as well as 20th-century composers, and he regularly programs the keyboard works of Handel. Other performances include Bernstein’s Age of Anxiety with Marin Alsop
and the New York Symphony, and Leonard Slatkin and the BBC London Symphony.
Recently, he performed a recording of Corigliano’s Etude-Fantasy on Sony Classical
.
and professor of piano at the Musikhochschule
in Lübeck
, Germany. Mr. Tocco is also the artistic director of the Great Lakes Chamber Music
Festival in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan
.
, an international professional music fraternity.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
concert pianist
Pianist
A pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers.-Choice of genres:...
. He is the youngest of thirteen children born to Vincenzo and Rose Tocco, both Sicilian immigrants.
Early life
Born of Sicilian immigrant parents in Detroit, Mr. Tocco’s love of music -especially opera—began in early childhood. At six years old he began studying piano and at twelve he made his orchestral debut, performing Beethoven’s Second Piano ConcertoPiano concerto
A piano concerto is a concerto written for piano and orchestra.See also harpsichord concerto; some of these works are occasionally played on piano...
. He won a scholarship to the Salzburg Mozarteum and a French government grant to study with Magda Tagliaferro in Paris. His classical music
Classical music
Classical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...
education was completed with Claudio Arrau
Claudio Arrau
Claudio Arrau León was a Chilean pianist known for his interpretations of a vast repertoire spanning from the baroque to 20th-century composers, especially Beethoven, Schubert, Chopin, Schumann, Liszt, Brahms and Debussy...
in New York. Soon afterward, he became more prominent with his first-prize victory in the ARD International Music Competition
ARD International Music Competition
The ARD International Music Competition is the largest international classical music competition in Germany. It is held once a year in Munich.-History:...
in Munich, followed being a replacement for Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli
Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli
Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli was a virtuoso Italian classical pianist. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest pianists of the 20th century, as well as one of the most important Italian pianists along with Ferruccio Busoni and Maurizio Pollini.-Biography:Born in Brescia, Italy, he began...
as guest soloist for the Tchaikovsky First Piano Concerto at the Vienna Festival
Vienna Festival
The Wiener Festwochen is a cultural festival in Vienna that takes place every year for five or six weeks in May and June.The Wiener Festwochen was established in 1951, when Vienna was still occupied by the four Allies...
.
Career
In the years since then he has concertized internationally, throughout North and South America, Europe, the Soviet UnionSoviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
, Japan, Australia, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
, and the Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
. His orchestral engagements include:
- Cleveland and Minnesota orchestras;
- Berlin Philharmonic
- London Philharmonic
- Hong Kong and Munich philharmonics
- London, Houston, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Detroit, Chicago, New World, National, and NHK (Japan) symphonies.
Conductors
Conductors with whom he has collaborated include:- Marin AlsopMarin AlsopMarin Alsop is an American conductor and violinist. She is the music director of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra.In 2012, Alsop will replace Yan Pascal Tortelier as principal conductor of the São Paulo State Symphony Orchestra....
- David AthertonDavid AthertonDavid Atherton OBE, is an English conductor.-Background:Atherton was born in Blackpool, Lancashire in a musical family. He was educated at Blackpool Grammar School. His father, Robert Atherton, was the Music Master at St Joseph's College, Blackpool and was also a conductor...
- Esa-Pekka SalonenEsa-Pekka SalonenEsa-Pekka Salonen is a Finnish orchestral conductor and composer. He is currently Principal Conductor and Artistic Advisor of the Philharmonia Orchestra in London and Conductor Laureate of the Los Angeles Philharmonic.-Early career:...
- Jesús Lopez-Cobos
- Andrew LittonAndrew LittonAndrew Litton is an American orchestral conductor. Litton is a graduate of The Fieldston School, and holds both undergraduate and Masters degrees in music from Juilliard....
- Yoav Talmi
- Robert ShawRobert Shaw (conductor)Robert Shaw was an American conductor most famous for his work with his namesake Chorale, with the Cleveland Orchestra and Chorus, and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and Chorus. Shaw received 14 Grammy awards, four ASCAP awards for service to contemporary music, the first Guggenheim Fellowship...
- Yoel LeviYoel LeviYoel Levi is a musician and conductor. Born in Romania, he grew up in Israel. He studied at the Tel Aviv Academy of Music, earning a Master of Arts degree with distinction. He also studied at the Jerusalem Academy of Music under Mendi Rodan. Levi won the 1978 International Besançon Competition...
- Zdenek MacalZdenek MácalZdeněk Mácal is a Czech conductor.Mácal began violin lessons with his father at age four. He later attended the Brno Conservatory and the Janáček Academy of Music and Performing Arts, where he graduated in 1960 with top honors. He became principal conductor of the Prague Symphony Orchestra and...
Musical Performance
Mr. Tocco is a recitalist, orchestral soloist, chamber musician, and educator. He has performed many American and European masterworks, including Bernstein’s Age of Anxiety, which he recorded with Leonard SlatkinLeonard Slatkin
Leonard Edward Slatkin is an American conductor and composer.-Early life and education:Slatkin was born in Los Angeles to a musical family that came from areas of the Russian Empire now in Ukraine. His father Felix Slatkin was the violinist, conductor and founder of the Hollywood String Quartet,...
and the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
London Symphony Orchestra
London Symphony Orchestra
The London Symphony Orchestra is a major orchestra of the United Kingdom, as well as one of the best-known orchestras in the world. Since 1982, the LSO has been based in London's Barbican Centre.-History:...
, and the Corigliano Piano Concerto.
The pianist’s performances included his Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
The Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra is a symphony orchestra of the Netherlands, based at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam. In 1988, Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands conferred the "Royal" title upon the orchestra...
debut, performing the MacDowell Concerto and Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue
Rhapsody in Blue
Rhapsody in Blue is a musical composition by George Gershwin for solo piano and jazz band written in 1924, which combines elements of classical music with jazz-influenced effects....
, both conducted by Leonard Slatkin. An especially accomplished recitalist, Mr. Tocco has performed interpretations of Beethoven, Chopin, and Liszt, as well as 20th-century composers, and he regularly programs the keyboard works of Handel. Other performances include Bernstein’s Age of Anxiety with Marin Alsop
Marin Alsop
Marin Alsop is an American conductor and violinist. She is the music director of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra.In 2012, Alsop will replace Yan Pascal Tortelier as principal conductor of the São Paulo State Symphony Orchestra....
and the New York Symphony, and Leonard Slatkin and the BBC London Symphony.
Discography
Mr. Tocco’s discography includes:- Bernstein’s complete solo piano music
- Solo piano version of the Suite from Rodeo
- The complete Chopin Préludes
- The complete piano music of Charles TomlinsonCharles TomlinsonAlfred Charles Tomlinson, CBE is a British poet and translator, and also an academic and artist. He was born and raised in Penkhull in the city of Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire.-Life:...
Griffes - Erwin Schulhof’s Cinq Etudes de Jazz
- Bach-Liszt organ transcriptions
- Four piano sonatas of Edward MacDowellEdward MacDowellEdward Alexander MacDowell was an American composer and pianist of the Romantic period. He was best known for his second piano concerto and his piano suites "Woodland Sketches", "Sea Pieces", and "New England Idylls". "Woodland Sketches" includes his most popular short piece, "To a Wild Rose"...
.
Recently, he performed a recording of Corigliano’s Etude-Fantasy on Sony Classical
Sony BMG Masterworks
Sony Masterworks is a record label. It is the result of a restructuring of Sony Music Entertainment's classical music division. Before the acquisition of Bertelsmann's shares in the former Sony BMG, the label was known as Sony BMG Masterworks....
.
Educational Work
In addition to his itinerary, Mr. Tocco is Eminent Scholar/Artist in Residence at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, a faculty member at the Manhattan School of MusicManhattan School of Music
The Manhattan School of Music is a major music conservatory located on the Upper West Side of New York City. The school offers degrees on the bachelors, masters, and doctoral levels in the areas of classical and jazz performance and composition...
and professor of piano at the Musikhochschule
Musikhochschule Lübeck
The Lübeck Academy of Music in Lübeck, Germany, is the only higher level music school in the northernmost state of Schleswig-Holstein. The school is located in the World Heritage city of Lübeck, a historic hanseatic city. The school was founded in 1973 but its tradition goes back to 1911. The...
in Lübeck
Lübeck
The Hanseatic City of Lübeck is the second-largest city in Schleswig-Holstein, in northern Germany, and one of the major ports of Germany. It was for several centuries the "capital" of the Hanseatic League and, because of its Brick Gothic architectural heritage, is listed by UNESCO as a World...
, Germany. Mr. Tocco is also the artistic director of the Great Lakes Chamber Music
Chamber music
Chamber music is a form of classical music, written for a small group of instruments which traditionally could be accommodated in a palace chamber. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small number of performers with one performer to a part...
Festival in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan
Bloomfield Hills, Michigan
Bloomfield Hills is a city in Oakland County of the U.S. state of Michigan, northwest of downtown Detroit. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 3,869...
.
Honors
He is a National Patron of Delta OmicronDelta Omicron
Delta Omicron is a co-ed international professional music honors fraternity whose mission is to promote and support excellence in music and musicianship.-History:...
, an international professional music fraternity.
Reviews
- The New York Times, February 5, 1986: Recital - James Tocco, Liszt and Bach Tribute. Review by Donal Henahan
- The New York Times, August 12, 2005: Adventures Outside the Classical Canon: Pathfinding Composers "Here are some favorite contemporary recordings of the classical-music critics of The New York TimesThe New York TimesThe New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
."