In Celebration of Dussek
Today we say happy birthday to Czech pianist and composer Jan Ladislav Dussek - born this day in 1760. For once I won't be complaining about a composer being neglected, because Dussek's reputation reminds intact. His sonatinas are often seen on student piano stands, and though not performed as often as they should be, the larger scale pieces (there are some 34 piano sonatas for a start...) do feature on recordings and on concert platforms. The young Dussek cut quite a dashing
My Fumagalli Affair
Anyone who attends my piano recitals will know I love discovering music by forgotten, neglected or otherwise lesser-known composers. Recent concerts have featured programmes made up of music by women composers only (yes, there were a lot of them in the nineteenth century, beyond Clara Schumann and Fanny Mendelssohn), and collections of pieces by the oft-ridiculed giant of the piano, Friedrich Kalkbrenner. This approach keeps the music on my piano stand fresh, it serves to rem
Rethinking a Forgotten Maestro
He was considered the foremost pianist of his day, but you've probably never heard of him. He was one of the leading piano teachers in Europe in the 1820s and 1830s, but his popular method had faded into obscurity. He was an innovator, one who became wealthy through piano-manufacturing deals and who is considered one of the first pianists to incorporate (later commonplace) musical textures such as rapid double octaves into his work. Yet even his most innovative and interestin
