He began his musical studies at the age of eight at the Escola Municipal de Música de Barcelona where he studied cello, piano, harmony, counterpoint, fugue, composition and instrumentation with the teachers Frederic Alfonso, Quintas, Enric Morera and Blanca Selva. He received a grant by the Generalitat in the Second Republic to study conducting with Hermann Scherchen in Geneva. He entered at the age of fifteen as a cellist in the Pau Casals Orchestra. He was director of the Associació Musical del districte IX de Barcelona (1930), the Institut Orquestral de l'Associació Obrera de Concerts (1934), the Estudis Musicals Blanca Selva (1934) and conductor of the Orquestra Simfònica de Ràdio Associació de Catalunya (1937). In 1933 he also was appointed conductor of the Orfeó de l'Eco de Catalunya.
In 1934 he obtained the position of Professor of Musical Education at the Barcelona City Council. In 1941 he married the poet and broadcaster Maria Escrihuela. In 1950 he was teaching Harmony and Counterpoint at the Conservatori Superior Municipal de Música de Barcelona, ??an institution of which he was later director (1966-1977). He was also director of the Conservatori Profesional de Música Badalona (1980). He conducted numerous orchestras: Barcelona Symphony, Barcelona Philharmonic, Las Palmas Philharmonic, National Radio of Spain Symphony, Banda Municipal de Barcelona, Orquestra Ciutat de Barcelona, Madrid Symphony, Geneva Symphony, Orquestra del Gran Teatre del Liceu, Symphony of Valencia, Municipal of Valladolid, Symphony of the City of Mallorca, Municipal Band of Madrid, among others. As conductor, he premiered works by Joaquín Rodrigo, Salvador Bacarisse, Joaquim Zamacois, Xavier Montsalvatge, Frederic Mompou, Alberico Vitalino, Vicente Asensio, Antoni Torrandell and Agustín Borgunyó. He chaired and was part of juries in international and national Competitions and was an academic at the Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando.
Joan Pich was the author of an exhaustive Encyclopedia of Music as well as various musical works: songs, sardanas, works for piano, chamber music and various orchestral works.
DO YOU WANT TO KNOW BETTER THE ARTIST?
Joan Pich Santasusana ArchiveList of sardanas in sardanista.cat
PERFORMED WORKS
Cançó de bressol, for voice and piano
Preludi 78, for piano
Maternitat, for voice and piano
Nocturn mariner, for voice and piano
