Piano masterclass

The basis of Peter Feuchtwanger's art of piano playing have their roots in his infallible sensitivity to the relationship of player and instrument. His method derives from some of the greatest exponents of the discipline, both those that he knew personally - Clara Haskil, Edwin Fischer, Alfred Cortot - and those whose music, as preserved in early recordings, reveals the same approach to the piano, such as lgnacy Friedman.

At the heart lies Chopin?s aesthetics of playing the piano. The numerous descriptions of Chopin's playing and teaching, not to mention the views he himself expressed in his "Sketchess for a Piano Method" emphasise the fluidity of movement and the admonition "facilement! Facilement!". Such concerns address the attainment of that quality of ease which is often cited in reports of Chopin's playing. That Chopin and Feuchtwanger each developed this way of playing more or less autodidactically (Feuchtwanger was initially self-taught, taking lessons only later in his youth) is a further indication of the common ground between them. Jan Kleczynski's report of Chopin's playing and teaching, written after interviewing a large number of his pupils, corresponds entirely to Feuchtwanger's approach:

Chopin schooled the hand with infinite care before assigning, it to the reproduction of musical ideas. In order to bring the hand to a position that was both advantageous and graceful, he threw it effortlessly onto the keyboard. And there is another essential point of agreement: the influence of the Italian bel canto style and its realisation in piano sound.

Two founding members of Chopin Institut: Magdalena Horses and Alexander Reitenbach are the students of Peter Feuchtwanger. They follow the method of their encounter and they provide in teaching the right approach of the art of playing piano using the organic movements of the hand and understanding of the different musical languages of the composers.

The F. Chopin Institut is honored to announce that the next master classes with Prof. Peter Feuchwanger is taking place on April 2016 in Montreux.