José Menor was born in Barcelona and studied piano, composition and conducting at the Superior Conservatory in Barcelona before completing his Masters Degree at the Royal College of Music in London and his Artist Diploma at Yale University.
José made his international debut at age fifteen, performing at New York’s Carnegie Hall as a First Prize winner of Cincinnati’s ‘The World Piano Competition’, which was followed by top prizes and awards at several different piano competitions. His debut at the Palau de la Música Catalana in Barcelona – after winning First Prize on the ‘El Primer Palau’ series – was the beginning of a continuous concert career as a soloist.
As a soloist, José has appeared with orchestras in three continents and was hailed as ‘one of the most outstanding Spanish pianists of the new generation’ after his Wigmore Hall solo recital debut.
José is also an active international promoter of Spanish contemporary music and has premiered works by several major composers. His recording of the complete solo piano works of Joan Guinjoan was awarded four stars by the prestigious Fono Forum Magazine and was rehailed “a discographic milestone” and “a turning point in the appreciation of contemporary piano in our country” (Melómano).
As a composer, he has had premieres with a variety of different ensembles, most recently premiering his solo piano work ‘Notes on Crossroads’ at the SGAE Auditorium in Madrid (2013), and six works for piano and electronics (2014) in collaboration with electronic composer and videoartist Francesc Martí.
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