Sándor Falvai was born in Ózd, Hungary, in 1949. He studied at the Franz Liszt Academy of Music in Budapest, with Professor Mihály Bacher, and then at the Tchaikovsky Conservatory in Moscow, under the guidance of Victor Merzsanov and Margareta Fjodorova. After returning to Hungary, his international career began.
Falvai has presented recitals in almost all of the great concert halls of Europe (including in Paris, Berlin, Moscow, Madrid, Milan, Rome, Prague, Helsinki, Thessaloniki and Munich); in New York’s Carnegie Hall; in Tokyo, Morocco, Tunisia, and Canada; and has appeared as a soloist with many orchestras under conductors including Kobajashi Kenichiro, Mariss Jansons, Tamás Vásáry, Milan Horvath, Günter Herbig, János Ferencsik, and Kazuo Yamada. A keen chamber musician, he has performed with many fine ensembles and associate artists, including János Starker, the Bartók-quartett, and Dénes Kovács.
With more than 30 records and CDs to his name, his recorded output includes traditional solo repertoire such as the Concertos, Sonatas, Mazurkas, Polonaises, Nocturnes and Valses of Chopin; the Sonatas of Haydn; Concertos of Brahms; Sonatas of Schumann; and the Impromtus of Schubert etc.; along with chamber music by Brahms with the Bartók quartett; a two-piano version of Scriabin’s Symphony No.3 (Le Divin Poéme); and chamber works by Arvo Pärt and Kurt Atterberg.
Falvai was appointed as a Professor of the Franz Liszt Academy of Music in 1972, and was Director of the same institution from 1997 until 2004. His many awards and honours include the Hungarian Liszt prize, the title of Honorated Artist, the title Doctor Honoris Causa, and the Order of the Rising Sun from the Japanese Emperor.
Sándor Falvai maintains a busy international career. From 2000 he has been guest Professor of the Nagoya University of Arts, and has given recitals and masterclasses frequently in several cities of Japan (including Tokyo, Nagoya, Gifu, and Sapporo). He has also been a guest Professor at the Texas Christian University. Falvai is frequently on the juries of International Piano Competitions, and has thrice been the President of the Jury of the Franz Liszt International Piano Competition in Budapest. He is a sought-after teacher of masterclasses across Europe.