Dan Atanasiu

Described by Kristian Stads Bladet “ A genius of the piano … the enthusiasm was sensational” , Dan Atanasiu was born in Timisoara, Romania, and began studying piano at the age of five. By the age of ten, he made his debut as a soloist in his native country with Mozart Concerto no. 8 in C major KV 246 and the Galati Philharmonic Orchestra.

Dan Atanasiu was appointed as a soloist with the ‘George Enescu’ Philharmonic Orchestra in Bucharest during 1980 – 1993. During this time he performed in concerts and tours while leading a productive career at the same time with concerts and recitals in almost all European countries, North America, China and Morocco.

Other prestigious orchestras he has performed with were Berlin Radio Symphony, Madrid Radio Symphony, Teatro alla Scala Orchestra, Montreal Symphony, Franz Liszt Music Academy Orchestra, Budapest, a.s.o.
Some of the conductors he worked with were Frantz–Paul Decker, Herbert Kegel, Alain Paris, Odon Alonso, Serge Baudo, Gottfried Rabl, a.s.o.

Due to his commanding artistic presence, he was invited to major Festivals such as: Salzburg, Berlin, Frédéric Chopin, Warsaw, Mariánské Lázně, Czech Republic, George Enescu, Bucharest, Romania, Bordeaux, France, Menorca and Santander, Spain.
He is the winner of numerous awards in major international competitions, such as Marguerite Long Paris, Frederic Chopin Warsaw, Paloma O’Shea, Santander, Spain, Dino Ciani Milano, Montreal Canada, Bordeaux France, etc.
He has recorded for the record companies Electrecord, Polskie Nagrania and also for Radio Bucharest, Radio Warsaw and Radio France.

Dan Atanasiu has conducted master classes and summer courses in Menorca and Santander in Spain and Toronto, Canada.

Shortly after relocating to Canada, Dan Atanasiu was diagnosed with focal dystonia which affected his right hand, preventing him from playing much of the piano repertoire. This restricted his activity as a performer and led him to focus intensively on pedagogical pursuits of young pianists.
During the past few years, Dan Atanasiu started to recover and has resumed his performing career with recitals and concerts.

Dan Atanasiu graduated from the Bucharest University of Music where he studied piano with the renowned Professors Ana Pitis and Ioana Minei.

“Dan Atanasiu … undoubtedly one of the stars of this festival. A marvellous interpretation of Chopin, Prokofiev, Absil.” – Sud-Ouest Bordeaux

“Dan Atanasiu … a flawless technique and a personality that deeply impressed me.” – La Vie de Bordeaux

“… endowed with unfathomable inner musicality, with an unusual refinement of sound” – Corriere della Sera

“Remarkable piano recital performed by Dan Atanasiu” – Diario Menorca