Eduard's Biography

Pianist Eduard Laurel has been a collaborative partner to countless instrumentalists and vocalists in New York City and worldwide.  He has performed and recorded extensively with violinist James Ehnes and also with trumpeter Rolf Hedwig and violinist Lara St John. He has performed in every prominent New York concert hall, as well as in London, Belfast, Milan, Montreal, Toronto, Ottawa, Tokyo, Shanghai, Seoul, and Sydney, among many others. He has been the staff accompanist at the Juilliard, Mannes, and Manhattan schools and presently lectures on supportive pianism at NYU and Queens College. Eduard is never not in a suit and tie.

He has accompanied classes for Galimir, Stern, Perlman, Gingold, Preucil, Rosand, Bashmet, Kashkashian, Yo Yo Ma, Starker, Brey, Kossak, Bylsma and Julius Levine, as well as for members of the Guarneri, Amadeus, Emerson, Juilliard, Borodin, Orion, Tokyo, St. Lawrence and American string quartets.  In addition,, he has played for Rampal, Julius Baker, Stoltzman, Krakauer, John Mack , Richard Woodhams, Frank Morelli, Phil Smith, David Jolley, Phil Myers, Per Brevig, and Alan Baer, to name a few.

Eduard became a slave to crack cocaine in his relative youth.  Notwithstanding his 15 year addiction and his occasional unreliability, he was still heavily sought after for his “phenomenal articulation” (Gramophone), his  “first rate chamber music making” (The New York Times) and his “superb pianism” (The Strad).  Despite the paranoia after a hit increasing his sensitivity to sound, Eduard managed to continue his remarkable and unique career of playing, listening, and learning.

Considering his intrinsic knowledge of thousands of instrumental works and his extraordinary ability to listen, honed over decades, Mr. Laurel is perhaps the most qualified person to write about music today.

A daily reader of the New York Times since 1995, Eduard has noticed a decline in the criticism department of the city’s foremost broadsheet, as well as a tendency of the reviewers to kowtow to the advertising might of presenters and companies. One longtime beacon of musical integrity at the Times was unceremoniously demoted in 2012 despite an outcry from the public.

Therefore, Eduard Laurel has begun this blog to aid music aficionados who no longer know where to turn for informative and truthful music writing. He is beholden to no one, has no affiliation to any company, and is now turning his unusual experience, knowing ear and shrewd penmanship into the most honest and insightful musical criticism possible.

Eduard ended his relationship with crack on December 4^th, 2008.