Simon Tedeschi
Simon Tedeschi (born 1 May 1981) is an Australian classical pianist and writer.
Simon Tedeschi | |
|---|---|
| Background information | |
| Born | 1 May 1981 Gosford, Australia |
| Occupation(s) | Pianist |
| Website | simontedeschi |
Early life edit
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 USA.
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[citation needed].
Career edit
Tedeschi signed with Sony Music Australia in 2000.[6] His debut CD, Simon Tedeschi, was nominated for at the ARIA Music Awards of 2000 for Best Classical Album.[7] 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.[8]
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.[9] In that year, a follow-up album, Gershwin Take 2, by Tedeschi with James Morrison and Sarah McKenzie was issued.[10] It received two ARIA Award nominations in 2014 for Virginia Read's work as engineer and producer.[11]
He released a recording of Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition for ABC/Universal[12] and performed Rachmaninoff's Piano concerto no. 4 with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra.[13]
Media edit
He appeared regularly on the TV show Spicks and Specks on ABC TV,[14] and he participated in the Oscar-winning movie Shine, where he played the hands of David Helfgott.[15][16]
Writing edit
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.[17] It was shortlisted for the 2023 Victorian Premier's Prize for Poetry.[18] In May 2022, Tedeschi was announced as the winner of the Australian Book Review's Calibre Prize for his essay "This woman my grandmother".[19] Fugitive was shortlisted for the Judith Wright Calanthe Award for a Poetry Collection at the 2023 Queensland Literary Awards.[20]
Work for children edit
He played the role of Mozart in Sydney Opera House's Babies Proms,[21] and performed a show based on his childhood, Simon Tedeschi: Pianist and Prankster at the Monkey Baa Theatre Company.[22]
Personal life edit
Tedeschi currently lives in Sydney with his wife, painter Loribelle Spirovski.[17]
Discography edit
Albums edit
| 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) |
|
Awards edit
Tedeschi was awarded the ABC Young Performer of the Year in 1998,[23] performing the Ginastera Piano Concerto no. 1 with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Jun Markl. He was also the winner of the top prize in the keyboard section of the Royal Overseas League Music Competition in London (2002).[24]
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."[25]
ARIA Music Awards edit
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 | [26] |
| 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 | Dubussy – Ravel (with Roger Benedict) | Best Classical Album | Nominated | [27] |
References edit
- ^ Sharon Verghis (2 July 2010). "Hearing a different beat". The Australian. Retrieved 23 April 2017.
- ^ "Two of Us : Lucy Gershwin And Simon Tedeschi". library.deakin.edu.au. Retrieved 15 June 2020.
- ^ "Member Profile – Simon Tedeschi", advance.org
- ^ "Pianist Simon Tedeschi visits his old school Beaumont Road Public School in Killara" by Danielle Nicastri, North Shore Times, 29 June 2014
- ^ "Old Andrean: Simon Tedeschi" 14 December 2014 at the Wayback Machine by Melanie Pennington, Inspired (St Andrews' school paper), 2014, pp. 6–7
- ^ "Simon Tedeschi [sound recording] : [Gartner/Friedman, Scarlatti, Gershwin, Mageau, Palmgren, Rachmaninov, Debussy, Bach, Agnew, Shchedrin, Mendelssohn, Mozart, Seiber, Waller, Morton]. – Version details". Trove. Retrieved 23 April 2017.
- ^ . Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). Archived from the original on 26 September 2007. Retrieved 9 February 2018.
- ^ Thomas, Tara (31 October 2005). "Week Commencing ~ 31st October 2005 ~ Issue #818" (PDF). The ARIA Report. Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) (818): 20. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 November 2005. Retrieved 9 February 2018.
- ^ Wallace, Ian (14 January 2013). "Week Commencing ~ 14th January 2013 ~ Issue #1194" (PDF). The ARIA Report. Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) (1194): 8, 21, 23. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 January 2013. Retrieved 9 February 2018.
- ^ "Simon Tedeschi – Gershwin: Take Two". ABC Music. Retrieved 23 April 2017.
- ^ "2014 ARIA Awards Winners By Year". Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). Retrieved 9 October 2014.
- ^ Unit, Commercial Development. "Simon Tedeschi – Mussorgsky: Pictures at an Exhibition". ABC Shop. Retrieved 23 April 2017.
- ^ "Sydney Symphony Orchestra | Symphony for the Common Man". sydneysymphony.com. Retrieved 23 April 2017.
- ^ ABC TV (19 February 2014), , archived from the original on 11 August 2017, retrieved 23 April 2017
- ^ Kelly Burke, "Of genius and geekdom", The Sydney Morning Herald, 18 September 1999, Spectrum, p. 3s
- ^ Jane Albert, "The Face", The Weekend Australian, 31 March – 1 April 2001, Review, p. R3
- ^ a b Miriam Cosic (26 April 2022). "Simon Tedeschi: Key Change". Limelight. Retrieved 26 April 2022.
- ^ "The 2023 Victorian Premier's Literary Awards". The Wheeler Centre. Retrieved 14 December 2022.
- ^ Tedeschi, Simon (May 2022). "This woman my grandmother". Australian Book Review.(subscription required)
- ^ "Queensland Literary Awards 2023 shortlists". Books+Publishing. 2 August 2023. Retrieved 2 August 2023.
- ^ "Sydney Opera House Babies Proms – Meeting Mozart in Beijing". en.damai.cn. Retrieved 23 April 2017.
- ^ "Simon Tedeschi: Pianist and Prankster » Riverside Parramatta". riversideparramatta.com.au. Retrieved 23 April 2017.
- ^ . ABC Classic FM. Archived from the original on 23 April 2017. Retrieved 23 April 2017.
The competition has been an important launch-pad for many successful music careers, unearthing an extraordinary number of talents including Simon Tedeschi
- ^ "Royal Over-Seas League". Royal Over-Seas League (ROSL). Retrieved 23 April 2017.
- ^ "Award Extract – Name Tedeschi, Simon". Australian Honours Search Facility. Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. Retrieved 9 February 2018.
- ^ ARIA Award previous winners. "ARIA Awards – Winners by Award". Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). Retrieved 12 November 2018.
- ^ "Nominees Announced for 2023 ARIA Awards". Music Feeds. 21 September 2023. Retrieved 24 September 2023.
External links edit
- Official website
- "Simon Tedeschi: hearing a different beat" by Sharon Verghis, The Australian, 3 July 2010
- "Piano star Simon Tedeschi shares the keys to his success in school holiday show" by Chris Hook, The Daily Telegraph, 20 September 2014
- Simon Tedeschi at IMDb
- Simon Tedeschi plays on YouTube his transcription of Danny Elfman's theme for The Simpsons