Josef Páleníček (July 19, 1914, Travnik, Bosnia, Austria-Hungary—March 7, 1991, Prague) was a Czech piano virtuoso and composer.

Biography

Páleníček studied at the gymnasium in Prague, and concurrently he studied also at the Prague Conservatory. From 1933 to 1938 he continued his studies at the master school of Karel Hoffmeister. Simultaneously he studied law at the Charles University. He graduated from both schools in 1938. Páleníček was also a pupil of Vítězslav Novák and Otakar Šín. He completed his studies at the École Normale de Musique de Paris, where he studied under Diran Alexanian and Pierre Fournier. During his stay in Paris he studied also with Albert Roussel. From 1936 he started his career as a concert pianist and he became a solo pianist with the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra in 1949. However, his first public performance was at the age of 12 in 1926 in Olomouc. Following the World War II he also became a member of the Czechoslovak Communist Party. Páleníček was appointed a professor at the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague in 1963. In 1984 he served on the jury of the Paloma O'Shea Santander International Piano Competition.

Works

Orchestral compositions

Concertant compositions

Compositions for chamber ensembles

Compositions for piano

Choral compositions

Cantatas

Instructive compositions