Peter Mintun: Biography

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PETER MINTUN
One of America's Favorite Society Pianists

"Mintun is the living incarnation of the fabulous keyboard wizards of the jazz age."
- Will Friedwald, The New York Sun

PETER MINTUN began a career in music when he taught himself to play the piano by ear at the age of three. There exist photographs of him from that period seated at the family piano poised to play, proving that he was a musician as well as a showman, knowing exactly when to seize the perfect photo opportunity. Since then he has played everywhere, been photographed with everyone, and has become one of today's most sought after and respected society pianists.

Born into a musical household in Berkeley, California, one of four children, he grew up playing for parties, musical shows, ballroom dancing schools, and silent films at museums and colleges. Early on his leanings to the music of the 1920s and 30s caused him to reject the fashion of his contemporary time and to develop into one of today's leading interpreters of popular music written between the two World Wars - those vintage melodies with such classic style that they, in Mintun's words, "transcend time."

For more than twenty-five years Peter Mintun's name has been synonymous with American Society. He has performed with symphony orchestras, with his own society dance orchestra, and has entertained royalty, film and stage stars, heads of industry, and composers themselves.

Peter Mintun's piano playing has graced such rooms as L'Etoile in the Huntington Hotel, Masons in The Fairmont, the Madison Room of The New York Palace Hotel, and Bemelmans Bar at The Carlyle.



with Mary Martin & Alice Faye

Among Peter Mintun's ever-expanding activities have been the release of four CD recordings: "Deep Purple," "Grand Piano," Peter Mintun Piano at The Paramount," and "Yours for a Song - Here's to the Ladies." In March of 1998 he participated in the Gershwin Centennial symposium at The Library of Congress discussing the music and career of Dana Suesse, and appeared on WNET's American Masters series in the program "Yours For A Song -- The Women of Tin Pan Alley." Later that year he performed with Joan Morris and William Bolcom on National Public Radio in a program profiling women composers taped live in The Oak Room at The Algonquin Hotel. Peter Mintun has appeared in concert at New York's Film Forum, Town Hall, the National Arts Club, and the Museum of Modern Art. In February of 2000 he joined Barbara Carroll performing in the "Michael Feinstein and Friends" series at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall. Each year, since 1994, he has lead his own "Peter Mintun Orchestra" at the San Francisco Symphony's New Year's Eve Gala at Davies Symphony Hall.

In 2002 Peter Mintun performed for a six-month engagement at The Greenbrier Hotel in West Virginia inaugurating their newly decorated Old White Lounge, designed by Carlton Varney. He returned to entertain New York audiences with Steve Ross at The Stanhope Hotel for a special two-week duo piano engagement. Beginning in 2010 his piano playing was heard on the sound track of HBO's Boardwalk Empire. In 2012 Mintun edited a first-ever music folio of the piano music of composer Dana Suesse, to be published by Dover Publications.

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