This Week in Classical Music: November 4, 2019.Three pianists.Three very different pianists were born this week, György Cziffra, Walter Gieseking and Ivan Moravec.Walter Gieseking, the oldest of the three, was born on November 5th of 1895 in Lyon, France into the family of a distinguished German doctor.Gieseking spent his youth mostly in France and Italy; he started studying piano at the age of four but didn’t have a formal musical education till 16 when he entered the Hanover Conservatory.In 1920 he performed a nearly complete cycle of Beethoven’s sonatas.It was around that time that his affinity for the music of Debussy and Ravel became evident.Gieseking stayed in Germany during WWII and performed for the Nazi cultural organizations.Accused of collaboration, he wasn’t cleared till 1947, but even later he continued to be boycotted by Jewish organizations.He returned to the United States only in 1955 and played an all-Debussy program at the Carnegie Hall to great acclaim.Gieseking had a phenomenal memory, often memorizing music from a score.His repertory was very broad: he recorded all of Mozart’s and Ravel’s solo piano music, and practically all the solo works of Debussy.His recording of all Beethoven’s pianos sonatas was left incomplete because of his sudden death.Gieseking also often played contemporary music. But it was his Ravel and Debussy that stand out unsurpassed.Here’s Image, Book II, recorded in 1953.
György Cziffra’s life was as unusual as it gets, especially for a famous concert pianist.He was born on November 5th of 1921 in Budapest into a poor family of Hungarian gypsies.As a child, he earned money improvising on popular melodies at a local circus. In 1930 he entered the Liszt Academy in Budapest where he studied with Ernst von Dohnányi.Between 1933 and 1941, Cziffra successfully concertized in Hungary and other countries.In 1941 he was conscripted, sent to the Eastern front and soon after captured by Russian partisans; he spent the remaining war years as a prisoner.After the war he earned his living playing in bars.In 1950 he attempted to defect from Socialist Hungary, was captured and imprisoned again, this time for three years of hard-labor camp.He made several recordings after being released.Cziffra managed to escape in 1956, the year of the Hungarian Revolution, going first to Vienna and then settling in Paris.From that point on, till 1981, Cziffra’s career flourished.He was recognized as a supreme virtuoso, even though his many critics questioned some musical aspects of his performances.In 1981 yet another tragedy struck: his 37-year-old son died in a fire in his Paris apartment.Cziffra, heartbroken, never performed again.He died in Paris 13 year later, on January 17th of 1994.Here’s his recording of Balakirev’s “Oriental Fantasy” Islamey.It was made in 1954-1956 while Cziffra was still living in Hungary.
The somewhat under-appreciated Czech pianist Ivan Moravec was born on Nov 9th of 1930 in Prague.He studied in Prague, and later took classes with Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli.A citizen of an Eastern-Bloc country, he couldn’t travel to the West and was practically unknown to the European and American public.Eventually, though, his audio recordings made their way to the US and he was invited to make several recordings and to perform.The 1964 concerts with George Szell and the Cleveland Orchestra launched his international concert career, but even after that the Czech authorities weren’t eager to let him travel.As a result, Western listeners heard relatively little of Moravec at the peak of his career.He lived in Prague for his whole life and died there on July 27th of 2015.He was one of the best interpreters of the music of Chopin; here is Chopin’s Nocturne op.9, no.2; this recording was made in 1965.
Three Pianists, 2019
This Week in Classical Music: November 4, 2019. Three pianists. Three very different pianists were born this week, György Cziffra, Walter Gieseking and Ivan Moravec. Walter
Gieseking, the oldest of the three, was born on November 5th of 1895 in Lyon, France into the family of a distinguished German doctor. Gieseking spent his youth mostly in France and Italy; he started studying piano at the age of four but didn’t have a formal musical education till 16 when he entered the Hanover Conservatory. In 1920 he performed a nearly complete cycle of Beethoven’s sonatas. It was around that time that his affinity for the music of Debussy and Ravel became evident. Gieseking stayed in Germany during WWII and performed for the Nazi cultural organizations. Accused of collaboration, he wasn’t cleared till 1947, but even later he continued to be boycotted by Jewish organizations. He returned to the United States only in 1955 and played an all-Debussy program at the Carnegie Hall to great acclaim. Gieseking had a phenomenal memory, often memorizing music from a score. His repertory was very broad: he recorded all of Mozart’s and Ravel’s solo piano music, and practically all the solo works of Debussy. His recording of all Beethoven’s pianos sonatas was left incomplete because of his sudden death. Gieseking also often played contemporary music. But it was his Ravel and Debussy that stand out unsurpassed. Here’s Image, Book II, recorded in 1953.
György Cziffra’s life was as unusual as it gets, especially for a famous concert pianist. He was born on November 5th of 1921 in Budapest into a poor family of Hungarian gypsies. As a child, he earned money improvising on popular melodies at a local circus. In 1930 he entered the Liszt Academy in Budapest where he studied with Ernst von Dohnányi. Between 1933 and 1941, Cziffra successfully concertized in Hungary and other countries. In 1941 he was conscripted, sent to the Eastern front and soon after captured by Russian partisans; he spent the remaining war years as a prisoner. After the war he earned his living playing in bars. In 1950 he attempted to defect from Socialist Hungary, was captured and imprisoned again, this time for three years of hard-labor camp. He made several recordings after being released. Cziffra managed to escape in 1956, the year of the Hungarian Revolution, going first to Vienna and then settling in Paris. From that point on, till 1981, Cziffra’s career flourished. He was recognized as a supreme virtuoso, even though his many critics questioned some musical aspects of his performances. In 1981 yet another tragedy struck: his 37-year-old son died in a fire in his Paris apartment. Cziffra, heartbroken, never performed again. He died in Paris 13 year later, on January 17th of 1994. Here’s his recording of Balakirev’s “Oriental Fantasy” Islamey. It was made in 1954-1956 while Cziffra was still living in Hungary.
The somewhat under-appreciated Czech pianist Ivan Moravec was born on Nov 9th of 1930 in Prague. He studied in Prague, and later took classes with Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli. A citizen of an Eastern-Bloc country, he couldn’t travel to the West and was practically unknown to the European and American public. Eventually, though, his audio recordings made their way to the US and he was invited to make several recordings and to perform. The 1964 concerts with George Szell and the Cleveland Orchestra launched his international concert career, but even after that the Czech authorities weren’t eager to let him travel. As a result, Western listeners heard relatively little of Moravec at the peak of his career. He lived in Prague for his whole life and died there on July 27th of 2015. He was one of the best interpreters of the music of Chopin; here is Chopin’s Nocturne op.9, no.2; this recording was made in 1965.