Georges (originally György) Cziffra (November 5, 1921–January 17, 1994) was a Hungarian virtuoso pianist. November 5 is the 309th day of the year (310th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 56 days remaining. ... Year 1921 (MCMXXI) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar). ... January 17 is the 17th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1994 (MCMXCIV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated as the International Year of the Family and the International Year of the Sport and the Olympic Ideal by United Nations. ... A virtuoso (from Italian virtuoso, late Latin virtuosus, Latin virtus meaning: skill, manliness, excellence) is an individual who possesses outstanding technical ability at singing or playing a musical instrument. ... Pianist Claudio Arrau, Carnegie Hall, 1954. ...

Many of his recordings are controversial, claimed by some to be showy and unmusical. Others regard these reactions as professional jealousy. In any case there is generally little doubt that Cziffra had a remarkable virtuoso technique and was a master at improvisation. Improvisation is the practice of acting and reacting, of making and creating, in the moment and in response to the stimulus of ones immediate environment. ...

A son of Hungarian Romas (his father, György Cziffra Sr., was a cimbalom player and played in cabaret halls and restaurants in Paris in the 1910s), born in Budapest, Cziffra became noted at the age of five, improvising on popular tunes in bars and circuses. His teachers at the Franz Liszt Academy included Ernő Dohnányi. Languages Romani, languages of native region Religions Christianity, Islam Related ethnic groups South Asians (Desi) The Roma (singular Rom; sometimes Rroma, Rrom) or Romanies are an ethnic group living in many communities all over the world. ... It is also possible that you want to know about the Cymbal instrument. ... City flag City coat of arms Motto: Fluctuat nec mergitur (Latin: Tossed by the waves, she does not sink) Paris Eiffel tower as seen from the esplanade du Trocadéro. ... // The 1910s represent the culmination of European militarism which had its beginnings during the second half of the 19th Century. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... The New Academy, facing Ferenc Liszt Square The Franz Liszt Academy of Music (in Hungarian: Liszt Ferenc Zeneművészeti Egyetem or simply Zeneakadémia, Music Academy) is a concert hall and a music university in Budapest, Hungary, founded by pianist and composer Franz Liszt on November 14, 1875. ... ErnÅ‘ Dohnányi, also known as Ernst von Dohnányi or Dohnányi ErnÅ‘ (July 27, 1877 – February 9, 1960) was a Hungarian conductor, composer, and pianist. ...

An attempted escape from Soviet-dominated Hungary led to imprisonment and forced labour in the period 1950–1953. In 1956, on the eve of the Hungarian insurrection and after a stunning account of Bartok's second piano concerto (EMI References) Cziffra escaped with his wife (Soleilka - of Egyptian origin) and son to Vienna where his recital at the Brahmsaal caused a sensation. News of this event reached The New Yorker. His Paris debut the following year caused a furore - his London debut at the Royal Festival Hall in Liszt's first concerto and Hungarian Fantasy similarly. His meteoric career continued with concerts throughout Europe and debuts at the Ravinia Festival (Grieg and Liszt concertos with Carl Shuricht) and Carnegie Hall New York with Thomas Schippers. He always performed with a large leather wristband, as a memento of his years in labour. Georges Cziffra died in Senlis, France, 72 years old, from a heart attack resulting from series of complications from lung cancer due to smoking and alcohol. Soviet redirects here. ... Year 1950 (MCML) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1953 (MCMLIII) was a common year starting on Thursday. ... 1956 (MCMLVI) was a leap year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Senlis is a town and commune located about 50 km north of central Paris, France in the Picardie région, in the Oise département. ... Acute myocardial infarction (AMI or MI), commonly known as a heart attack, is a disease state that occurs when the blood supply to a part of the heart is interrupted. ... Lung cancer is the malignant transformation and expansion of lung tissue, and is the most lethal of all cancers worldwide, responsible for 1. ...

Cziffra is most known for his extravagant recordings of Franz Liszt's virtuoso works. He also recorded many of Frédéric Chopin's compositions and those of Robert Schumann (his account of Carnaval de Vienne admired by Alfred Cortot) Cziffra also made a famous transcription of Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov's Flight of the Bumblebee, written in interlocking octaves. Portrait by Henri Lehmann, 1839 Franz Liszt (Hungarian: Liszt Ferenc; pronounced , in English: list) (October 22, 1811 – July 31, 1886) was an ethnic German Hungarian [1] virtuoso pianist and composer of the Romantic period. ... A virtuoso (from Italian virtuoso, late Latin virtuosus, Latin virtus meaning: skill, manliness, excellence) is an individual who possesses outstanding technical ability at singing or playing a musical instrument. ... The only known photograph of Frédéric Chopin, believed to have been taken by Louis-Auguste Bisson in 1849. ... Nikolai Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov (Russian: , Nikolaj Andreevič Rimskij-Korsakov), also Nikolay, Nicolai, and Rimsky-Korsakoff, (March 6 (O.S. March 18), 1844 – June 8 (O.S. June 21) 1908) was a Russian composer, one of five Russian composers known as The Five, and was later a teacher of harmony and... The Flight of the Bumblebee is a famous orchestral interlude written by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov for his opera The Tale of Tsar Saltan, composed in 1899-1900. ...

Cziffra's son, György Cziffra, Jr., was a professional conductor and participated in several concerts and recordings with his father. However, his promising career was cut short due to his death by burning accident in 1981 - said to have been accompanied by a suicide note - an event that sparked a progressively diminishing morale in Cziffra, Sr. Cziffra never again performed or recorded with an orchestra, and some critics have commented that the severe emotional blow had an impact on his playing quality as well. While many thought that his pianism deteriorated after the death of his son, some felt that his playing was deeper than before. This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Conducting is the act of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. ...

Early Years

Georges Cziffra was born into dire poverty in 1921. Before he was born, his parents had been living in France. During World War I the French government expelled all residents whose countries of origins were fighting against France. Cziffra's father, a Hungarian citizen, was imprisoned and his mother was forced to move to Budapest with her two daughters and only five kilograms of luggage. She was billeted into a single room built on stilts above a marsh, where the Cziffra family would live for years. His father was released from prison and Georges arrived some time later. Year 1921 (MCMXXI) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar). ... “The Great War ” redirects here. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ...

His earliest training in piano came from watching his sister practice. She had decided she was going to learn the piano after being lucky enough to find a job which allowed her to save the required amount of money. As she practised, Georges, a weak and often ill child, watched from his makeshift bed in fascination. When he felt strong enough, he would try to mimic his sister, and became greatly enthusiastic about the sounds he could make. He learnt without sheet music, but by asking his parents to sing him tunes and playing them back, improvising additional material as he became more adept.

By the time he was five he attracted the attention of a travelling circus who hired him as the star of their show, and his improvisations (on tunes suggested by the audience) were very successful. This involvement with the circus at an early age (and for only a few weeks) was to haunt the rest of his career, as some critics used it as an example of his poor musical heritage and low taste, while others saw in it a remarkable and prodigious talent. The Big Top of Billy Smarts Circus Cambridge 2004. ...

He soon came to attention of the Franz Liszt Academy in Budapest and was, at 9, the youngest student ever admitted. He was also admitted against the rules of the institution, which stipulated that in order to enter the candidate must have studied a full course of preliminary studies at a music school. He soon astonished his teachers who allowed him to attend the advanced masterclasses, normally reserved for adult students. This was run by Istvan Thoman, a pupil of Liszt and the teacher of Bartók and Dohnányi. The New Academy, facing Ferenc Liszt Square The Franz Liszt Academy of Music (in Hungarian: Liszt Ferenc Zeneművészeti Egyetem or simply Zeneakadémia, Music Academy) is a concert hall and a music university in Budapest, Hungary, founded by pianist and composer Franz Liszt on November 14, 1875. ... A class given to students of a particular discipline by an expert of that discipline--most usually music, but also painting, drama, or any of the arts. ... Franz Liszt (October 22, 1811 – July 31, 1886) was a virtuoso pianist and composer. ... Béla Bartók in 1927 Béla Viktor János Bartók (March 25, 1881 – September 26, 1945) was a Hungarian composer, pianist and collector of Eastern European and Middle Eastern folk music. ... ErnÅ‘ Dohnányi, also known as Ernst von Dohnányi or Dohnányi ErnÅ‘ (July 27, 1877 – February 9, 1960) was a Hungarian conductor, composer, and pianist. ...

Adult Years

In 1942, at the age of 21, Georges was called up to fight. He had within the previous year married his wife Soleilka, who was with child when he entered military training. During the war he was a foot soldier, tank commander, and deserter. He was the only man from his battalion to survive.

External links

• Cziffra fan site
• PianoRed on Cziffra
• Fondation Cziffra (French)
• Cziffra plays Transcedental Etude No. 10
• Cziffra plays Gnomenreigen, by Franz Listz