Wilhelm Kempff
Wilhelm Walter Friedrich Kempff was born in Jüterbog, Germany, on November 25, 1895. His father, also named Wilhelm Kempff, fame from a line of respected church organists, and first taught his son music and keyboard playing. Young Wilhelm had lessons with Ida Schmidt-Schlesike, then entered the Berlin Hochschule für Musik at the age of nine, to study composition with Robert Kahn and piano with Heinrich Barth. In 1914 he went to study at the Viktoriagymnasium in Potsdam, then returned to Berlin to continue his training at the Hochschule. He also entered the university, studying philosophy and music history. In 1916 he toured with the Berlin Cathedral Choir through Germany and Scandinavia, as pianist and organist. In 1917 he appeared at the Berlin Singakademie in a piano recital made of primarily of big works: Beethoven's "Hammerklavier" Sonata and Brahms' "Variations on a theme of Paganini." In 1918 he made his first concerto appearance with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, a venue where he would frequently appear over the years. With the end of World War I he was able to expand his career to an international stage. He maintained an impressive concert life over the next several decades, drawing acclaim from his appearances in Europe. South America, and Japan while becoming particularly treasured for his commanding performances of the central German Romantic piano classics from Beethoven to Brahms, plus Chopin. His career continued without interruption except for the years of World War II.
For some reason he put off performing in England and North America until late. His first London recital was not until 1951, and his American debut, in New York, was as late as 1964. Therefore it took the English-speaking world to catch up to what most of the rest of the world already recognized, which is that he was one of the most important and impressive performers in the Austro-German classic piano tradition. He also built an important presence as a teacher, particularly of accomplished students. He became director of the Stuttgart Hochschule für Musik from 1924 to 1929, and conducted master classes there. In 1931 he founded a summer course held at the Marmorpalais, Potsdam, also for master students, along with Edwin Fischer and Walter Gieseking. These lasted until 1941. Beginning in 1957 he directed Beethoven studies at Positano, Italy. As a performer he stressed lyricism, charm, and spontaneity in music, particularly effective in intimate pieces or passages. He always strove for a singing, lyrical quality, occasionally slipping into a slight degree of affectation in his phrasing. He avoided extreme tempos and display for its own sake. He left recordings of most of his repertory, including the complete sonatas of Beethoven and Schubert. He performed to an advanced age, often concertizing past his eightieth birthday. He appeared as a soloist in 1979 with the Berlin Philharmonic, marking an association with them that spanned over sixty years. He died in Positano on May 23, 1991, at the age of 95.
© Joseph Stevenson /TiVo
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Wilhelm Kempff, Piano (Vol.1)
Classical - Released by Deutsche Grammophon (DG) on 1 Jan 2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Arrangements or Transfigurations
Classical - Released by Praga Digitals on 1 Mar 2017
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Piano Sonatas Nos.8, 14, 21 & 22
Classical - Released by Deutsche Grammophon (DG) on 1 Jan 1995
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Schumann: Piano Works
Classical - Released by Deutsche Grammophon (DG) on 1 Jan 1975
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: The Piano Sonatas
Classical - Released by Deutsche Grammophon (DG) on 1 Jan 1965
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven : 5 Piano Concertos
Wilhelm Kempff, Berliner Philharmoniker, Ferdinand Leitner
Classical - Released by Deutsche Grammophon (DG) on 1 Jan 1988
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Piano Trios
Classical - Released by Deutsche Grammophon (DG) on 1 Jan 1997
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Schubert: Impromptus D 899 & 935 / Moments musicaux D 780 · Piano Sonatas
Classical - Released by Deutsche Grammophon (DG) on 1 Jan 1970
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Songs by Great Artist-Composers
Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Rudolf Nel, Karl Engel, Günther Weissenborn, Jörg Demus, Wilhelm Kempff
Classical - Released by Deutsche Grammophon (DG) on 17 Apr 2000
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Legendary Schubert Recordings - Wilhelm Kempff
Classical - Released by UME - Global Clearing House on 14 Jun 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Kempff plays Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach, Wilhelm Kempff
Classical - Released by UME - Global Clearing House on 22 Aug 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Rameau, Couperin, Handel, Beethoven & Schubert: Works for Piano (Live)
Classical - Released by SWR Classic on 30 Apr 2013
Gramophone: Recording of the Month16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Schumann: Piano Works
Classical - Released by Deutsche Grammophon (DG) on 1 Jan 2010
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: The Piano Concertos in under 10 minutes
Wilhelm Kempff, Berliner Philharmoniker, Ferdinand Leitner
Classical - Released by Deutsche Grammophon (DG) on 18 Sep 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart: Piano Sonatas
Classical - Released by Deutsche Grammophon (DG) on 1 Jan 2006
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Schumann: Kinderszenen; Waldszenen; Papillons; Three Romances
Classical - Released by Deutsche Grammophon (DG) on 1 Jan 2000
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Schubert: Impromptus D 899 & 935 / Moments musicaux D 780 · Piano Sonatas
Classical - Released by Decca (UMO) on 1 Jan 1970
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: The Complete Violin Sonatas Vol.I
Yehudi Menuhin, Wilhelm Kempff
Classical - Released by Deutsche Grammophon (DG) on 1 Jan 1970
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Johannes Brahms : Pièces pour piano op. 116, 117, 118, 119
Classical - Released by Deutsche Grammophon (DG) on 1 Jan 1964
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Ludwig van Beethoven : Concertos for Piano and Orchestra
Wilhelm Kempff, Berliner Philharmoniker, Paul Van Kempen
Classical - Released by Deutsche Grammophon (DG) on 1 Jan 1992
The Qobuz Essential Discography16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Kempff plays Schubert
Franz Schubert, Wilhelm Kempff
Classical - Released by UME - Global Clearing House on 21 Nov 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo