Franz Liszt
Liszt was the only contemporary whose music Richard Wagner gratefully acknowledged as an influence upon his own. His lasting fame was an alchemy of extraordinary digital ability -- the greatest in the history of keyboard playing -- an unmatched instinct for showmanship, and one of the most progressive musical imaginations of his time. Hailed by some as a visionary, reviled by others as a symbol of empty Romantic excess, Franz Liszt wrote his name across music history in a truly inimitable manner.
From his youth, Liszt demonstrated a natural facility at the keyboard that placed him among the top performing prodigies of his day. Though contemporary accounts describe his improvisational skill as dazzling, his talent as a composer emerged only in his adulthood. Still, he was at the age of eleven the youngest contributor to publisher Anton Diabelli's famous variation commissioning project, best remembered as the inspiration for Beethoven's final piano masterpiece. An oft-repeated anecdote -- first recounted by Liszt himself decades later, and possibly fanciful -- has Beethoven attending a recital given by the youngster and bestowing a kiss of benediction upon him.
Though already a veteran of the stage by his teens, Liszt recognized the necessity of further musical tuition. He studied for a time with Czerny and Salieri in Vienna, and later sought acceptance to the Paris Conservatory. When he was turned down there -- foreigners were not then admitted -- he instead studied privately with Anton Reicha. Ultimately, his Hungarian origins proved a great asset to his career, enhancing his aura of mystery and exoticism and inspiring an extensive body of works, none more famous than the Hungarian Rhapsodies (1846-1885).
Liszt soon became a prominent figure in Parisian society, his romantic entanglements providing much material for gossip. Still, not even the juiciest accounts of his amorous exploits could compete with the stories about his wizardry at the keyboard. Inspired by the superhuman technique -- and, indeed, diabolical stage presence -- of the violinist Paganini, Liszt set out to translate these qualities to the piano. As his career as a touring performer, conductor, and teacher burgeoned, he began to devote an increasing amount of time to composition. He wrote most of his hundreds of original piano works for his own use; accordingly, they are frequently characterized by technical demands that push performers -- and in Liszt's own day, the instrument itself -- to their limits. The "transcendence" of his Transcendental Etudes (1851), for example, is not a reference to the writings of Emerson and Thoreau, but an indication of the works' level of difficulty. Liszt was well into his thirties before he mastered the rudiments of orchestration -- works like the Piano Concerto No. 1 (1849) were orchestrated by talented students -- but made up for lost time in the production of two "literary" symphonies (Faust, 1854-1857, and Dante, 1855-1856) and a series of orchestral essays (including Les préludes, 1848-1854) that marks the genesis of the tone poem as a distinct genre.
After a lifetime of near-constant sensation, Liszt settled down somewhat in his later years. In his final decade he joined the Catholic Church and devoted much of his creative effort to the production of sacred works. The complexion of his music darkened; the flash that had characterized his previous efforts gave way to a peculiar introspection, manifested in strikingly original, forward-looking efforts like Nuages gris (1881). Liszt died in Bayreuth, Germany, on July 31, 1886, having outlived Wagner, his son-in-law and greatest creative beneficiary.
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Love Classical Music
Klassiek - Released by Music Blast on 28 sep. 2016
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Liszt: The Poet Inspired
Klassiek - Released by Equilibrium on 8 jul. 2015
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Liszt: Piano Sonata in B Minor, S. 178 - Les Grandes Etudes de Paganini, S. 141
Klassiek - Released by VDE-GALLO on 26 okt. 2013
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Liszt: Concerto for Piano No. 1
Klassiek - Released by Best Buy Classical on 24 mrt. 2012
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Franz Liszt: The Greatest Classical Moments
Klassiek - Released by Amathus Music on 19 apr. 2011
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Poemas Sinfónicos
Orquesta Sinfónica De Eslovaquia
Symfonische muziek - Released by Music Hit Factory on 1 dec. 2008
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Chill To The Music Of Franz Liszt
Klassiek - Released by Only Between Us Records on 9 jun. 2017
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The Definitive Collection Of Franz Liszt
Pop - Released by Only Between Us Records on 9 jun. 2017
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Inspired by Dante
Klassiek - Released by FM Records on 29 jan. 2016
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Midnight Special
Dance - Released by VIRAL MUSIC COLLECTIVE on 8 jun. 2023
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Walk in Vienna
Dance - Released by VIRAL MUSIC COLLECTIVE on 1 jun. 2023
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Lieder von Robert Schumann, S. 569 - Liederalbum für die Jugend, Op. 79: 1. Weihnachtslied (Arr. for Piano by Franz Liszt)
Franz Liszt, Robert Schumann, German Kitkin
Klassiek - Released by Stereo Arts Classics on 25 apr. 2024
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Franz Liszt - The Great Piano Works
Alternative en Indie - Released by Arton Records on 18 feb. 2024
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Liszt: Symphonic Poem No. 2, S. 96 "Tasso, Lamento e trionfo" (Digitally Remastered)
Klassiek - Released by EMG Classical on 3 sep. 2013
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Liszt: Symphonic Poem No. 2, S. 96 "Tasso, Lamento e trionfo" (Digitally Remastered)
Klassiek - Released by EMG Classical on 3 sep. 2013
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Liszt: Trauerode, oration for organ (Vortagsstücke No. 2), S. 268/2 [Digitally Remastered]
Klassiek - Released by EMG Classical on 3 sep. 2013
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Reflections and Relationships
Yarolslav Senyshyn, Susan O'Neill-Senyshyn
Klassiek - Released by Albany Records on 1 nov. 2013
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Harmonies du Soir
Klassiek - Released by Audiofonic Records on 21 apr. 2020
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Valse S 125
Klassiek - Released by Digital Music Group, Inc. on 19 jan. 2006
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