J.S. Bach to (J.S.) John Salmon

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John Salmon, piano, has distinguished himself on four continents, as both a classical and jazz artist. Critics have praised his “mesmerizing boldness and confidence” (Tallahassee Democrat, Tallahassee, Florida) and called him “a tremendous pianist” (El País, Madrid, Spain) and “dashing performer” (Journal de Genève, Geneva, Switzerland). His broad repertoire covers the classics – Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Schumann, Brahms – though his involvement with contemporary music is equally strong. Salmon has been at the forefront of performing new works by such celebrated composers as Dave Brubeck (who dedicated two compositions to Salmon), Nikolai Kapustin, and Lalo Schifrin. His performances and recordings on the Phoenix, Naxos, and Albany labels have been heard on radio stations throughout the U.S., including National Public Radio, WNYC in New York, and WFMT in Chicago; and on the national radio stations of Australia, Brazil, Canada, England, Finland, France, Germany, Holland, Hungary, Italy, Moldova, New Zealand, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and Ukraine. Salmon is a frequent guest performer at festivals in the U.S. and Europe, having appeared at the Piccolo Spoleto Festival (Charleston, South Carolina), Piano Festival Northwest (Portland, Oregon), Festival for Creative Pianists (Grand Junction, Colorado), Festival Internacional de Música del Mediterráneo (Cartagena, Spain), and the International Bartók Festival (Szombathely, Hungary). Other special appearances include an all-Liszt recital in Mexico City for the American Liszt Society and an all-Brubeck recital in Washington, DC for the Music Teachers National Association. As guest lecturer, Salmon has spoken on a wide array of topics – “Beethoven’s Shadow” (The Juilliard School), “September 1828: Schubert’s Last Three Piano Sonatas” (Boston Conservatory), “Adding Notes to Classical Scores” (Conservatorio de Música, Morelia, Mexico). As author, he has covered such subjects as “What Brubeck Got From Milhaud” and “Urtext, que me veux tu?,” appearing in American Music Teacher, The Chronicle of Higher Education, Clavier, College Music Society Newsletter, Piano & Keyboard, and Piano Today.  His book The Piano Sonatas of Carl Loewe was published by Peter Lang Publishing in 1996. John Salmon has been a member of the faculty of The University of North Carolina at Greensboro School of Music since 1989.