Stephen Heller (1813–1888)
A Hungarian pianist who settled in Paris, a friend of Berlioz and Chopin, Heller wrote expressive studies that bridge the gap between exercise and romantic piece.
Born in Pest in 1813, Stephen Heller performed as a child prodigy, then lived for several years in Augsburg before settling in Paris in 1838. He spent the rest of his life there and died in 1888.
Reserved and uninterested in salon showmanship, he mixed with Berlioz, Chopin and Liszt, and wrote reviews for Robert Schumann’s music journal; Schumann admired his music.
His output is almost entirely for piano: character pieces (Promenades d’un solitaire, Nuits blanches) and above all collections of studies — Opp. 45, 46, 47 and 125 — in which each piece is first of all a small poetic work.
For intermediate pianists, Heller is the ideal companion between Burgmüller and Chopin: he teaches romantic phrasing, voice-leading, controlled rubato and the expressive use of the pedal.