Biography

My name is Pablo Catalão and I am a pianist, composer and music teacher, currently living in Basel, Switzerland. My profile as an artist is rather exotic, mostly because of my Brazilian origins, the artistic tradition in my family and lastly from the influence of Christianity in my life.

Recently I completed my studies in the Hochschule für Musik Basel under the guidance of Ronald Brautigam, where I completed two masters, one in performance and one in pedagogy. Truth be told, I was quite happy to complete my studies and my academic life, however it won't stop there!

Currently I am privately studying composition with the Canadian composer Alan Belkin. I would say I am more mature as a pianist than as a composer, yet my main goal is to keep growing in composition and towards composing in the level of the old masters.

Like many musicians, I didn't plan becoming a teacher. My focus was directed towards living the soloist dream and lifestyle. However, I was pleasantly surprised to discover that I love teaching. I am glad to say I don't live anymore by the well known maxim: "Those who can, do; Those who can't, teach." Quite on contrary, I grew and matured significantly from teaching. Seeing my students grow as musicians has an indescribable beauty. There's no currency for that.

My "genealogy" as a pianist are the following teachers and professors: Ronald Brautigam, Alan Weiss, Pedro Burmester, Sylvia Thereza, Myrian Dauelsberg, Daniel Burlet, Márcia Assunção, Debora Vidal, Mônica Mendonça, Maria João Pires. As a student I was blind to the work and investment these people did in my life, but now I can see that I largely owe who I became to them. I won't ever be able to pay this debt, but I am profoundly thankful to them.