José R. López is Associate Professor and Coordinator of the Keyboard Studies Program at Florida International University in Miami; President of the South Florida Chapter of the American Liszt Society and Secretary of the London-based Alkan Society. A versatile pianist and enthusiastic performer of chamber music, he has recorded for SNE, Albany, Innova and Toccata Classics record labels. His Toccata Classics discography includes the complete piano works of Italian dodecaphonic composer Riccardo Malipiero; Alkan’s complete Mozart transcriptions; and an ongoing series dedicated to forgotten Cuban/Spanish composers (Comellas and Espadero). His newest 2019 CD release of selected works by Nicolás Ruiz Espadero (1832-1890) complements López’s 2021 publication of Espadero’s unpublished Transcendental Studies in the Cuban Musical Patrimony series. Forthcoming musical editions include 2 volumes of chamber music written in Cuba during the 19th and early 20th centuries. López received his BM, MM and DMA degrees from the University of Miami School of Music, where he studied with Rosalina Guerrero Sackstein, a former pupil of Rafael de Silva and Claudio Arrau.
His upcoming world premiere CD release on Toccata Classics of operatic transcriptions and solo works of 19th-century Cuban-born composer Nicolás Ruíz Espadero (1832-1890) will compliment a planned publication of Espadero’s unpublished Transcendental Etudes, scheduled for publication on the Cuban Musical Patrimony series in fall 2019. On Toccata Classics, López initiated a series dedicated to ‘forgotten’ Cuban composers, launching a CD of solo piano works by José Comellas (1842-1888) in 2016.
A versatile pianist and enthusiastic performer of chamber music, López’s interest in contemporary music has resulted in frequent world premieres and collaborations with composers, along with the keen pursuit in resurrecting rarely heard works by Romantic and Classical composers. López received his MM and DMA degrees from the University of Miami School of Music, where he studied with Dr. Rosalina Sackstein, a former pupil of Claudio Arrau and Rafael de Silva. He has recorded for SNE, Albany, Innova and Toccata Classics record labels.
