Emanuel Ax (born June 8, 1949) is a Jewish-American pianist. Born in Lvov, Ukraine (then a constituent republic of the Soviet Union) to parents Joachim and Hellen Ax, both Nazi concentration camp survivors. Emanuel began to study piano at the age of six and Joachim was his first piano teacher. When he was eight the family moved to Warsaw and then two years later, to Winnipeg, Canada where he continued to study music, including as a member of The Junior Musical Club of Winnipeg. In 1961 the family moved to New York City and Emanuel continued his studies at the Juilliard School under Mieczys?aw Munz. In 1970 he received his B.A. in French at Columbia University and became an American citizen.