Pablo Casals

Pablo Casals (1876-1973), Spanish cellist, conductor, composer, pianist, and humanitarian, who was one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century.

Casals, who was originally named Pau Carlos Salvador Defillo de Casals, was born in Vendrell, on December 29, 1876. He received his first musical instruction from his father; later he studied at the Madrid Conservatory. After making his debut as a cello soloist at the Concerts Lamoureux in Paris in 1898, he toured Europe, the United States, and South America. He revolutionized the role of the cello by the virtuosity of his technique and his indisputable musicality. He was particularly noted for his interpretation of the suites for unaccompanied cello of Johann Sebastian Bach. With the French pianist Alfred Cortot and the French violinist Jacques Thibaud, Casals formed a noted chamber music trio. In 1919 he founded the Orquesta Pau Casals in Barcelona, which, with Casals as conductor, became an important cultural organization in Catalonia until 1936, when the Spanish Civil War interrupted its activities. After the overthrow of the Republican government in Spain, Casals took up residence in France. In 1950 he organized the first annual music festival in Prades, France, commemorating Bach. In 1956 he moved to San Juan, Puerto Rico; the annual Casals Festival originated there in 1957.

To promote world peace, Casals composed the oratorio El pesebre (The Manger, 1960), which he conducted throughout the world. His reminiscences are contained in Conversations with Casals, recorded in 1955 by Josep María Corredor. His reflections on his life were published as Joys and Sorrows (1970). In 1989 the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences recognized Casals with a posthumous Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.