Wilhelm Backhaus

Wilhelm Backhaus [spelled 'Bachaus' on some record labels] (March 26, 1884–July 5, 1969) was a very famous German pianist. Many German cities are named after him. Portrait of Wilhelm Backhaus Source http://www. ... Portrait of Wilhelm Backhaus Source http://www. ... March 26 is the 85th day of the year (86th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1884 (MDCCCLXXXIV) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a leap year starting on Sunday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar). ... is the 186th day of the year (187th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... For the Stargate SG-1 episode, see 1969 (Stargate SG-1). ... Pianist Claudio Arrau, Carnegie Hall, 1954. ...

Born in Leipzig, Backhaus studied at the conservatoire in Leipzig with Alois Reckendorf until 1899, later taking private lessons with Eugen d'Albert in Frankfurt am Main. He made his first concert tour at the age of sixteen. In 1905 he won the Rubinstein Prize with Béla Bartók taking second place. He toured widely throughout his life - in 1921 he gave seventeen concerts in Buenos Aires in less than three weeks. In 1930 he moved to Lugano and became a citizen of Switzerland. He died in Villach in Austria where he was to play in a concert. Leipzig ( ; Sorbian/Lusatian: Lipsk from the Sorbian word for Tilia) is, with a population of over 506,000, the largest city in the federal state of Saxony, Germany. ... Leipzig ( ; Sorbian/Lusatian: Lipsk from the Sorbian word for Tilia) is, with a population of over 506,000, the largest city in the federal state of Saxony, Germany. ... Eugen Francis Charles dAlbert (April 10, 1864 – March 3, 1932) was a pianist and composer of Scottish birth who lived primarily in Germany. ... The original Anton Rubinstein Competition was staged by Rubinstein himself every five years from 1890 to 1910 [1]. The winners of the piano competition usually received a white Schroeder piano as the prize. ... 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. ... Lugano is a city in southeast Switzerland, in the Italian-speaking canton of Ticino, which borders Italy. ... Villach [ˈfɪlax] (Slovenian Beljak) is the second largest city in Carinthia in the south of Austria, on the river Drau (Slovenian Drava) and represents an important traffic junction for Austria and the whole Alpe-Adria region. ...

Backhaus was particularly well known for his interpretations of Ludwig van Beethoven and romantic music such as that by Johannes Brahms. He was also much admired as a chamber musician. A portrait by Joseph Karl Stieler, 1820 Ludwig van Beethoven (IPA: ), (baptized December 17, 1770[1] – March 26, 1827) was a German composer. ... The era of Romantic music is defined as the period of European classical music that runs roughly from the early 1800s to the first decade of the 20th century, as well as music written according to the norms and styles of that period. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Chamber music is a form of classical music, written for a small group of instruments which traditionally could be accommodated in a palace chamber. ...

Recordings

According to many critics, Backhaus was one of the first modern artists of the keyboard (see Alfred Cortot for his antithesis) and played with a clean, spare, and objective style. In spite of this analytic approach, his performances are full of feeling. One of the first pianists to leave recordings, he had a long career on the concert stage and in the studio and left us a great legacy. He recorded virtually the complete works of Beethoven and a large quantity of Mozart and Brahms, and he was also the first to record the Chopin etudes, in 1928; this is still widely regarded as one of the best recordings (Pearl 9902 and others). Backhaus plays them smoothly and softly, overcoming their technical challenges without apparent effort. A live recording from 1953 includes seven of the Etudes, Op. 25 and shows the changes that occurred in his playing style over the years (Aura 119). His technical command is the same, but he is more relaxed and confident and more willing to let the music speak for itself. Alfred Denis Cortot (September 26, 1877 – June 15, 1962) was a French pianist and conductor. ... Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (IPA: , baptized Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart) (January 27, 1756 – December 5, 1791) was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical era. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... The only known photograph of Frédéric Chopin, believed to have been taken by Louis-Auguste Bisson in 1849. ...

His 1939 recording of Brahms' Waltzes, Op. 39, runs just over thirteen minutes; it is difficult to imagine anyone actually dancing to this version, but it is exhilarating nevertheless (EMI 66425). His studio recordings of the complete Beethoven sonatas, made in the 1960s, display awesome technique for a man in his seventies (Decca 433882), as do the two Brahms concertos from about the same time (Decca 433895). His live Beethoven recordings are in some ways even better, freer and more vivid (Orfeo 300921). This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ...

His chamber music recordings include Brahms's cello sonatas with Pierre Fournier and Schubert's Trout Quintet with the International Quartet and Charles Hobday. A cello sonata usually denotes a sonata written for cello and piano, though other instrumentations are used, such as solo cello. ... Pierre Fournier (June 24, 1906 – January 8, 1986) was a French cellist who was called the aristocrat of cellists, on account of his elegant musicianship and majestic sound. ... Franz Schubert Franz Peter Schubert (January 31, 1797 – November 19, 1828) was an Austrian composer. ... The Trout Quintet is the popular name for the piano quintet in A major by Franz Schubert. ...