Billy Eidi

Billy Eidi (born in 1955) is a French classical pianist of Lebanese background.

Biography

Born in Egypt, Eidi did his first musical studies at the Beirut Conservatory (in the classes of Zafer Dabaghi and Leila Aouad), where he graduated at fifteen.

After taking advanced training courses with Hans Leygraf in Salzbourg and Guido Agosti in Siena, he moved to Paris and worked with Jacques Coulaud at the Conservatoire de Versailles (First prize and honorary prize), then with Jean Micault at the École normale de musique de Paris (graduated for concert in 1979, first nominated).

In 1981, he won second prize in the International Viotti-Valsesia Competition.[1]

He is also a laureate of the Menuhin foundation, as well as of the "Francis Poulenc International Competition" (prize for melody with baritone Jean-François Gardeil).

In his concerts throughout the world (France, England, Italy, Switzerland, Belgium, Spain, Germany, Luxembourg, Czech Republic, Greece, Bulgaria, Ukraine, Sweden, United States, Japan, South Korea and the Middle East), he particularly defends the romantic repertoire and the French music of the twentieth century, striving to discover unknown authors and repertoires.

Eidi has created pieces by Erik Satie (Sixième Nocturne), Henri Sauguet (Ombres sur Venise which is dedicated to him), Maurice Jaubert, Guy Sacre, Narcís Bonet, Karol Beffa...

He is also a passionate of the French melody, who works tirelessly for a better knowledge and a renewal of the genre.

It is in this spirit that he founded the associations Contrechants (1991-1995, concerts "Piano au Palais-Royal", in collaboration with the Bibliothèque nationale) and Les Donneurs de sérénades (1997-1998, melodic cycles at the Maison de la Poésie), and that he gives, with the composer Guy Sacre, concerts-conferences centred on musical and literary aesthetic themes, such as les musiques de la nuit, la musique et les éléments, and les masques et bergamasques which convene Fauré and Debussy around Verlaine and Watteau.

These tastes and these concerns are to be found in his records, to this day about fifteen, of which many premières: as well works for piano (Sauguet, Milhaud, Scriabine, Sacre, Satie, Poulenc, Séverac) as melodies (Ravel, Debussy, Poulenc, Auric, Honegger, Chausson, Delage, Sacre), Albert Roussel's complete work, with Marie Devellereau, Yann Beuron and Laurent Naouri.

His version of Poulenc's L'Histoire de Babar, le petit éléphant, with Hugues Cuénod, is now a reference.

Among his latest records, his CD devoted to Déodat de Séverac's piano work was awarded a "Diapason d'or".

Eidi is an academic at the Conservatoire à rayonnement régional de Paris, the Schola Cantorum de Paris,[2] as well as at the Académie internationale d'été de Nice and Nancy.

He is regularly invited for master classes, both in France and abroad (notably in Spain, China, Japan and South Korea).

Discography

(selection)

  • Maurice Delage: mélodies with Sandrine Piau, Jean-Paul Fouchécourt and Jean-François Gardeil
  • Guy Sacre: Œuvres pour piano (Timpani)
  • Déodat de Séverac: Baigneuses au soleil, Cerdana, Sous les lauriers roses, Les Naïades and le Faune indiscret (Pionovox)
  • Erik Satie: Socrate - 6 Nocturnes - with Jean Belliard
  • Guy Sacre - Mélodies with Florence Katz and Jean-François Gardeil
  • Guy Sacre - 24 Préludes for piano (Timpani)
  • Ravel/Poulenc: Mélodies with Jean-François Gardeil
  • Gabriel Fauré: Mélodies with Yann Beuron
  • Arthur Honegger: Les Mélodies with Brigitte Balleys and Jean-François Gardeil (Timpani)
  • Henri Sauguet: Mélodies with Jean-François Gardeil (Timpani)
  • Darius Milhaud: Première Sonate; Printemps; L'Automne; Quatre Sketches; Sonatine
  • Claude Debussy / Albert Roussel: Les mélodies with Jean-François Gardeil (Adda)
  • Gabriel Fauré: treize Barcarolles and the 3rd collection of melodies (with tenor Yann Beuron)

Awards
  • 1981: Second Prize of the Concours international Viotti-Valsesia.
  • 1985: Best Piano Singing Team Award at the "Francis Poulenc International Competition" (with baritone Jean-François Gardeil).
  • Laureate of the Menuhin Foundation
  • 1993: Grand Prix of the Académie Charles-Cros and Grand Prix of the "Nouvelle Académie du Disque français".
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References
  1. Valsesia Music Official website
  2. Billy Eidi on the webwite of the Schola Cantorum de Paris
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