He also worked with leading American jazz musicians who toured in, or relocated to Europe including Kenny Dorham, Dexter Gordon, Ben Webster, Lucky Thompson, and Anthony Braxton.

Montoliu's earliest piano teaching took place under the tutelage of Enric Mas at the private school for blind children he attended from 1939 to 1944.

From 1946 to 1953, Montoliu studied music at the Conservatori Superior de Música del Liceu in Barcelona, where he also met jazz musicians and became familiar with the idiom in jam sessions.

During the 1980s, he performed in concerts with musicians such as Dexter Gordon,[2] Johnny Griffin, George Coleman, Joe Henderson, Dizzy Gillespie, Chick Corea, Hank Jones, Roy Hargrove, Idris Muhammad, Herbie Lewis and Jesse Davis, among others.

[3] With Anthony Braxton With Núria Feliu With Dexter Gordon With Eddie Harris With Rahsaan Roland Kirk With Charlie Mariano With Jordi Sabatés With Archie Shepp and Lars Gullin With Buddy Tate With Ben Webster With Barney Wilen With Jerome Richardson