Dirk Mommertz (born 12 August 1974) is a German pianist and

chamber musician Chamber music is a form of classical music that is composed for a small group of Musical instrument, instruments—traditionally a group that could fit in a Great chamber, palace chamber or a large room. Most broadly, it includes any art music ...

Life

Education

Born in Mainz, Mommertz, grew up in Michelstadt, where he began his musical education on the violin. He was a young student at the

Akademie für Tonkunst (Darmstadt) A German Akademie is a school or college, trade school or another educational institution. The word Akademie (unlike the words Gymnasium or Universität) is not protected by law and any school or college may choose to call itself Akademie. A Somm ...

, studying violin with Brigitte Fröhlich and piano with Grigory Gruzman. He began studies in 1994 at the

Musikhochschule Karlsruhe A music school is an educational institution specialized in the study, training, and research of music. Such an institution can also be known as a school of music, music academy, music faculty, college of music, music department (of a larger ins ...

with André Boainain, continued at the Frankfurt University of Music and Performing Arts with Lev Natochenny, the Hochschule für Musik und Tanz Köln with the

Alban Berg Quartet The Alban Berg Quartett was a string quartet founded in Vienna, Austria in 1970, named after Alban Berg. Members Beginnings The Berg Quartet was founded in 1970 by four young professors of the Vienna Academy of Music, and made its debut in ...

, and the Conservatoire national supérieur de musique et de danse de Paris with

Georges Pludermacher Georges Pludermacher (born 26 July 1944) is a French classical pianist. He leads an international solo career and performs in the most prestigious festivals. Biography Born in Guéret, Pludermacher began playing the piano at the age of three. He ...

. He was further influenced by Misha Katz and

Mikhail Bezverkhny Mikhail Lvovich Bezverkhny (russian: Михаил Львович Безверхний; born 27 July 1947 in Leningrad) is a Soviet and later Russian violinist, violist and composer. Life and career Born in Saint Petersburg in 1947, Bezverkhny comm ...

. As soloist on the piano he was accompanied by the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, the Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra, the Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Hamburg, the MDR Leipzig Radio Symphony Orchestra and the

Duisburg Philharmonic The Duisburg Philharmonic Orchestra (in German: Duisburger Philharmoniker) is a German orchestra based in Duisburg. The orchestra was founded in 1877. Conductors include: * Walter Josephson (1899 to 1920) * Paul Scheinpflug (1920 to 1928) * Eug ...

Teacher

From 2000 to 2005, Mommertz was a

lecturer Lecturer is an List of academic ranks, academic rank within many universities, though the meaning of the term varies somewhat from country to country. It generally denotes an academic expert who is hired to teach on a full- or part-time basis. T ...

at the Hochschule für Musik Karlsruhe. He was professor for

chamber music Chamber music is a form of classical music that is composed for a small group of instruments—traditionally a group that could fit in a palace chamber or a large room. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small numb ...

at the Folkwang University of the Arts in Essen, during 2005 to 2015, and at the Nuremberg University of Music from 2012 to 2015. In 2015, he accepted a position at the

University of Music and Performing Arts Munich The University of Music and Performing Arts Munich (german: Hochschule für Musik und Theater München), also known as the Munich Conservatory, is a performing arts conservatory in Munich, Germany. The main building it currently occupies is ...

, where he is professor of Chamber Music.

Fauré Quartet

In 1995, Mommertz co-founded the

Fauré Quartet The Fauré Quartet is a German piano quartet, named after Gabriel Fauré. Founded in 1995, they have performed internationally and recorded, including works written for them by composers such as Volker David Kirchner and Toshio Hosokawa. History ...

, ''Quartet in Residence'' at the Karlsruhe University of Music together with his fellow students Erika Geldsetzer, Sascha Frömbling and Konstantin Heidrich. The quartet has remained unchanged since forming. The ensemble performs at international concert halls such as the Wigmore Hall in London, the

Musikverein The ( or ; ), commonly shortened to , is a concert hall in Vienna, Austria, which is located in the Innere Stadt district. The building opened in 1870 and is the home of the Vienna Philharmonic orchestra. The acoustics of the building's 'Great ...

, Lincoln Center in New York, Toppan Hall in Tokyo, the

Royal Concertgebouw The Royal Concertgebouw ( nl, Koninklijk Concertgebouw, ) is a concert hall in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The Dutch term "concertgebouw" translates into English as "concert building". Its superb Architectural acoustics, acoustics place it among the ...

, the Alte Oper in Frankfurt, the

Philharmonie Berlin The Berliner Philharmonie () is a concert hall in Berlin, Germany, and home to the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra. The Philharmonie lies on the south edge of the city's Tiergarten and just west of the former Berlin Wall. The Philharmonie is on ...

, and the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires. CD recordings with Deutsche Grammophon and Sony have been awarded by the ECHO Klassik and the Preis der deutschen Schallplattenkritik.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mommertz, Dirk German classical pianists Academic staff of the University of Music and Performing Arts Munich 1974 births Living people Musicians from Mainz