About Byron Janis
Byron Janis (né Yanks; March 24, 1928 – March 14, 2024) was an American classical pianist. He made numerous recordings for RCA Victor and Mercury Records, and occupies two volumes of the Philips series Great Pianists of the 20th Century. His discography covered repertoire from Bach to David W. Guion and included major piano concertos from Mozart to Rachmaninoff and Liszt to Prokofiev. == Biography == Janis was born Byron Yanks in McKeesport, Pennsylvania, on March 24, 1928, the younger of two children of Hattie Horelick and Samuel Yankilevitch, who had shortened his surname to Yanks after emigrating to America, before finally setting on the surname Janis. His parents were Russian Jews. After demonstrating perfect pitch on a toy xylophone in kindergarten, Janis studied with Abraham Litow until he was 8 years old. Byron moved to New York with his mother and sister in 1936 to study with Josef and Rosina Lhévinne, and a year later, he began studying with their associate, Adele Marcus, who would remain his teacher for six years. When Marcus moved to Dallas in 1941, Yanks followed her there to continue his piano studies. He remained in Texas for three years, attending Woodrow Wilson High School. Byron Yanks made his recital debut in 1937 at the Carnegie Music Hall in Pittsburgh, and a year later, his musical sponsor, Samuel Chotzinoff, persuaded him to change his name to Byron Jannes; he would later change the spelling to Janis.
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