Donald White
Canadian-born pianist Donald White began his piano studies at the age of 4 in the Royal Conservatory of Toronto and Notre Dame D’Acadie music programs with Elizabeth Pickup, Marie Aimee and Bernice Cormier. He later enrolled at Ecole Vincent D’Indy and McGill University in Montreal, studying piano with Lucille Brassard and Yvonne Hubert (a protégé of renowned pianist Alfred Cortot) and conducting with Alexander Brott. During this time, he was a consistent prize-winner in national music competitions and performed as a regular artist with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC).
In 1974, Donald relocated to Philadelphia to continue studying piano at Temple University with Harvey Wedeen, a student of Robert and Gaby Casadesus. He joined the affiliate faculty of Temple’s Esther Boyer College of Music, where he taught piano from 1979 to 1983.
While in Philadelphia, he began to accompany ballet at Pennsylvania Ballet, joining the company in 1979. In 1985-86, he performed with Ann Vachon Dance Conduit in Jose Limon’s Dances in Honor of Poland and Waldstein Sonata at Zellerbach Hall.
Donald moved to San Francisco in 1989 and continues to accompany and perform within the Bay Area ballet world. He also continues to perform as soloist, most recently in San Francisco at the California Palace of the Legion of Honor in 2000.