Franz Liszt (1811–1886)

The son of a steward in the service of the Esterházy princes, Liszt was a child prodigy; he studied in Vienna with Carl Czerny and Antonio Salieri, then moved to Paris with his family. After hearing the violinist Paganini in 1832, he resolved to bring that kind of virtuosity to the piano.

From the late 1830s to 1847 he toured Europe in triumph: no pianist had ever aroused such enthusiasm. He was one of the first to give entire concerts alone, from memory. He then gave up his virtuoso career to become Kapellmeister in Weimar, where he composed his symphonic poems and championed the music of Wagner and Berlioz.

From the 1860s he lived between Rome, Weimar and Budapest; he took minor orders and the title of Abbé. His last works, stark and sometimes without a clear key, foreshadow the 20th century. He died in Bayreuth in 1886.

His catalogue ranges from the Transcendental Études and Hungarian Rhapsodies to contemplative collections (Consolations, Années de pèlerinage), the Sonata in B minor and hundreds of transcriptions. He taught generations of pianists free of charge. Liszt teaches students to make the piano sing, to use the whole keyboard and to think in orchestral colours.