Antonín Kubálek facts for kids
Antonín Kubálek (November 8, 1935 – January 18, 2011) was a talented classical pianist. He was from the Czech Republic and later became a Canadian citizen.
Life and career
Antonín Kubálek was born in Libkovice, Most District, which was then part of Czechoslovakia. He studied piano in Prague with a famous Czech pianist named František Maxián. In 1968, Kubálek moved to Canada and made his home in Toronto.
While living in Canada, Kubálek performed many concerts. He played by himself, with small groups of musicians, and with orchestras. His amazing musical skills were admired by people and critics all over the world. For example, at the 2002 Prague Spring Festival, he received three standing ovations after his performance. A standing ovation is when the audience stands up to clap because they loved the performance so much.
In November 2002, the Czech Music Council gave Kubálek a special honorary award from UNESCO. He knew a very wide range of music. This included Czech and Canadian songs, even new ones. He also loved playing romantic music by composers like Chopin, Schumann, and especially Brahms. Many people thought he was one of the best performers of Brahms's music in recent times.
Kubálek was also a respected teacher. He taught at several well-known schools, including The Royal Conservatory of Music and the University of Toronto. He also taught in Prague at the Prague Conservatory and the Prague Academy of Performing Arts.
He helped young artists by leading the Fred Gaviller Memorial Foundation in Toronto. This group helped new musicians give their first public concerts. Kubálek also helped the Kapralova Society in Toronto. In 2001, he was part of the first Canadian TV show about Vítězslava Kaprálová for CBC Radio 2. In 2003, he started a yearly festival for young pianists in the Czech Republic called The International Kubalek Piano Courses. Some of his important students were Richard Pohl and Birute Bizeviciute.
Antonín Kubálek was nominated twice for the Juno Award in Canada. This is a big music award in Canada. He passed away in Prague after having surgery for a brain tumour.
Discography
Kubálek was a very popular recording artist. "Discography" means a list of all the music he recorded. When he passed away, he had over a dozen CDs available. He also had two dozen LP records. His CD recordings on the Dorian Recordings label won awards. They received great reviews in famous music magazines like American Record Guide and Gramophone Magazine.
A famous Canadian pianist named Glenn Gould helped Kubálek's career in a special way. Glenn Gould usually didn't produce other artists' music. But he was so impressed by Kubálek's playing that he decided to produce one of his recordings. This recording was of the Second Piano Sonata by Erich Wolfgang Korngold. It was a unique musical partnership.
See also
In Spanish: Antonín Kubálek para niños
