Artur Balsam, born February 8, 1906 in Warsaw, Poland, was an American pianist and educator. He studied in Łódź and later at the Hochschule für Musik in Berlin with Artur Schnabel and Curt Boerner. He won the Berlin International Piano Competition in 1930 and received the Mendelssohn Prize in chamber music in 1931 with violinist Roman Totenberg. In 1932 he toured the United States with Yehudi Menuhin. With the rise of Nazism, Balsam settled in New York, where he became a leading chamber music pianist and accompanist, collaborating with many major musicians of the 20th century. He recorded extensively, including Mozart piano works, Haydn sonatas, and chamber music repertoire. He also taught at the Eastman School of Music, Boston University, and Manhattan School of Music, mentoring students such as Emanuel Ax and Murray Perahia. Balsam died on September 1, 1994.
