Pianist *Pola Baytelman* has been acclaimed by audiences and critics alike for her superb artistry: “…A formidable pianist, quite the equal of performances by keyboard wizards who go by last name only: Horowitz, Pollini, Ashkenazy.” “…Pola Baytelman has the kind of talent that stamps a personality upon any concert she plays…That is a special mark of accomplishment placing her in the front line of soloists.” (New York State press). “…Sound resourceful performer…It was intelligent, multi-faceted playing.” (The Boston Globe). “… With a diaphanous touch Baytelman offered a Mozart performance of pure freshness and enchantment…She can play with brilliancy, justice and truthfulness any work that she desires.” (Chilean press.)

Pola Baytelman has performed extensively as a recitalist, with chamber music groups and as a soloist with orchestras in Chile, Europe and throughout the United States. She has toured and played several times in the People’s Republic of China including Hong Kong. Baytelman’s performances have been broadcast on radio and television in Chile, Australia, the Czech Republic, the United States and China. Ms. Baytelman, a Steinway artist, made her debut with the Chilean Symphony Orchestra at the age of 17 and has since played with numerous orchestras, including the Chilean Symphony and Chilean Philharmonic Orchestras, the Boston Pops as well as other orchestras.

Born in Santiago, Chile, Ms. Baytelman received her formal training at the University of Chile’s National Conservatory. She came to the United States under a Fulbright grant and attended the New England Conservatory in Boston, where she studied with Russell Sherman. She also studied with Nancy Garrett at the University of Texas (Austin), where she received a doctorate in music. Other pianists she has worked with include Claude Frank and Menahem Pressler. Ms. Baytelman has long been associated with the music of Isaac Albéniz and is the author of a book on Albéniz’s piano music that was published by Harmonie Park Press in Michigan.

Baytelman has released two compact discs with solo performances of piano music by Albéniz and Ginastera (1998, Élan Recordings) and by Robert Schumann (2002, Centaur Records). Both CDs have been very well received by the critics. Bell Young writes in Clavierthat “few pianists have recorded the exquisite music of Albéniz as persuasively and with such finesse as Pola Baytelman” (October 2001, p. 38). Alexander Morin writes about the Schumann CD in American Record Guide that “xthere are other excellent recordings of these pieces, but Baytelman’s stand up pretty well in any comparison” (July/August 2003, p. 147). In a recent overview of Schumann’s piano works, the panel of reviewers of the same publication chose her Humoreskeas one of the three top performances of the piece together with the recordings of Sviatoslav Richter (1956) and Paolo Giacometti (2001)(“She understands Schumann’s wildness as few pianists dox” September/October 2004, p. 56). She can also be heard in works by Anthony Holland and Hilary Tann in the Albany Records and Capstone labels, respectively. Her CDs have also been broadcast throughout the U.S., as well as in Chile, Australia, and China (mainland and Hong Kong). Pola Baytelman is Artist-in-Residence at Skidmore College, in Saratoga Springs where she was just awarded the Edwin M. Moseley Faculty Research Lecture award, which is the highest honor the Skidmore faculty confers upon a colleague.