Gerhard Oppitz (born 5 February 1953,

Frauenau Frauenau is a municipality in the district of Regen, in Bavaria, Germany. It is known for its artificial lake, which is used as a water supply of the area around Deggendorf Deggendorf () is a town in Bavaria, Germany, capital of the Deggendor ...

) is a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

classical

pianist A pianist ( , ) is an individual musician who plays the piano. Since most forms of Western music can make use of the piano, pianists have a wide repertoire and a wide variety of styles to choose from, among them traditional classical music, ja ...

. He studied with Paul Buck, Hugo Steurer and

Wilhelm Kempff Wilhelm Walter Friedrich Kempff (25 November 1895 – 23 May 1991) was a German pianist and composer. Although his repertoire included Bach, Mozart, Chopin, Schumann, Liszt and Brahms, Kempff was particularly well known for his interpretations ...

. In 1981 he was appointed professor at the

Hochschule für Musik und Theater München 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 ...

Lehrkräfte der Hochschule für Musik und Theater München

the youngest in the history of the institutewhere he still teaches. As a soloist he has appeared with many famous conductors and orchestras of the world. In the summer 1977, at the age of 24, Oppitz was the first German to win the

Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Master Competition The Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Master Competition is an international piano competition specializing in the music championed by Arthur Rubinstein. The competition has been held every three years in Tel Aviv, Israel since 1974. History T ...

in Tel Aviv, Israel. Performance of cycles of complete piano works feature strongly in his concert repertoire, including Schubert's and Grieg's solo piano works and the sonatas by Beethoven and Mozart's sonatas and, especially, the complete works of Johannes Brahms. He has recorded the challenging Max Reger Piano Concerto, Op. 114, with the

Bamberg Symphony Orchestra The Bamberg Symphony (German: Bamberger Symphoniker – Bayerische Staatsphilharmonie) is a German orchestra based in Bamberg. It is one of the most prestigious orchestras in Germany. The orchestra was formed in 1946 mainly from German musicians ...

and conductor

Horst Stein Horst Walter Stein (born 2 May 1928 in Elberfeld, Germany; died 27 July 2008 in Vandœuvres, Switzerland) was a German conductor. Biography Stein's father was a mechanic. At school in Frankfurt, he studied piano, oboe, and singing. Later, ...

. In 2009 he received the Brahms-Preis from the Brahms Society of Schleswig-Holstein. Among his students are

Valentina Babor Valentina Babor (born 8 July 1989) is a German classical pianist. She began performing before audiences and winning youth competitions as a child. At 12, she was accepted by Karl-Heinz Kämmerling at the Mozarteum, where she became part of the uni ...

and

Milana Chernyavska Milana Chernyavska (born 13 January 1968) is a Ukrainian-German classical pianist born and educated in Ukraine. She has played internationally as a soloist and chamber musician, with a focus on contemporary music which she also recorded. Life and ...

References

External links

*
Gerhard Oppitz (Piano)
bach-cantatas.com
Biography on Boston Symphony Orchestra page, accessed 21 October 2011

Interview for Tokafi, accessed 21 October 2011
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oppitz, Gerhard 1953 births Living people University of Music and Performing Arts Munich alumni University of Music and Performing Arts Munich faculty German classical pianists Male classical pianists 21st-century classical pianists 21st-century male musicians