Paloma O'Shea

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is O'Shea and the second or maternal family name is Artiñano.
The Most Illustrious
Paloma O'Shea
Born
Paloma O'Shea y Artiñano

(1936-02-19) 19 February 1936 (age 88)
Guecho, Biscay, Spain
OccupationPresident of the Albéniz Foundation
SpouseEmilio Botín
Children6, including Ana Patricia
Parent(s)José O'Shea Sebastián
María Asunción Artiñano Luzárraga[1]

Paloma O'Shea Artiñano, 1st Marchioness of O'Shea[2] (born 19 February 1936) is a Spanish pianist, patron of the arts,[3] founder and current president of the Reina Sofía School of Music, and founder and president of the Albéniz Foundation, which organizes the Paloma O'Shea Santander International Piano Competition in Santander, Spain.

Paloma O'Shea was born in the Bilbao suburb of Las Arenas, Biscay, Spain, a daughter of José O'Shea y Sebastián de Erice (descended from Irishman William O'Shea who came to Spain in the 18th century) and Basque María de la Asunción de Artiñano y Luzarraga, married at Concepción, Madrid, on 2 May 1935.[4] She started studying piano in 1941 in Bilbao and later moved to France to further her music studies.[2] At the age of 15 she won the Primer Premio Fin de Carrera and performed as soloist with the Bilbao Symphony Orchestra.[5] Several years later she married Emilio Botín, the previous Executive Chairman of Grupo Santander and devoted herself to promoting classical music in Spain.[5]

In 1972 she founded the Concurso de Piano de Santander, which was later named after her and in 1991 founded the Reina Sofía School of Music,[2] a private music school, now one of the leading music schools in Spain.

She was given the title of Marchioness of O'Shea by the King of Spain in 2008,[2] the Légion d'honneur of France,[3] the gold medal of the Spanish Institute in New York, and the Picasso Award of the UNESCO.[3] She has 6 children and divides her time between Madrid and Santander.

  1. ^ "Hemeroteca ABC". 27 August 2019.
  2. ^ a b c d "El Rey concede a Paloma O'Shea el marquesado de O'shea (in Spanish)". Diario Montañes. 16 July 2008. Retrieved 8 January 2010.
  3. ^ a b c "Paloma O'Shea recibe la Legion de Honor (in Spanish)". lukor.com. Retrieved 8 January 2010.
  4. ^ http://www.geneall.net/H/per_page.php?id=327222 Paloma O'Shea in a Portuguese Genealogical site
  5. ^ a b Enrique Franco (1984-06-08). "PERFIL: Paloma O'Shea". El País. Retrieved 8 January 2010.