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Franz Liszt, in modern usage ''Liszt Ferenc'' . Liszt's Hungarian passport spelled his given name as "Ferencz". An orthographic reform of the Hungarian language in 1922 (which was 36 years after Liszt's death) changed the letter "cz" to simply "c" in all words except surnames; this has led to Liszt's given name being rendered in modern Hungarian usage as "Ferenc". From 1859 to 1867 he was officially Franz Ritter von Liszt; he was created a ''
Ritter Ritter (German for "knight") is a designation used as a title of nobility in German-speaking areas. Traditionally it denotes the second-lowest rank within the nobility, standing above " Edler" and below "Freiherr" (Baron). As with most titles a ...
'' (knight) by Emperor
Francis Joseph I Franz Joseph I or Francis Joseph I (german: Franz Joseph Karl, hu, Ferenc József Károly, 18 August 1830 – 21 November 1916) was Emperor of Austria, King of Hungary, and the other states of the Habsburg monarchy from 2 December 1848 until his ...
in 1859, but never used this title of nobility in public. The title was necessary to marry the Princess
Carolyne zu Sayn-Wittgenstein Princess Carolyne zu Sayn-Wittgenstein (8 February 18199 March 1887) was a Polish noblewoman (''szlachcianka'') who is best known for her 40-year relationship with musician Franz Liszt. She was also an amateur journalist and essayist. It is co ...
without her losing her privileges, but after the marriage fell through, Liszt transferred the title to his uncle Eduard in 1867. Eduard's son was
Franz von Liszt Franz Eduard Ritter von Liszt (2 March 1851 – 21 June 1919) was a German jurist, criminologist and international law reformer. As a legal scholar, he was a proponent of the modern sociological and historical school of law. From 1898 until 1917, ...
., group=n (22 October 1811 – 31 July 1886) was a Hungarian composer, pianist and teacher of the
Romantic period Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic, literary, musical, and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century, and in most areas was at its peak in the approximate ...
. With a diverse
body of work The complete works of an artist, writer, musician, group, etc., is a collection of all of their cultural works. For example, '' Complete Works of Shakespeare'' is an edition containing all the plays and poems of William Shakespeare. A ''Complete ...
spanning more than six decades, he is considered to be one of the most prolific and influential composers of his era and remains one of the most popular composers in modern concert piano repertoire. Liszt first gained renown during the early nineteenth century for his virtuoso skill as a pianist. Regarded as one of the greatest pianists of all time, he toured Europe during the 1830s and 1840s, often playing for charity. In these years, Liszt developed a reputation for his powerful performances as well as his physical attractiveness. In what has now been dubbed "
Lisztomania Lisztomania or Liszt fever was the intense fan frenzy directed toward Hungarian composer Franz Liszt during his performances. This frenzy first occurred in Berlin in 1841 and the term was later coined by Heinrich Heine in a feuilleton he wrote on ...
", he rose to a degree of stardom and popularity among the public not experienced by the virtuosos who preceded him. Whereas earlier performers mostly served the upper class, Liszt attracted a more general audience. During this period and into his later life, Liszt was a friend, musical promoter and benefactor to many composers of his time, including Frédéric Chopin, Charles-Valentin Alkan,
Richard Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most op ...
, Hector Berlioz, Robert Schumann,
Clara Schumann Clara Josephine Schumann (; née Wieck; 13 September 1819 – 20 May 1896) was a German pianist, composer, and piano teacher. Regarded as one of the most distinguished pianists of the Romantic era, she exerted her influence over the course of a ...
, Camille Saint-Saëns,
Edvard Grieg Edvard Hagerup Grieg ( , ; 15 June 18434 September 1907) was a Norwegian composer and pianist. He is widely considered one of the foremost Romantic era composers, and his music is part of the standard classical repertoire worldwide. His use of ...
, Ole Bull, Joachim Raff, Mikhail Glinka, and Alexander Borodin. Liszt was one of the most prominent representatives of the
New German School The New German School (german: link=no, Neudeutsche Schule, ) is a term introduced in 1859 by Franz Brendel, editor of the ''Neue Zeitschrift für Musik'', to describe certain trends in German music. Although the term has frequently been used in ...
(german: Neudeutsche Schule, link=no). He left behind an extensive and diverse body of work that influenced his forward-looking contemporaries and anticipated 20th-century ideas and trends. Among Liszt's musical contributions were the symphonic poem, developing
thematic transformation Thematic transformation (also known as thematic metamorphosis or thematic development) is a musical technique in which a leitmotif, or theme, is developed by changing the theme by using permutation ( transposition or modulation, inversion, and retr ...
as part of his experiments in musical form, and radical innovations in harmony. Liszt has also been regarded as a forefather of
Impressionism in music Impressionism in music was a movement among various composers in Western classical music (mainly during the late 19th and early 20th centuries) whose music focuses on mood and atmosphere, "conveying the moods and emotions aroused by the subjec ...
, with his ''
Années de pèlerinage ''Années de pèlerinage'' (French for ''Years of Pilgrimage'') ( S.160, S.161, S.162, S.163) is a set of three suites for solo piano by Franz Liszt. Much of it derives from his earlier work, ''Album d'un voyageur'', his first major published pian ...
'', often regarded as his masterwork, featuring many impressionistic qualities. In a radical departure from his earlier compositional styles, many of Liszt’s later works also feature experiments in atonality, foreshadowing the serialist movement of the 20th century.


Life


Early life

Franz Liszt was born to Anna Liszt (née Maria Anna Lager)Genealogy of the Liszt family: Marriage of Maria Anna Lager and Adam Liszt
pfarre-paudorf.com
/ref> and Adam Liszt on 22 October 1811, in the village of Doborján (German: Raiding) in
Sopron County Sopron (German: ''Ödenburg'') was an administrative county (comitatus) of the Kingdom of Hungary. Its territory is now divided between Austria and Hungary. The capital of the county was Sopron. Geography Sopron county shared borders with the A ...
, in the
Kingdom of Hungary The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from the Middle Ages into the 20th century. The Principality of Hungary emerged as a Christian kingdom upon the coronation of the first king Stephen ...
,
Austrian Empire The Austrian Empire (german: link=no, Kaiserthum Oesterreich, modern spelling , ) was a Central-Eastern European multinational great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the realms of the Habsburgs. During its existence ...
. Liszt's father played the piano, violin, cello, and guitar. He had been in the service of Prince Nikolaus II Esterházy and knew
Haydn Franz Joseph Haydn ( , ; 31 March 173231 May 1809) was an Austrian composer of the Classical period. He was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions to musical form have led ...
, Hummel, and
Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classic ...
personally. At age six, Franz began listening attentively to his father's piano playing. Franz also found exposure to music through attending mass as well as traveling Romani bands that toured the Hungarian countryside. Adam began teaching him the piano at age seven, and Franz began composing in an elementary manner when he was eight. He appeared in concerts at
Sopron Sopron (; german: Ödenburg, ; sl, Šopron) is a city in Hungary on the Austrian border, near Lake Neusiedl/Lake Fertő. History Ancient times-13th century When the area that is today Western Hungary was a province of the Roman Empire, a ...
and Pressburg ( Hungarian: Pozsony, present-day
Bratislava Bratislava (, also ; ; german: Preßburg/Pressburg ; hu, Pozsony) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Slovakia. Officially, the population of the city is about 475,000; however, it is estimated to be more than 660,000 — approxim ...
, Slovakia) in October and November 1820 at age nine. After the concerts, a group of wealthy sponsors offered to finance Franz's musical education in Vienna. There, Liszt received piano lessons from
Carl Czerny Carl Czerny (; 21 February 1791 – 15 July 1857) was an Austrian composer, teacher, and pianist of Czech origin whose music spanned the late Classical and early Romantic eras. His vast musical production amounted to over a thousand works and ...
, who in his own youth had been a student of Beethoven and Hummel. He also received lessons in composition from
Ferdinando Paer Ferdinando Paer (1 July 1771 – 3 May 1839) was an Italian composer known for his operas. He was of Austrian descent and used the German spelling Pär in application for printing in Venice, and later in France the spelling Paër. Life and career ...
and
Antonio Salieri Antonio Salieri (18 August 17507 May 1825) was an Italian classical composer, conductor, and teacher. He was born in Legnago, south of Verona, in the Republic of Venice, and spent his adult life and career as a subject of the Habsburg monarchy ...
, who was then the music director of the Viennese court. Liszt's public debut in Vienna on 1 December 1822, at a concert at the "Landständischer Saal", was a great success. He was greeted in Austrian and Hungarian aristocratic circles and met Beethoven and
Schubert Franz Peter Schubert (; 31 January 179719 November 1828) was an Austrian composer of the late Classical and early Romantic eras. Despite his short lifetime, Schubert left behind a vast ''oeuvre'', including more than 600 secular vocal wor ...
. In the spring of 1823, when his one-year leave of absence came to an end, Adam Liszt asked Prince Esterházy in vain for two more years. Adam Liszt, therefore, took his leave of the Prince's services. At the end of April 1823, the family returned to Hungary for the last time. At the end of May 1823, the family traveled to Vienna once more. Towards the end of 1823 or early 1824, Liszt's first composition was published, his Variation on a Waltz by Diabelli (now S. 147), appeared as Variation 24 in of '' Vaterländischer Künstlerverein''. This anthology, commissioned by
Anton Diabelli Anton (or Antonio) Diabelli (5 September 17818 April 1858) was an Austrian music publisher, editor and composer. Best known in his time as a publisher, he is most familiar today as the composer of the waltz on which Ludwig van Beethoven wrote ...
, includes 50 variations on his waltz by 50 different composers being taken up by Beethoven's 33 variations on the same theme, which are now separately better known simply as his ''
Diabelli Variations The ''33 Variations on a waltz by Anton Diabelli'', Op. 120, commonly known as the ''Diabelli Variations'', is a set of variations for the piano written between 1819 and 1823 by Ludwig van Beethoven on a waltz composed by Anton Diabelli. It f ...
'', Op. 120. Liszt's inclusion in the Diabelli project (he was described in it as "an 11-year-old boy, born in Hungary") was almost certainly at the instigation of Czerny, his teacher, and also a participant. Liszt was the only child composer in the anthology.


Adolescence in Paris

After his father's death in 1827, Liszt moved to Paris; for the next five years, he lived with his mother in a small apartment. He gave up touring, and in order to earn money, Liszt gave lessons on playing piano and composition, often from early morning until late at night. His students were scattered across the city and he had to cover long distances. Because of this, he kept uncertain hours and also took up smoking and drinking— habits he would continue throughout his life. The following year, Liszt fell in love with one of his pupils, Caroline de Saint-Cricq, the daughter of
Charles X Charles X (born Charles Philippe, Count of Artois; 9 October 1757 – 6 November 1836) was King of France from 16 September 1824 until 2 August 1830. An uncle of the uncrowned Louis XVII and younger brother to reigning kings Louis XVI and Lou ...
's minister of commerce,
Pierre de Saint-Cricq Pierre Laurent Barthélemy François Charles de Saint-Cricq (24 August 1772 – 25 February 1854) was a French customs administrator and politician. He was a deputy from 1815–20 and 1824–33, Minister of Commerce & Manufacturing (1828–29) an ...
. Her father, however, insisted that the affair be broken off. Liszt fell very ill, to the extent that an obituary notice was printed in a Paris newspaper, and he underwent a long period of religious doubts and pessimism. He again stated a wish to join the Church but was dissuaded this time by his mother. He had many discussions with the Abbé de Lamennais, who acted as his spiritual father, and also with Chrétien Urhan, a German-born violinist who introduced him to the Saint-Simonists. Urhan also wrote music that was anti-classical and highly subjective, with titles such as ''Elle et moi, La Salvation angélique'' and ''Les Regrets'', and may have whetted the young Liszt's taste for musical romanticism. Equally important for Liszt was Urhan's earnest championship of Schubert, which may have stimulated his own lifelong devotion to that composer's music. During this period, Liszt read widely to overcome his lack of general education, and he soon came into contact with many of the leading authors and artists of his day, including
Victor Hugo Victor-Marie Hugo (; 26 February 1802 – 22 May 1885) was a French Romantic writer and politician. During a literary career that spanned more than sixty years, he wrote in a variety of genres and forms. He is considered to be one of the great ...
,
Alphonse de Lamartine Alphonse Marie Louis de Prat de Lamartine (; 21 October 179028 February 1869), was a French author, poet, and statesman who was instrumental in the foundation of the Second Republic and the continuation of the Tricolore as the flag of France. ...
and Heinrich Heine. He composed practically nothing in these years. Nevertheless, the
July Revolution The French Revolution of 1830, also known as the July Revolution (french: révolution de Juillet), Second French Revolution, or ("Three Glorious ays), was a second French Revolution after the first in 1789. It led to the overthrow of King ...
of 1830 inspired him to sketch a Revolutionary Symphony based on the events of the "three glorious days," and he took a greater interest in events surrounding him. He met Hector Berlioz on 4 December 1830, the day before the premiere of the '' Symphonie fantastique''. Berlioz's music made a strong impression on Liszt, especially later when he was writing for orchestra. He also inherited from Berlioz the diabolic quality of many of his works.


Paganini

After attending a charity concert on 20 April 1832, for the victims of the Parisian cholera epidemic, organized by
Niccolò Paganini Niccolò (or Nicolò) Paganini (; 27 October 178227 May 1840) was an Italian violinist and composer. He was the most celebrated violin virtuoso of his time, and left his mark as one of the pillars of modern violin technique. His 24 Caprices fo ...
, Liszt became determined to become as great a virtuoso on the piano as Paganini was on the violin. Paris in the 1830s had become the nexus for pianistic activities, with dozens of pianists dedicated to perfection at the keyboard. Some, such as
Sigismond Thalberg Sigismond Thalberg (8 January 1812 – 27 April 1871) was an Austrian composer and one of the most distinguished virtuoso pianists of the 19th century. Family He was born in Pâquis near Geneva on 8 January 1812. According to his own account, h ...
and Alexander Dreyschock, focused on specific aspects of technique, such as the "
three-hand effect The three-hand effect (or three-hand technique) is a means of playing on the piano with only two hands, but producing the impression that one is using three hands. Typically this effect is produced by keeping the melody in the middle register, wit ...
" and octaves, respectively. While it has since been referred to as the "flying trapeze" school of piano playing, this generation also solved some of the most intractable problems of piano technique, raising the general level of performance to previously unimagined heights. Liszt's strength and ability to stand out in this company was in mastering all the aspects of piano technique cultivated singly and assiduously by his rivals. In 1833, he made transcriptions of several works by Berlioz including the ''Symphonie fantastique''. His chief motive in doing so, especially with the ''Symphonie'', was to help the poverty-stricken Berlioz, whose symphony remained unknown and unpublished. Liszt bore the expense of publishing the transcription himself and played it many times to help popularize the original score. He was also forming a friendship with a third composer who influenced him, Frédéric Chopin; under his influence, Liszt's poetic and romantic side began to develop.


With Countess Marie d'Agoult

In 1833, Liszt began his relationship with the Countess
Marie d'Agoult Marie Cathérine Sophie, Comtesse d'Agoult (née de Flavigny; 31 December 18055 March 1876), was a Franco-German romantic author and historian, known also by her pen name, Daniel Stern. Life Marie was born in Frankfurt am Main, Germany, with th ...
. In addition to this, at the end of April 1834, he made the acquaintance of Felicité de Lamennais. Under the influence of both, Liszt's creative output exploded. In 1835, the countess left her husband and family to join Liszt in
Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...
; Liszt's daughter with the countess, Blandine, was born there on 18 December. Liszt taught at the newly founded Geneva Conservatory, wrote a manual of piano technique (later lost) and contributed essays for the Paris ''Revue et gazette musicale''. In these essays, he argued for the raising of the artist from the status of a servant to a respected member of the community. For the next four years, Liszt and the countess lived together, mainly in
Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
and Italy, where their daughter, Cosima, was born on Lake Como, with occasional visits to Paris. On 9 May 1839, Liszt's and the countess's only son, Daniel, was born, but that autumn relations between them became strained. Liszt heard that plans for a Beethoven Monument in Bonn were in danger of collapse for lack of funds and pledged his support. Doing so meant returning to the life of a touring virtuoso. The countess returned to Paris with the children, while Liszt gave six concerts in Vienna, then toured Hungary.


Touring Europe

For the next eight years Liszt continued to tour Europe, spending holidays with the countess and their children on the island of Nonnenwerth on the Rhine in the summers of 1841 and 1843. In spring 1844, the couple finally separated. This was Liszt's most brilliant period as a concert pianist. Honors were showered on him and he was met with adulation wherever he went. Liszt wrote his
Three Concert Études Three Concert Études (''Trois études de concert''), S.144, is a set of three piano études by Franz Liszt, composed between 1845–49 and published in Paris as ''Trois caprices poétiques'' with the three individual titles as they are known tod ...
between 1845 and 1849. Since he often appeared three or four times a week in concert, it could be safe to assume that he appeared in public well over a thousand times during this eight-year period. Moreover, his great fame as a pianist, which he would continue to enjoy long after he had officially retired from the concert stage, was based mainly on his accomplishments during this time. During his virtuoso heyday, Liszt was described by the writer Hans Christian Andersen as a "slim young man...
ith The Ith () is a ridge in Germany's Central Uplands which is up to 439 m high. It lies about 40 km southwest of Hanover and, at 22 kilometres, is the longest line of crags in North Germany. Geography Location The Ith is immediatel ...
dark hair hung around his pale face". He was seen as handsome by many, with the German poet Heinrich Heine writing concerning his showmanship during concerts: "How powerful, how shattering was his mere physical appearance". In 1841, Franz Liszt was admitted to the Freemason's lodge "Unity" "Zur Einigkeit", in
Frankfurt am Main Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...
. He was promoted to the second degree and elected master as a member of the lodge "Zur Eintracht", in
Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...
. From 1845, he was also an honorary member of the lodge "Modestia cum Libertate" at
Zürich Zürich () is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zürich. It is located in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zürich. As of January 2020, the municipality has 43 ...
and in 1870 of the lodge in Pest (Budapest-Hungary). After 1842, "
Lisztomania Lisztomania or Liszt fever was the intense fan frenzy directed toward Hungarian composer Franz Liszt during his performances. This frenzy first occurred in Berlin in 1841 and the term was later coined by Heinrich Heine in a feuilleton he wrote on ...
"—coined by 19th-century German poet and Liszt's contemporary, Heinrich Heine—swept across Europe. The reception that Liszt enjoyed, as a result, can be described only as hysterical. Women fought over his silk handkerchiefs and velvet gloves, which they ripped to shreds as souvenirs. This atmosphere was fuelled in great part by the artist's mesmeric personality and stage presence. Many witnesses later testified that Liszt's playing raised the mood of audiences to a level of mystical ecstasy. On 14 March 1842, Liszt received an honorary doctorate from the
University of Königsberg The University of Königsberg (german: Albertus-Universität Königsberg) was the university of Königsberg in East Prussia. It was founded in 1544 as the world's second Protestant academy (after the University of Marburg) by Duke Albert of Pruss ...
—an honor unprecedented at the time and an especially important one from the perspective of the German tradition. Liszt never used 'Dr. Liszt' or 'Dr. Franz Liszt' publicly.
Ferdinand Hiller Ferdinand (von) Hiller (24 October 1811 – 11 May 1885) was a German composer, conductor, pianist, writer and music director. Biography Ferdinand Hiller was born to a wealthy Jewish family in Frankfurt am Main, where his father Justus (orig ...
, a rival of Liszt at the time, was allegedly highly jealous of the decision made by the university. Adding to his reputation was the fact that Liszt gave away much of his proceeds to charity and humanitarian causes in his whole life. In fact, Liszt had made so much money by his mid-forties that virtually all his performing fees after 1857 went to charity. While his work for the Beethoven monument and the Hungarian National School of Music is well known, he also gave generously to the building fund of
Cologne Cathedral Cologne Cathedral (german: Kölner Dom, officially ', English: Cathedral Church of Saint Peter) is a Catholic cathedral in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia. It is the seat of the Archbishop of Cologne and of the administration of the Archdiocese o ...
, the establishment of a '' Gymnasium'' at Dortmund, and the construction of the Leopold Church in Pest. There were also private donations to hospitals, schools, and charitable organizations such as the Leipzig Musicians Pension Fund. When he found out about the Great Fire of Hamburg, which raged for three days during May 1842 and destroyed much of the city, he gave concerts in aid of the thousands of homeless there.


Liszt in Weimar

In February 1847, Liszt played in Kiev. There he met the Polish Princess
Carolyne zu Sayn-Wittgenstein Princess Carolyne zu Sayn-Wittgenstein (8 February 18199 March 1887) was a Polish noblewoman (''szlachcianka'') who is best known for her 40-year relationship with musician Franz Liszt. She was also an amateur journalist and essayist. It is co ...
, who was to become one of the most significant people in the rest of his life. She persuaded him to concentrate on composition, which meant giving up his career as a traveling virtuoso. After a tour of the Balkans, Turkey, and Russia that summer, Liszt gave his final concert for pay at
Yelisavetgrad Kropyvnytskyi ( uk, Кропивницький, Kropyvnytskyi ) is a city in central Ukraine on the Inhul river with a population of . It is an administrative center of the Kirovohrad Oblast. Over its history, Kropyvnytskyi has changed its name ...
in September. He spent the winter with the princess at her estate in Woronince. By retiring from the concert platform at 35, while still at the height of his powers, Liszt succeeded in keeping the legend of his playing untarnished. The following year, Liszt took up a long-standing invitation of Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna of Russia to settle at
Weimar Weimar is a city in the state of Thuringia, Germany. It is located in Central Germany between Erfurt in the west and Jena in the east, approximately southwest of Leipzig, north of Nuremberg and west of Dresden. Together with the neighbouri ...
, where he had been appointed '' Kapellmeister Extraordinaire'' in 1842, remaining there until 1861. During this period he acted as conductor at court concerts and on special occasions at the theatre. He gave lessons to a number of pianists, including the great virtuoso
Hans von Bülow Freiherr Hans Guido von Bülow (8 January 1830 – 12 February 1894) was a German conductor, virtuoso pianist, and composer of the Romantic era. As one of the most distinguished conductors of the 19th century, his activity was critical for es ...
, who married Liszt's daughter Cosima in 1857 (years later, she would marry
Richard Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most op ...
). He also wrote articles championing Berlioz and Wagner. Finally, Liszt had ample time to compose and during the next 12 years revised or produced those orchestral and choral pieces upon which his reputation as a composer mainly rested. During those twelve years, he also helped raise the profile of the exiled Wagner by conducting the overtures of his operas in concert, Liszt and Wagner would have a profound friendship that lasted until Wagner's death in Venice in 1883. Princess Carolyne lived with Liszt during his years in Weimar. She eventually wished to marry Liszt, but since she had been previously married and her husband, Russian military officer Prince Nikolaus zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Ludwigsburg (1812–1864), was still alive, she had to convince the Roman Catholic authorities that her marriage to him had been invalid. After huge efforts and a monstrously intricate process, she was temporarily successful (September 1860). It was planned that the couple would marry in Rome, on 22 October 1861, Liszt's 50th birthday. Although Liszt arrived in Rome on 21 October, the marriage was made impossible by a letter that had arrived the previous day to the Pope himself. It appears that both her husband and the
Tsar of Russia This is a list of all reigning monarchs in the history of Russia. It includes the princes of medieval Rus′ state (both centralised, known as Kievan Rus′ and feudal, when the political center moved northeast to Vladimir and finally to Mos ...
had managed to quash permission for the marriage at the Vatican. The Russian government also impounded her several estates in the Polish Ukraine, which made her later marriage to anybody unfeasible.


Rome, Weimar, Budapest

The 1860s were a period of great sadness in Liszt's private life. On 13 December 1859, he lost his 20-year-old son Daniel, and, on 11 September 1862, his 26-year-old daughter Blandine also died. In letters to friends, Liszt announced that he would retreat to a solitary living. He found it at the monastery ''Madonna del Rosario'', just outside Rome, where on 20 June 1863, he took up quarters in a small, spartan apartment. He had on 23 June 1857, already joined the
Third Order of Saint Francis The Third Order of Saint Francis is a third order in the Franciscan tradition of Christianity, founded by the medieval Catholic Church in Italy, Italian Catholic friar Francis of Assisi. The preaching of Francis and his disciples caused many ma ...
. On 25 April 1865, he received the
tonsure Tonsure () is the practice of cutting or shaving some or all of the hair on the scalp as a sign of religious devotion or humility. The term originates from the Latin word ' (meaning "clipping" or "shearing") and referred to a specific practice i ...
at the hands of Cardinal
Hohenlohe The House of Hohenlohe () is a German princely dynasty. It ruled an immediate territory within the Holy Roman Empire which was divided between several branches. The Hohenlohes became imperial counts in 1450. The county was divided numerous tim ...
. On 31 July 1865, he received the four minor orders of
porter Porter may refer to: Companies * Porter Airlines, Canadian regional airline based in Toronto * Porter Chemical Company, a defunct U.S. toy manufacturer of chemistry sets * Porter Motor Company, defunct U.S. car manufacturer * H.K. Porter, Inc., ...
,
lector Lector is Latin for one who reads, whether aloud or not. In modern languages it takes various forms, as either a development or a loan, such as french: lecteur, en, lector, pl, lektor and russian: лектор. It has various specialized uses. ...
,
exorcist In some religions, an exorcist (from the Greek „ἐξορκιστής“) is a person who is believed to be able to cast out the devil or performs the ridding of demons or other supernatural beings who are alleged to have possessed a person, ...
, and
acolyte An acolyte is an assistant or follower assisting the celebrant in a religious service or procession. In many Christian denominations, an acolyte is anyone performing ceremonial duties such as lighting altar candles. In others, the term is used f ...
. After this ordination, he was often called '' Abbé'' Liszt. On 14 August 1879, he was made an honorary
canon Canon or Canons may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Canon (fiction), the conceptual material accepted as official in a fictional universe by its fan base * Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture ** Western ca ...
of Albano. On some occasions, Liszt took part in Rome's musical life. On 26 March 1863, at a concert at the Palazzo Altieri, he directed a programme of sacred music. The "Seligkeiten" of his '' Christus-Oratorio'' and his "Cantico del Sol di Francesco d'Assisi", as well as Haydn's ''
Die Schöpfung ''The Creation'' (german: Die Schöpfung) is an oratorio written between 1797 and 1798 by Joseph Haydn (Hoboken catalogue, Hob. XXI:2), and considered by many to be one of his masterpieces. The oratorio depicts and celebrates the creation of the ...
'' and works by
J. S. Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard wo ...
,
Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classic ...
, Jommelli,
Mendelssohn Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), born and widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions include sym ...
, and
Palestrina Palestrina (ancient ''Praeneste''; grc, Πραίνεστος, ''Prainestos'') is a modern Italian city and ''comune'' (municipality) with a population of about 22,000, in Lazio, about east of Rome. It is connected to the latter by the Via Pre ...
were performed. On 4 January 1866, Liszt directed the "Stabat mater" of his ''Christus-Oratorio'', and, on 26 February 1866, his ''
Dante Symphony ''A Symphony to Dante's Divine Comedy'', S.109, or simply the "''Dante Symphony''", is a choral symphony composed by Franz Liszt. Written in the high romantic style, it is based on Dante Alighieri's journey through Hell and Purgatory, as depicted ...
''. There were several further occasions of similar kind, but in comparison with the duration of Liszt's stay in Rome, they were exceptions. In 1866, Liszt composed the Hungarian coronation ceremony for
Franz Joseph Franz Joseph I or Francis Joseph I (german: Franz Joseph Karl, hu, Ferenc József Károly, 18 August 1830 – 21 November 1916) was Emperor of Austria, King of Hungary, and the other states of the Habsburg monarchy from 2 December 1848 until his ...
and
Elisabeth of Bavaria Duchess Elisabeth Amalie Eugenie in Bavaria (24 December 1837 – 10 September 1898) was Empress of Austria and Queen of Hungary from her marriage to Emperor Franz Joseph I on 24 April 1854 until her assassination in 1898. Elisabeth was ...
(Latin: Missa coronationalis). The Mass was first performed on 8 June 1867, at the coronation ceremony in the
Matthias Church , other name = , native_name = hu, Mátyás-templom , native_name_lang = , image = Matthias Church, Budapest, 2017.jpg , imagesize = , imagelink = , imagealt ...
by
Buda Castle Buda Castle ( hu, Budavári Palota, german: link=no, Burgpalast) is the historical castle and palace complex of the Hungarian Kings in Budapest. It was first completed in 1265, although the massive Baroque palace today occupying most of the si ...
in a six-section form. After the first performance, the Offertory was added, and, two years later, the Gradual. Liszt was invited back to Weimar in 1869 to give master classes in piano playing. Two years later, he was asked to do the same in
Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...
at the Hungarian
Music Academy The Music Academy is a classical music training program in Montecito in Santa Barbara County, California. Overview The academy hosts an annual eight-week summer music festival, highlighted by concerts and workshops directed by famous composer ...
. From then until the end of his life, he made regular journeys between Rome, Weimar, and Budapest, continuing what he called his "vie trifurquée" or tripartite existence. It is estimated that Liszt traveled at least 4,000 miles a year during this period in his life – an exceptional figure despite his advancing age and the rigors of road and rail in the 1870s.


Royal Academy of Music at Budapest

From the early 1860s, there were attempts to obtain a position for Liszt in Hungary. In 1871, the Hungarian Prime Minister Gyula Andrássy made a new attempt writing on 4 June 1871, to the Hungarian King (the Austrian Emperor
Franz Joseph I Franz Joseph I or Francis Joseph I (german: Franz Joseph Karl, hu, Ferenc József Károly, 18 August 1830 – 21 November 1916) was Emperor of Austria, King of Hungary, and the other states of the Habsburg monarchy from 2 December 1848 until his ...
), requesting an annual grant of 4,000 Gulden and the rank of a "Königlicher Rat" ("Crown Councillor") for Liszt, who in return would permanently settle in Budapest, directing the orchestra of the National Theatre as well as musical institutions. The plan of the foundation of a Royal Academy was agreed upon by the Hungarian Parliament in 1872. In March 1875, Liszt was nominated as president. The Academy was officially opened on 14 November 1875 with Liszt's colleague
Ferenc Erkel Ferenc Erkel ( hu, Erkel Ferenc , german: link=no, Franz Erkel; November 7, 1810June 15, 1893) was a Hungarian composer, conductor and pianist. He was the father of Hungarian grand opera, written mainly on historical themes, which are still o ...
as director,
Kornél Ábrányi Kornél Ábrányi (; 15 October 1822 – 20 December 1903) was a Hungarian pianist, music writer and theorist, and composer. He was born in Szentgyörgyábrány. A pupil of Frédéric Chopin, and a close friend of Franz Liszt, whose music he ...
and
Robert Volkmann Friedrich Robert Volkmann (6 April 1815 – 30 October 1883) was a German composer. Life Robert Volkmann was born in Lommatzsch near Meißen, Germany. His father, a music director for a church, trained him in music to prepare him as a successor ...
. Liszt himself came in March 1876 to give some lessons and a charity concert. In spite of the conditions under which Liszt had been appointed as "Königlicher Rat", he neither directed the orchestra of the National Theatre nor permanently settled in Hungary. Typically, he would arrive in mid-winter in Budapest. After one or two concerts of his students, by the beginning of spring, he left. He never took part in the final examinations, which were in the summer of every year. Some of the pupils joined the lessons that Liszt gave in the summer in Weimar. In 1873, on the occasion of Liszt's 50th anniversary as a performing artist, the city of Budapest instituted a "Franz Liszt Stiftung" ("Franz Liszt Foundation"), to provide stipends of 200 Gulden for three students of the Academy who had shown excellent abilities with regard to Hungarian music. Liszt alone decided the allocation of these stipends. It was Liszt's habit to declare all students who took part in his lessons as his private students. In consequence, almost none of them paid any fees to the Academy. A ministerial order of 13 February 1884 decreed that all those who took part in Liszt's lessons had to pay an annual charge of 30 Gulden. In fact, the Academy was, in any case, a net gainer, since Liszt donated its revenue from his charity concerts.


Last years

Liszt fell down the stairs of a hotel in Weimar on 2 July 1881. Though friends and colleagues had noticed swelling in his feet and legs when he had arrived in Weimar the previous month (an indication of possible
congestive heart failure Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome, a group of signs and symptoms caused by an impairment of the heart's blood pumping function. Symptoms typically include shortness of breath, excessive fatigue, ...
), he had been in good health up to that point and was still fit and active. He was left immobilized for eight weeks after the accident and never fully recovered from it. A number of ailments manifested themselves—
dropsy Edema, also spelled oedema, and also known as fluid retention, dropsy, hydropsy and swelling, is the build-up of fluid in the body's tissue. Most commonly, the legs or arms are affected. Symptoms may include skin which feels tight, the area ma ...
,
asthma Asthma is a long-term inflammatory disease of the airways of the lungs. It is characterized by variable and recurring symptoms, reversible airflow obstruction, and easily triggered bronchospasms. Symptoms include episodes of wheezing, co ...
,
insomnia Insomnia, also known as sleeplessness, is a sleep disorder in which people have trouble sleeping. They may have difficulty falling asleep, or staying asleep as long as desired. Insomnia is typically followed by daytime sleepiness, low energy, ...
, a
cataract A cataract is a cloudy area in the lens of the eye that leads to a decrease in vision. Cataracts often develop slowly and can affect one or both eyes. Symptoms may include faded colors, blurry or double vision, halos around light, trouble ...
in the left eye, and heart disease. The last-mentioned eventually contributed to Liszt's death. He became increasingly plagued by feelings of desolation, despair, and preoccupation with death—feelings that he expressed in his works from this period. As he told
Lina Ramann Lina Ramann (July 24, 1833 – March 30, 1912) was a German writer and teacher known for her books on the Hungarian composer and pianist A pianist ( , ) is an individual musician who plays the piano. Since most forms of Western music can ...
, "I carry a deep sadness of the heart which must now and then break out in sound." On 13 January 1886, while Claude Debussy was staying at the
Villa Medici The Villa Medici () is a Mannerist villa and an architectural complex with a garden contiguous with the larger Borghese gardens, on the Pincian Hill next to Trinità dei Monti in Rome, Italy. The Villa Medici, founded by Ferdinando I de' Medici, ...
in Rome, Liszt met him there with
Paul Vidal Paul Antonin Vidal (16 June 1863 – 9 April 1931) was a French composer, conductor and music teacher mainly active in Paris.Charlton D. Paul Vidal. In: ''The New Grove Dictionary of Opera.'' Macmillan, London and New York, 1997. Life and caree ...
and
Ernest Hébert Antoine Auguste Ernest Hébert (3 November 1817 – 5 December 1908) was a French academic painter. Biography Hébert was born in Grenoble, son of a notary in Grenoble, and moved in 1835 to Paris to study law. He simultaneously took art ...
, director of the French Academy. Liszt played '' Au bord d'une source'' from his ''
Années de pèlerinage ''Années de pèlerinage'' (French for ''Years of Pilgrimage'') ( S.160, S.161, S.162, S.163) is a set of three suites for solo piano by Franz Liszt. Much of it derives from his earlier work, ''Album d'un voyageur'', his first major published pian ...
'', as well as his arrangement of Schubert's ''Ave Maria'' for the musicians. Debussy in later years described Liszt's pedalling as "like a form of breathing." Debussy and Vidal performed their
piano duet According to the ''Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'', there are two kinds of piano duet: "those for two players at one instrument, and those in which each of the two pianists has an instrument to themself." In American usage the former is ...
arrangement of Liszt's
Faust Symphony ''A Faust Symphony in three character pictures'' (german: Eine Faust-Symphonie in drei Charakterbildern), S.108, or simply the "''Faust Symphony''", is a choral symphony written by Hungarian composer Franz Liszt inspired by Johann Wolfgang von Go ...
; allegedly, Liszt fell asleep during this. The composer Camille Saint-Saëns, an old friend, whom Liszt had once called "the greatest organist in the world", dedicated his Symphony No. 3 "Organ Symphony" to Liszt; it had premiered in London only a few weeks before the death of its dedicatee. Liszt died in Bayreuth, Germany, on 31 July 1886, at the age of 74, officially as a result of
pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...
, which he may have contracted during the
Bayreuth Festival The Bayreuth Festival (german: link=no, Bayreuther Festspiele) is a music festival held annually in Bayreuth, Germany, at which performances of operas by the 19th-century German composer Richard Wagner are presented. Wagner himself conceived ...
hosted by his daughter Cosima. Questions have been posed as to whether medical malpractice played a part in his death. He was buried on 3 August 1886, in the against his wishes.


Pianist

Many musicians consider Liszt to be the greatest pianist who ever lived. The critic
Peter G. Davis Peter Graffam Davis (March 3, 1936February 13, 2021)Rooney, Terrie M. (ed.). (1999). "Davis, Peter G(raffam)". ''Contemporary Authors'', Vol. 165, p. 80. Gale Research International. was an American opera and classical music critic. He was the cl ...
has opined: "Perhaps isztwas not the most transcendent virtuoso who ever lived, but his audiences thought he was."


Performing style

There are few, if any, good sources that give an impression of how Liszt really sounded from the 1820s.
Carl Czerny Carl Czerny (; 21 February 1791 – 15 July 1857) was an Austrian composer, teacher, and pianist of Czech origin whose music spanned the late Classical and early Romantic eras. His vast musical production amounted to over a thousand works and ...
said Liszt was a natural who played according to feeling, and reviews of his concerts especially praise the brilliance, strength, and precision in his playing. At least one also mentions his ability to keep absolute tempo, which may be caused by his father's insistence on practicing with a metronome. His repertoire then consisted primarily of pieces in the style of the brilliant Viennese school, such as concertos by Hummel and works by his former teacher Czerny, and his concerts often included a chance for the boy to display his prowess in improvisation. Liszt possessed notable sight-reading skills. Following the death of Liszt's father in 1827 and his hiatus from life as a touring virtuoso, Liszt's playing likely gradually developed a more personal style. One of the most detailed descriptions of his playing from that time comes from the winter of 1831–32 when he was earning a living primarily as a teacher in Paris. Among his pupils was Valerie Boissier, whose mother, Caroline, kept a careful diary of the lessons:
M. Liszt's playing contains abandonment, a liberated feeling, but even when it becomes impetuous and energetic in his fortissimo, it is still without harshness and dryness. .. edraws from the piano tones that are purer, mellower, and stronger than anyone has been able to do; his touch has an indescribable charm. ..He is the enemy of affected, stilted, contorted expressions. Most of all, he wants truth in musical sentiment, and so he makes a psychological study of his emotions to convey them as they are. Thus, a strong expression is often followed by a sense of fatigue and dejection, a kind of coldness, because this is the way nature works.
Liszt was sometimes mocked in the press for facial expressions and gestures at the piano. Also noted were the extravagant liberties that he could take with the text of a score. Berlioz tells how Liszt would add cadenzas, tremolos, and trills when he played the first movement of Beethoven's ''Moonlight'' Sonata and created a dramatic scene by changing the tempo between Largo and Presto. In his ''Baccalaureus letter'' to George Sand from the beginning of 1837, Liszt admitted that he had done so to gain applause and promised to follow both the letter and the spirit of a score from then on. It has been debated to what extent he realized his promise, however. By July 1840, the British newspaper ''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...
'' could still report:
His performance commenced with Handel's Fugue in E minor, which was played by Liszt with avoidance of everything approaching meretricious ornament and indeed scarcely any additions, except a multitude of appropriate harmonies, casting a glow of color over the beauties of the composition and infusing into it a spirit which from no other hand it ever before received.


Repertoire

During his years as a traveling virtuoso, Liszt performed an enormous amount of music throughout Europe, but his core repertoire always centered on his own compositions, paraphrases, and transcriptions. Of Liszt's German concerts between 1840 and 1845, the five most frequently played pieces were the ''
Grand galop chromatique Grand galop chromatique in E-flat major, S.219 is a bravura piece by Franz Liszt, composed in 1838. This galop was one of Liszt's favorite encores which he considered a "rouser". The ''galop chromatique'' was published as a piano solo and also in ...
'', his transcription of Schubert's ''Erlkönig'', ''
Réminiscences de Don Juan ''Réminiscences de Don Juan'' (S. 418) is an opera fantasia (music), fantasy for piano by Franz Liszt on themes from Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Mozart's 1787 opera ''Don Giovanni''. It is extremely technically demanding and considered to be am ...
'', ''Réminiscences de Robert le Diable'', and ''Réminiscences de Lucia di Lammermoor''. Among the works by other composers were Weber's '' Invitation to the Dance''; Chopin
mazurkas The mazurka ( Polish: ''mazur'' Polish ball dance, one of the five Polish national dances and ''mazurek'' Polish folk dance') is a Polish musical form based on stylised folk dances in triple meter, usually at a lively tempo, with character ...
; études by composers like
Ignaz Moscheles Isaac Ignaz Moscheles (; 23 May 179410 March 1870) was a Bohemian piano virtuoso and composer. He was based initially in London and later at Leipzig, where he joined his friend and sometime pupil Felix Mendelssohn as professor of piano at the Co ...
, Chopin, and
Ferdinand Hiller Ferdinand (von) Hiller (24 October 1811 – 11 May 1885) was a German composer, conductor, pianist, writer and music director. Biography Ferdinand Hiller was born to a wealthy Jewish family in Frankfurt am Main, where his father Justus (orig ...
; but also major works by Beethoven, Schumann, Weber, and Hummel and from time to time even selections from Bach, Handel, and Scarlatti. Most of the concerts were shared with other artists, so Liszt also often accompanied singers, participated in chamber music, or performed works with an orchestra in addition to his own solo part. Frequently-played works include Weber's ''
Konzertstück A concert piece (German: Konzertstück; French: pièce de concert, also morceau de concert) is a musical composition, in most cases in one movement, intended for performance in a concert. Usually it is written for one or more virtuoso instrumenta ...
'', Beethoven's
Emperor Concerto The Piano Concerto No. 5 in E-flat major, Op. 73, known as the Emperor Concerto in English-speaking countries, is a concerto composed by Ludwig van Beethoven for piano and orchestra. Beethoven composed the concerto in 1809 under salary in Vienna ...
and Choral Fantasy, and Liszt's reworking of the ''Hexameron'' for piano and orchestra. His chamber music repertoire included Johann Nepomuk Hummel's Septet, Beethoven's
Archduke Trio Archduke (feminine: Archduchess; German: ''Erzherzog'', feminine form: ''Erzherzogin'') was the title borne from 1358 by the Habsburg rulers of the Archduchy of Austria, and later by all senior members of that dynasty. It denotes a rank withi ...
and Kreutzer Sonata, and a large selection of songs by composers like
Gioachino Rossini Gioachino Antonio Rossini (29 February 1792 – 13 November 1868) was an Italian composer who gained fame for his 39 operas, although he also wrote many songs, some chamber music and piano pieces, and some sacred music. He set new standards ...
, Gaetano Donizetti, Beethoven, and especially
Franz Schubert Franz Peter Schubert (; 31 January 179719 November 1828) was an Austrian composer of the late Classical and early Romantic eras. Despite his short lifetime, Schubert left behind a vast ''oeuvre'', including more than 600 secular vocal wo ...
. At some concerts, Liszt could not find musicians to share the program with and so was among the first to give solo piano recitals in the modern sense of the word. The term was coined by the publisher Frederick Beale, who suggested it for Liszt's concert at the
Hanover Square Rooms The Hanover Square Rooms or the Queen's Concert Rooms were assembly rooms established, principally for musical performances, on the corner of Hanover Square, London, by Sir John Gallini in partnership with Johann Christian Bach and Carl Friedric ...
in London on 9 June 1840, even though Liszt had already given concerts by himself by March 1839.


Instruments

Among the composer's pianos in Weimar were an Érard, a Bechstein piano, the Beethoven's Broadwood grand and a Boisselot. It is known that Liszt was using Boisselot pianos in his Portugal tour and then later in 1847 in a tour to Kiev and Odessa. Liszt kept the piano at his Villa Altenburg residence in Weimar. This instrument is not in a playable condition now, and in 2011, at the order of
Klassik Stiftung Weimar The Klassik Stiftung Weimar (''Classical Foundation Weimar'') is one of the largest and most significant cultural institutions in Germany. It owns more than 20 museums, palaces, historic houses and parks, as well as literary and art collections, ...
, a modern builder,
Paul McNulty Paul Joseph McNulty (born January 31, 1958) is an American attorney and university administrator who is currently the ninth president of Grove City College. He served as the Deputy Attorney General of the United States from March 17, 2006, to Jul ...
, made a copy of the Boisselot piano which is now on display next to the original Liszt's instrument. Liszt's interest in Bach's organ music in the early 1840s prompted him to commission a piano-organ from the Paris company Alexandre Père et Fils. The instrument was made in 1854 under Berlioz's supervision, using an 1853 Érard piano, a combination of piano and harmonium with three manuals and a pedal board. The company called it a "piano-Liszt" and installed it in Villa Altenburg in July 1854, the instrument is now exhibited in the Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde collection in Vienna. Liszt owned two other organs that were installed later in his Budapest residence. The first was a smaller version of Weimar's instrument, a combination piano and harmonium with two independent manuals, upper for the 1864 Érard piano, and lower for the harmonium, built again by Alexandre Père et Fils in 1865. The second was a "cabinet organ", a large concert harmonium built in Detroit and Boston by Mason & Hamlin and given to Liszt in 1877. Mason & Hamlin later sold a revised mass-produced model of this single manual reed organ as a "Liszt Organ". This harmonium was eventually sold to a "Mr. Smith", an Englishman living in the United States. Mr. Smith sold it to an American collector in 1911 for $50,000.


Musical works

Liszt was a prolific composer. He is best known for his piano music, but he also wrote for orchestra and for other ensembles, virtually always including keyboard. His piano works are often marked by their difficulty. Some of his works are programmatic, based on extra-musical inspirations such as poetry or art. Liszt is credited with the creation of the symphonic poem.


Piano music

The largest and best-known portion of Liszt's music is his original piano work. During the Weimar period, he composed 19
Hungarian Rhapsodies The Hungarian Rhapsodies, S.244, R.106 (french: Rhapsodies hongroises, german: Ungarische Rhapsodien, hu, Magyar rapszódiák), is a set of 19 piano pieces based on Hungarian folk themes, composed by Franz Liszt during 1846–1853, and late ...
, themselves revisions of his own Magyar Dalok/Rhapsódiák. His thoroughly revised masterwork, "''
Années de pèlerinage ''Années de pèlerinage'' (French for ''Years of Pilgrimage'') ( S.160, S.161, S.162, S.163) is a set of three suites for solo piano by Franz Liszt. Much of it derives from his earlier work, ''Album d'un voyageur'', his first major published pian ...
''" ("Years of Pilgrimage") includes arguably his most provocative and stirring pieces. This set of three suites ranges from the virtuosity of the Suisse Orage (Storm) to the subtle and imaginative visualizations of artworks by Michelangelo and
Raphael Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino, better known as Raphael (; or ; March 28 or April 6, 1483April 6, 1520), was an Italian painter and architect of the High Renaissance. His work is admired for its clarity of form, ease of composition, and visual a ...
in the second set. "''Années de pèlerinage''" contains some pieces which are loose transcriptions of Liszt's own earlier compositions; the first "year" recreates his early pieces of "''Album d'un voyageur''", while the second book includes a resetting of his own song transcriptions once separately published as "''Tre sonetti di Petrarca''" ("Three sonnets of Petrarch"). The relative obscurity of the vast majority of his works may be explained by the immense number of pieces he composed, and the level of technical difficulty which was present in much of his composition. Liszt's piano works are usually divided into two categories: original works, and transcriptions, paraphrases, or fantasies on works by other composers. Examples of his own works are ''
Harmonies poétiques et religieuses ''Harmonies poétiques et religieuses'' (''Poetic and Religious Harmonies''), S.173, is a cycle of piano pieces written by Franz Liszt at WoronińceVoronivtsi the Polish-Ukrainian country estate of Liszt’s mistress Princess Carolyne von Sayn-W ...
'' of May 1833 and the Piano Sonata in B minor (1853). Liszt's transcriptions of other composers include Schubert songs, fantasies on operatic melodies, and his piano arrangements of symphonies by Hector Berlioz and
Ludwig van Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classical ...
. Liszt also made piano arrangements of his own instrumental and vocal works, such as the arrangement of the second movement "''Gretchen''" of his ''
Faust Symphony ''A Faust Symphony in three character pictures'' (german: Eine Faust-Symphonie in drei Charakterbildern), S.108, or simply the "''Faust Symphony''", is a choral symphony written by Hungarian composer Franz Liszt inspired by Johann Wolfgang von Go ...
'', the first " ''Mephisto Waltz''," the " ''Liebesträume'' No. 3," and the two volumes of his "''Buch der Lieder''."


Transcriptions

Liszt wrote substantial quantities of piano transcriptions of a wide variety of music. Indeed, about half of his works are arrangements of music by other composers. He played many of them himself in celebrated performances. In the mid-19th century, orchestral performances were much less common than they are today and were not available at all outside major cities; thus, Liszt's transcriptions played a major role in popularising a wide array of music such as Beethoven's symphonies. The pianist
Cyprien Katsaris Cyprien Katsaris ( el, Κυπριανός Κατσαρής; born 5 May 1951) is a French- Cypriot virtuoso pianist, teacher and composer. Amongst his teachers were Monique de la Bruchollerie, a student of Emil von Sauer, who had been a pupil o ...
has stated that he prefers Liszt's transcriptions of the symphonies to the originals, and
Hans von Bülow Freiherr Hans Guido von Bülow (8 January 1830 – 12 February 1894) was a German conductor, virtuoso pianist, and composer of the Romantic era. As one of the most distinguished conductors of the 19th century, his activity was critical for es ...
admitted that Liszt's transcription of his ''Dante Sonett'' "Tanto gentile" was much more refined than the original he himself had composed. Liszt's transcriptions of Schubert songs, his fantasies on operatic melodies, and his piano arrangements of symphonies by Berlioz and Beethoven are other well-known examples of piano transcriptions. In addition to piano transcriptions, Liszt also transcribed about a dozen works for organ, such as Otto Nicolai's ''Ecclesiastical Festival Overture on the chorale "Ein feste Burg"'',
Orlando di Lasso Orlande de Lassus ( various other names; probably – 14 June 1594) was a composer of the late Renaissance. The chief representative of the mature polyphonic style in the Franco-Flemish school, Lassus stands with Giovanni Pierluigi da Pales ...
's motet ''Regina coeli'', some Chopin preludes, and excerpts of Bach's Cantata No. 21 and Wagner's ''
Tannhäuser Tannhäuser (; gmh, Tanhûser), often stylized, "The Tannhäuser," was a German Minnesinger and traveling poet. Historically, his biography, including the dates he lived, is obscure beyond the poetry, which suggests he lived between 1245 and ...
''.


Organ music

Liszt wrote his two largest organ works between 1850 and 1855 while he was living in Weimar, a city with a long tradition of organ music, most notably that of J.S. Bach.
Humphrey Searle Humphrey Searle (26 August 1915 – 12 May 1982) was an English composer and writer on music. His music combines aspects of late Romanticism and modernist serialism, particularly reminiscent of his primary influences, Franz Liszt, Arnold Schoen ...
calls these works—the Fantasy and Fugue on the chorale "Ad nos, ad salutarem undam" and the Prelude and Fugue on B-A-C-H—Liszt's "only important original organ works" and Derek Watson, writing in his ''Liszt'', considered them among the most significant organ works of the nineteenth century, heralding the work of such key organist-musicians as Reger, Franck, and Saint-Saëns, among others. ''Ad nos'' is an extended fantasia, Adagio, and fugue, lasting over half an hour, and the Prelude and Fugue on B-A-C-H include chromatic writing which sometimes removes the sense of tonality. Liszt also wrote the monumental set of variations on the first section of the second movement chorus from Bach's cantata ''
Weinen, Klagen, Sorgen, Zagen, BWV 12 (Weeping, lamenting, worrying, fearing), 12, is a church cantata by Johann Sebastian Bach. He composed it in Weimar for Jubilate, the third Sunday after Easter, and led the first performance on 22 April 1714 in the , the court chapel of the '' S ...
'' (which Bach later reworked as the ' in the Mass in B minor), which he composed after the death of his daughter in 1862. He also wrote a Requiem for organ solo, intended to be performed liturgically, along with the spoken Requiem Mass.


Lieder

Franz Liszt composed about six dozen original songs with piano accompaniment. In most cases, the lyrics were in German or French, but there are also some songs in Italian and Hungarian and one song in English. Liszt began with the song "Angiolin dal biondo crin" in 1839, and, by 1844, had composed about two dozen songs. Some of them had been published as single pieces. In addition, there was an 1843–1844 series ''Buch der Lieder''. The series had been projected for three volumes, consisting of six songs each, but only two volumes appeared. Today, Liszt's songs are relatively obscure. The song "Ich möchte hingehn" is sometimes cited because of a single bar, which resembles the opening motif of Wagner's ''
Tristan und Isolde ''Tristan und Isolde'' (''Tristan and Isolde''), WWV 90, is an opera in three acts by Richard Wagner to a German libretto by the composer, based largely on the 12th-century romance Tristan and Iseult by Gottfried von Strassburg. It was compose ...
''. It is often claimed that Liszt wrote that motif ten years before Wagner started work on ''Tristan'' in 1857. The original version of "Ich möchte hingehn" was certainly composed in 1844 or 1845; however, there are four manuscripts, and only a single one, a copy by August Conradi, contains the bar with the ''Tristan'' motif. It is on a paste-over in Liszt's hand. Since in the second half of 1858 Liszt was preparing his songs for publication and he had at that time just received the first act of Wagner's ''Tristan'', it is most likely that the version on the paste-over was a
quotation A quotation is the repetition of a sentence, phrase, or passage from speech or text that someone has said or written. In oral speech, it is the representation of an utterance (i.e. of something that a speaker actually said) that is introduced by ...
from Wagner.


Programme music

Liszt, in some of his works, supported the relatively new idea of
program music Program music or programatic music is a type of instrumental art music that attempts to musically render an extramusical narrative. The narrative itself might be offered to the audience through the piece's title, or in the form of program notes ...
—that is, music intended to evoke extra-musical ideas such as a depiction of a landscape, a poem, a particular character or personage. (By contrast,
absolute music Absolute music (sometimes abstract music) is music that is not explicitly 'about' anything; in contrast to program music, it is non- representational.M. C. Horowitz (ed.), ''New Dictionary of the History of Ideas'', , vol.1, p. 5 The idea of abs ...
stands for itself and is intended to be appreciated without any particular reference to the outside world.) Liszt's own point of view regarding program music can for the time of his youth be taken from the preface of the ''Album d'un voyageur'' (1837). According to this, a landscape could evoke a certain kind of mood. Since a piece of music could also evoke a mood, a mysterious resemblance with the landscape could be imagined. In this sense, the music would not paint the landscape, but it would match the landscape in a third category, the mood. In July 1854, Liszt stated in his essay about Berlioz and ''
Harold in Italy ''Harold en Italie,'' ''symphonie avec un alto principal'' (English: ''Harold in Italy,'' ''symphony with viola obbligato''), as the manuscript calls and describes it, is a four-movement orchestral work by Hector Berlioz, his Opus 16, H. 68, wr ...
'' that not all music was program music. If in the heat of a debate, a person would go so far as to claim the contrary, it would be better to put all ideas of program music aside. But it would be possible to take means like harmony, modulation, rhythm, instrumentation, and others to let a musical motif endure a fate. In any case, a program should be added to a piece of music only if it was necessarily needed for an adequate understanding of that piece. Still later, in a letter to Marie d'Agoult of 15 November 1864, Liszt wrote:
Without any reserve I completely subscribe to the rule of which you so kindly want to remind me, that those musical works which are in a general sense following a program must take effect on imagination and emotion, independent of any program. In other words: All beautiful music must be first-rate and always satisfy the absolute rules of music which are not to be violated or prescribed.


Symphonic poems

A symphonic poem or tone poem is a piece of orchestral music in one movement in which some extramusical program provides a narrative or illustrative element. This program may come from a poem, a story or novel, a painting, or another source. The term was first applied by Liszt to his 13 one-movement orchestral works in this vein. They were not pure symphonic movements in the classical sense because they dealt with descriptive subjects taken from
mythology Myth is a folklore genre consisting of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society, such as foundational tales or origin myths. Since "myth" is widely used to imply that a story is not objectively true, the identification of a narrat ...
, Romantic literature, recent history, or imaginative fantasy. In other words, these works were programmatic rather than abstract. The form was a direct product of
Romanticism Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic, literary, musical, and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century, and in most areas was at its peak in the approximate ...
which encouraged literary, pictorial, and dramatic associations in music. It developed into an important form of program music in the second half of the 19th century. The first 12 symphonic poems were composed in the decade 1848–58 (though some use material conceived earlier); one other, ''Von der Wiege bis zum Grabe'' (''From the Cradle to the Grave''), followed in 1882. Liszt's intent, according to
Hugh MacDonald Hugh John Macdonald (born 31 January 1940 in Newbury, Berkshire) is an English musicologist chiefly known for his work within the music of the 19th century, especially in France. He has been general editor of the ''Hector Berlioz: New Edition of ...
in ''
The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians ''The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' is an encyclopedic dictionary of music and musicians. Along with the German-language ''Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart'', it is one of the largest reference works on the history and theo ...
'', was for these single-movement works "to display the traditional logic of symphonic thought." That logic, embodied in
sonata form Sonata form (also ''sonata-allegro form'' or ''first movement form'') is a musical structure generally consisting of three main sections: an exposition, a development, and a recapitulation. It has been used widely since the middle of the 18th c ...
as
musical development In music, development is a process by which a musical idea is communicated in the course of a composition. It refers to the transformation and restatement of initial material. Development is often contrasted with musical variation, which is a ...
, was traditionally the unfolding of latent possibilities in given themes in rhythm, melody and harmony, either in part or in their entirety, as they were allowed to combine, separate and contrast with one another. To the resulting sense of struggle, Beethoven had added intensity of feeling and the involvement of his audiences in that feeling, beginning from the ''Eroica'' Symphony to use the elements of the craft of music— melody, bass, counterpoint, rhythm and harmony—in a new synthesis of elements toward this end. Liszt attempted in the symphonic poem to extend this revitalization of the nature of musical discourse and add to it the Romantic ideal of reconciling classical formal principles to external literary concepts. To this end, he combined elements of overture and symphony with descriptive elements, approaching symphonic first movements in form and scale. While showing extremely creative amendments to sonata form, Liszt used compositional devices such as
cyclic form Cyclic form is a technique of musical construction, involving multiple sections or movements, in which a theme, melody, or thematic material occurs in more than one movement as a unifying device. Sometimes a theme may occur at the beginning and ...
, motifs and
thematic transformation Thematic transformation (also known as thematic metamorphosis or thematic development) is a musical technique in which a leitmotif, or theme, is developed by changing the theme by using permutation ( transposition or modulation, inversion, and retr ...
to lend these works added coherence. Their composition proved daunting, requiring a continual process of creative experimentation that included many stages of composition, rehearsal, and revision to reach a version where different parts of the musical form seemed balanced.


Late works

With some works from the end of the Weimar years, Liszt drifted more and more away from the musical taste of his time. An early example is the melodrama "Der traurige Mönch" ("The sad monk") after a poem by
Nikolaus Lenau Nikolaus Lenau was the pen name of Nikolaus Franz Niembsch Edler von Strehlenau (13 August 1802 – 22 August 1850), a German-language Austrian poet. Biography He was born at Csatád (Schadat), Kingdom of Hungary, now Lenauheim, Banat, then p ...
, composed at the beginning of October 1860. While in the 19th-century harmonies were usually considered as major or minor triads to which dissonances could be added, Liszt used the
augmented triad Augment or augmentation may refer to: Language * Augment (Indo-European), a syllable added to the beginning of the word in certain Indo-European languages *Augment (Bantu languages), a morpheme that is prefixed to the noun class prefix of nouns ...
as the central chord. More examples can be found in the third volume of Liszt's ''Années de Pélerinage''. "Les Jeux d'Eaux à la Villa d'Este" ("The Fountains of the
Villa d'Este The Villa d'Este is a 16th-century villa in Tivoli, near Rome, famous for its terraced hillside Italian Renaissance garden and especially for its profusion of fountains. It is now an Italian state museum, and is listed as a UNESCO World Herita ...
"), composed in September 1877, foreshadows the impressionism of pieces on similar subjects by Claude Debussy and Maurice Ravel. Other pieces such as the "Marche funèbre, En mémoire de Empereur du Mexique" ("Funeral march, In memory of Maximilian I, Emperor of Mexico") composed in 1867 are, however, without stylistic parallel in the 19th and 20th centuries. At a later stage, Liszt experimented with "forbidden" things such as parallel 5ths in the "Csárdás macabre" and atonality in the ''
Bagatelle sans tonalité ''Bagatelle sans tonalité'' ("Bagatelle without tonality", S.216a) is a piece for solo piano written by Franz Liszt in 1885. The manuscript bears the title "Fourth Mephisto Waltz" and may have been intended to replace the piece now known as the ...
'' ("Bagatelle without Tonality"). Pieces like the "2nd Mephisto-Waltz" are unconventional because of their numerous repetitions of short motives. Also showing experimental characteristics are the ''
Via crucis The Stations of the Cross or the Way of the Cross, also known as the Way of Sorrows or the Via Crucis, refers to a series of images depicting Jesus Christ on the day of his crucifixion and accompanying prayers. The stations grew out of imitati ...
'' of 1878, as well as ''Unstern!'', ''
Nuages gris ''Nuages gris'' (; French, lit. ''Grey Clouds''), S.199 or ''Trübe Wolken'', is a work for piano solo composed by Franz Liszt on August 24, 1881. It is one of Liszt's most haunting and at the same time one of his most experimental works, repre ...
'', and the two works entitled '' La lugubre gondola'' of the 1880s.


Literary works

Besides his musical works, Liszt wrote essays about many subjects. Most important for an understanding of his development is the article series "De la situation des artistes" ("On the situation of artists") which was published in the Parisian ''Gazette musicale'' in 1835. In winter 1835–36, during Liszt's stay in
Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...
, about half a dozen further essays followed. One of them that was slated to be published under the pseudonym "Emm Prym" was about Liszt's own works. It was sent to Maurice Schlesinger, editor of the ''Gazette musicale''. Schlesinger, however, following the advice of Berlioz, did not publish it. At the beginning of 1837, Liszt published a review of some piano works of
Sigismond Thalberg Sigismond Thalberg (8 January 1812 – 27 April 1871) was an Austrian composer and one of the most distinguished virtuoso pianists of the 19th century. Family He was born in Pâquis near Geneva on 8 January 1812. According to his own account, h ...
. The review provoked a huge scandal. Liszt also published a series of writings titled "Baccalaureus letters", ending in 1841. During the Weimar years, Liszt wrote a series of essays about operas, leading from
Gluck Christoph Willibald (Ritter von) Gluck (; 2 July 1714 – 15 November 1787) was a composer of Italian and French opera in the early classical period. Born in the Upper Palatinate and raised in Bohemia, both part of the Holy Roman Empire, he g ...
to
Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most op ...
. Liszt also wrote essays about Berlioz and the symphony ''
Harold in Italy ''Harold en Italie,'' ''symphonie avec un alto principal'' (English: ''Harold in Italy,'' ''symphony with viola obbligato''), as the manuscript calls and describes it, is a four-movement orchestral work by Hector Berlioz, his Opus 16, H. 68, wr ...
'',
Robert The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...
and
Clara Schumann Clara Josephine Schumann (; née Wieck; 13 September 1819 – 20 May 1896) was a German pianist, composer, and piano teacher. Regarded as one of the most distinguished pianists of the Romantic era, she exerted her influence over the course of a ...
, John Field's nocturnes, songs of
Robert Franz Robert Franz Julius Knauth (28 June 1815 – 24 October 1892) was a German composer, mainly of lieder. Biography Franz was born in Halle, Germany, the son of Christoph Franz Knauth. In 1847, Christoph Knauth adopted his middle name Franz as his ...
, a planned
Goethe Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, and critic. His works include plays, poetry, literature, and aesthetic criticism, as well as tr ...
foundation at Weimar, and other subjects. In addition to essays, Liszt wrote a biography of his fellow composer Frédéric Chopin, ''Life of Chopin'', as well as a book about the
Romanis The Romani (also spelled Romany or Rromani , ), colloquially known as the Roma, are an Indo-Aryan peoples, Indo-Aryan ethnic group, traditionally nomadic Itinerant groups in Europe, itinerants. They live in Europe and Anatolia, and have Ro ...
(Gypsies) and their music in Hungary. While all of those literary works were published under Liszt's name, it is not quite clear which parts of them he had written himself. It is known from his letters that during the time of his youth there had been a collaboration with Marie d'Agoult. During the Weimar years, it was Princess Wittgenstein who helped him. In most cases, the manuscripts have disappeared so that it is difficult to determine which of Liszt's literary works were actually works of his own. Until the end of his life, however, it was Liszt's point of view that it was he who was responsible for the contents of those literary works. Liszt also worked until at least 1885 on a treatise for modern harmony. Pianist
Arthur Friedheim Arthur Friedheim (russian: Артур Фридхайм, 14/26 October 1859  – 19 October 1932) was a Russian-born concert pianist and composer who was one of Franz Liszt's foremost pupils. One of Friedheim's students was Rildia Bee O'Bryan ...
, who also served as Liszt's personal secretary, remembered seeing it among Liszt's papers at Weimar. Liszt told Friedheim that the time was not yet ripe to publish the manuscript, titled ''Sketches for a Harmony of the Future''. Unfortunately, this treatise has been lost.


Legacy

Although there was a period in which many considered Liszt's works "flashy" or superficial, it is now held that many of Liszt's compositions such as ''Nuages gris'', ''Les jeux d'eaux à la villa d'Este'', etc., which contain parallel fifths, the whole-tone scale, parallel diminished and augmented triads, and unresolved dissonances, anticipated and influenced twentieth-century music like that of Debussy, Ravel and Béla Bartók.


Liszt's students


Early students

From 1827 onwards, Liszt gave lessons in composition and piano playing. He wrote on 23 December 1829 that his schedule was so full of lessons that each day, from half-past eight in the morning till 10 at night, he had scarcely breathing time. Most of Liszt's students of this period were amateurs, but there were also some who made a professional career. An example of the former is Valérie Boissier, the later Comtesse de Gasparin. Examples of the latter are
Julius Eichberg Julius Eichberg (13 June 1824 – 19 January 1893) was a German-born composer, musical director and educator who worked mostly in Boston, Massachusetts. Biography Julius Eichberg was born in Düsseldorf, Germany to a Jewish family. His first mu ...
, Pierre Wolff, and
Hermann Cohen Hermann Cohen (4 July 1842 – 4 April 1918) was a German Jewish philosopher, one of the founders of the Marburg school of neo-Kantianism, and he is often held to be "probably the most important Jewish philosopher of the nineteenth century ...
. During winter 1835–36, they were Liszt's colleagues at the Conservatoire at
Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...
. Wolff then went to
Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
. During the years of his tours, Liszt gave only a few lessons, to students including Johann Nepumuk Dunkl and
Wilhelm von Lenz Wilhelm von Lenz (born 20 May 1809 in Riga - died 7 January 1883 in Saint Petersburg) was a Baltic German Russian official and writer. Wilhelm von Lenz was a friend and student of many mid-century Romantic composers, including Franz Liszt, Fréd ...
. In spring 1844, in Dresden, Liszt met the young
Hans von Bülow Freiherr Hans Guido von Bülow (8 January 1830 – 12 February 1894) was a German conductor, virtuoso pianist, and composer of the Romantic era. As one of the most distinguished conductors of the 19th century, his activity was critical for es ...
, his later son-in-law.


Later students

After Liszt settled in Weimar, his pupils steadily increased in number. By his death in 1886, there would have been several hundred people who in some sense could have been regarded as his students.
August Göllerich August Göllerich (2 July 185916 March 1923) was an Austrian pianist, conductor, music educator and music writer. He studied the piano with Franz Liszt, who made him also his secretary and companion on concert tours. Göllerich is known for study ...
published a voluminous catalogue of them. In a note he added the remark that he had taken the connotation of "student" in its widest sense. As a consequence, his catalog includes names of pianists, violinists, cellists, harpists, organists, composers, conductors, singers, and even writers. A catalog by Ludwig Nohl was approved and corrected by Liszt in September 1881. This gave 48 names, including: Carl Baermann,
Franz Bendel Franz Bendel (23 March 18333 July 1874) was a German Bohemian pianist, composer, and teacher. Bendel was born in Schönlinde, Bohemia, Austrian Empire. He was a student of Franz Liszt for five years in Weimar. From 1862, he lived in Berlin an ...
, Hans von Bronsart,
Hans von Bülow Freiherr Hans Guido von Bülow (8 January 1830 – 12 February 1894) was a German conductor, virtuoso pianist, and composer of the Romantic era. As one of the most distinguished conductors of the 19th century, his activity was critical for es ...
,
Julius Eichberg Julius Eichberg (13 June 1824 – 19 January 1893) was a German-born composer, musical director and educator who worked mostly in Boston, Massachusetts. Biography Julius Eichberg was born in Düsseldorf, Germany to a Jewish family. His first mu ...
,
Arthur Friedheim Arthur Friedheim (russian: Артур Фридхайм, 14/26 October 1859  – 19 October 1932) was a Russian-born concert pianist and composer who was one of Franz Liszt's foremost pupils. One of Friedheim's students was Rildia Bee O'Bryan ...
,
Karl Klindworth Karl Klindworth (25 September 183027 July 1916) was a German composer, virtuoso pianist, conductor, violinist and music publisher. He was one of Franz Liszt's pupils and later one of his closest disciples and friends, being also on friendly terms ...
,
William Mason William, Willie, or Willy Mason may refer to: Arts and entertainment *William Mason (poet) (1724–1797), English poet, editor and gardener *William Mason (architect) (1810–1897), New Zealand architect *William Mason (composer) (1829–1908), Ame ...
,
Sophie Menter Sophie Menter (29 July 1846 – 23 February 1918) was a German pianist and composer who became the favorite female student of Franz Liszt.Schonberg, 262. She was called ''l'incarnation de Liszt'' in Paris because of her robust, electrifying playing ...
,
Karl Pohlig Karl Pohlig (10 February 1864 – 17 June 1928) was a German Bohemian conductor born in Teplitz, Bohemia, Austrian Empire. He studied cello and piano in Weimar, and later taught piano there. In 1901 in Stuttgart he became the first conducto ...
,
Dionys Pruckner Dionys Pruckner (12 May 1834 München – 1 December 1896 Heidelberg) was a noted pianist and music teacher at Stuttgart. He was a student of Franz Liszt from 1852 until about 1855 who did concert tours throughout Europe. In 1859 he was appointed ...
,
Julius Reubke Friedrich Julius Reubke (23 March 18343 June 1858) was a German composer, pianist and organist. In his short life, he composed the ''Sonata on the 94th Psalm'' in C minor, which is considered to be one of the greatest organ works in the classical ...
, Eduard Reuss,
Giovanni Sgambati Giovanni Sgambati (28 May 1841 – 14 December 1914) was an Italian pianist and composer. Biography Born in Rome, to an Italian father and an English mother, Sgambati, who lost his father early, received his early education at Trevi, in Umbria ...
, Karl Tausig, Vera Timanova,
Józef Wieniawski Józef Wieniawski (23 May 1837 – 11 November 1912) was a Polish pianist, composer, conductor and teacher. He was born in Lublin, the younger brother of the famous violinist Henryk Wieniawski. After Franz Liszt, he was the first pianist to public ...
,
Alexander Winterberger Alexander Winterberger, by Sergey Lvovich Levitsky Alexander Winterberger (14 August 183423 September 1914) was a German organist and composer. He is mostly remembered for his association with Franz Liszt, in particular his close involvement ...
, and
Juliusz Zarębski Juliusz Zarębski (3 March 185415 September 1885) was a Polish composer and pianist. Some of his manuscripts have been found in the National Library of Poland (BN). Life Juliusz Zarębski was born on March 3, 1854 in Zhytomyr, now Ukraine (then f ...
. Nohl's catalog omitted, amongst others,
Károly Aggházy Károly Aggházy (30 October 1855, Budapest – 8 October 1918, Budapest) was a Hungary, Hungarian piano virtuoso and composer. Aggházy was a pupil of Robert Volkmann, Anton Bruckner, and Franz Liszt. He later taught at the Franz Liszt Academy ...
and Agnes Street-Klindworth. By 1886, a similar catalogue would have been much longer, including names such as
Eugen d'Albert Eugen (originally Eugène) Francis Charles d'Albert (10 April 1864 – 3 March 1932) was a Scottish-born pianist and composer. Educated in Britain, d'Albert showed early musical talent and, at the age of seventeen, he won a scholarship to stud ...
, Conrad Ansorge,
Walter Bache Walter Bache (; 19 June 184226 March 1888) was an English pianist and conductor noted for his championing the music of Franz Liszt and other music of the New German School in England. He studied privately with Liszt in Italy from 1863 to 1865, ...
,
William Dayas William Humphreys Dayas (12 September 1863, New York – 3 May 1903, Manchester) was an American pianist, pedagogue and composer, one of the last pupils of Franz Liszt. Dayas lost his parents at an early age. He studied organ and composition and m ...
,
August Göllerich August Göllerich (2 July 185916 March 1923) was an Austrian pianist, conductor, music educator and music writer. He studied the piano with Franz Liszt, who made him also his secretary and companion on concert tours. Göllerich is known for study ...
,
Carl Lachmund Carl V. Lachmund (27 March 185320 February 1928) was an American classical pianist, teacher, conductor, composer, and diarist. He was a student of Franz Liszt for three years, and his detailed diaries of his time with Liszt provide an invaluable i ...
,
José Vianna da Motta José Vianna da Motta (modern spelling as 'Viana da Mota') (22 April 18681 June 1948) was a Portuguese pianist, teacher, and composer. He was one of the last pupils of Franz Liszt. The José Vianna da Motta Music Competition was founded in 1957 ...
,
Moriz Rosenthal Moriz Rosenthal (17 December 18623 September 1946) was a Polish pianist and composer. He was an outstanding pupil of Franz Liszt and a friend and colleague of some of the greatest musicians of his age, including Johannes Brahms, Johann Strauss, ...
, Emil Sauer, Alexander Siloti,
Bernhard Stavenhagen Bernhard Stavenhagen (24 November 1862 – 25 December 1914) was a German pianist, composer and conductor. His musical style was influenced by Franz Liszt, and as a conductor he was a strong advocate of new music. Biography Born in Greiz, he com ...
,
August Stradal August Stradal (17 May 1860, Teplice – 13 March 1930, Krásná Lípa) was a Czech virtuoso pianist, arranger, composer, author and music teacher. Career A diverse piano arranger, Stradal arranged music from Bach, Beethoven, Brahms, Bruckner, B ...
,
István Thomán István Thomán (; 4 November 186222 September 1940) was a Hungarian piano virtuoso and music educator. He was a notable piano teacher, with students including Béla Bartók, Ernő Dohnányi, Paul de Marky who later taught Oscar Peterson in Quebe ...
, and
Bettina Walker Bettina or Bessie Walker (1837 – 4 February 1893) was an Irish pianist and composer. Biography Walker was born in Dublin, the daughter of physician William Augustus Walker, who died in 1838.Death notice, ''Dublin Daily Express'', 8 February 18 ...
. Some of Liszt's students were disappointed with him. An example is Eugen d'Albert, who eventually was almost on hostile terms with Liszt.
Felix Draeseke Felix August Bernhard Draeseke (7 October 1835 – 26 February 1913) was a composer of the "New German School" admiring Franz Liszt and Richard Wagner. He wrote compositions in most forms including eight operas and stage works, four symphonies, ...
, who had joined the circle around Liszt at Weimar in 1857, is another example.


Liszt's teaching approach

Liszt offered his students little technical advice, expecting them to "wash their dirty linen at home," as he phrased it. Instead, he focused on musical interpretation with a combination of anecdote, metaphor, and wit. He advised one student tapping out the opening chords of Beethoven's ''Waldstein'' Sonata, "Do not chop beefsteak for us." To another who blurred the rhythm in Liszt's ''Gnomenreigen'' (usually done by playing the piece too fast in the composer's presence): "There you go, mixing salad again." Liszt also wanted to avoid creating carbon copies of himself; rather, he believed in preserving artistic individuality. Liszt did not charge for lessons. He was troubled when German newspapers published details of pedagogue
Theodor Kullak Theodor is a masculine given name. It is a German form of Theodore. It is also a variant of Teodor. List of people with the given name Theodor * Theodor Adorno, (1903–1969), German philosopher * Theodor Aman, Romanian painter * Theodor Blue ...
's will, revealing that Kullak had generated more than one million marks from teaching. "As an artist, you do not rake in a million marks without performing some sacrifice on the altar of Art," Liszt told his biographer
Lina Ramann Lina Ramann (July 24, 1833 – March 30, 1912) was a German writer and teacher known for her books on the Hungarian composer and pianist A pianist ( , ) is an individual musician who plays the piano. Since most forms of Western music can ...
.
Carl Czerny Carl Czerny (; 21 February 1791 – 15 July 1857) was an Austrian composer, teacher, and pianist of Czech origin whose music spanned the late Classical and early Romantic eras. His vast musical production amounted to over a thousand works and ...
, however, charged an expensive fee for lessons and even dismissed Stephen Heller when he was unable to afford to pay for his lessons. Liszt spoke very fondly of his former teacher—who gave lessons to Liszt free of charge—to whom Liszt dedicated his ''
Transcendental Études The ''Transcendental Études'' (french: Études d'exécution transcendante, links=no), S.139, are a set of twelve compositions for piano by Franz Liszt. They were published in 1852 as a revision of an 1837 set (which had not borne the title "d ...
''. He wrote to the ''
Allgemeine musikalische Zeitung The ''Allgemeine musikalische Zeitung'' (''General music newspaper'') was a German-language periodical published in the 19th century. Comini (2008) has called it "the foremost German-language musical periodical of its time". It reviewed musical e ...
'', urging Kullak's sons to create an endowment for needy musicians, as Liszt himself frequently did.


Film portrayals

Liszt's character was portrayed by
Claudio Arrau Claudio Arrau León (; February 6, 1903June 9, 1991) was a Chilean pianist known for his interpretations of a vast repertoire spanning the baroque to 20th-century composers, especially Bach, Beethoven, Schubert, Chopin, Schumann, Liszt and B ...
in '' Dreams of Love'' (1935); by Brandon Hurst in the 1938 film ''
Suez Suez ( ar, السويس '; ) is a seaport city (population of about 750,000 ) in north-eastern Egypt, located on the north coast of the Gulf of Suez (a branch of the Red Sea), near the southern terminus of the Suez Canal, having the same bou ...
''; by
Fritz Leiber Fritz Reuter Leiber Jr. ( ; December 24, 1910 – September 5, 1992) was an American writer of fantasy, horror, and science fiction. He was also a poet, actor in theater and films, playwright, and chess expert. With writers such as Rober ...
in the 1943 film ''
Phantom of the Opera ''The Phantom of the Opera'' (french: Le Fantôme de l'Opéra) is a novel by French author Gaston Leroux. It was first published as a serial in from 23 September 1909 to 8 January 1910, and was released in volume form in late March 1910 by Pierr ...
''; by Stephen Bekassy in the 1945 film '' A Song to Remember''; by
Henry Daniell Charles Henry Pywell Daniell (5 March 1894 – 31 October 1963) was an English actor who had a long career in the United States on stage and in cinema. He came to prominence for his portrayal of villainous roles in films such as '' Camille'' (1 ...
in the 1947 film ''
Song of Love Song of Love may refer to: * Song of love or love song, a song about falling in love * ''The Song of Love'' (1923 film) * ''Song of Love'' (1929 film), a film starring Belle Baker and Ralph Graves * ''The Song of Love'' (1930 film) * ''Song of ...
''; by
Sviatoslav Richter Sviatoslav Teofilovich Richter, group= ( – August 1, 1997) was a Soviet classical pianist. He is frequently regarded as one of the greatest pianists of all time, Great Pianists of the 20th Century and has been praised for the "depth of his int ...
in the 1952 film '' Glinka – The Composer''; by
Will Quadflieg Friedrich Wilhelm "Will" Quadflieg (; 15 September 1914 – 27 November 2003) was a German actor from Oberhausen. He was the father of actor Christian Quadflieg. He is considered one of Germany's best post-war actors. One of his most widely rec ...
in
Max Ophüls Maximillian Oppenheimer (; 6 May 1902 – 26 March 1957), known as Max Ophüls (; ), was a German-French film director who worked in Germany (1931–1933), France (1933–1940 and 1950–1957), and the United States (1947–1950). He made near ...
's 1955 film ''
Lola Montès ''Lola Montès'' is a 1955 historical romance film and the last completed film of German-born director Max Ophüls. Based on the novel ''La vie extraordinaire de Lola Montès'' by Cécil Saint-Laurent, the film depicts the life of Irish dancer an ...
''; by
Carlos Thompson Juan Carlos Mundin-Schaffter, known as Carlos Thompson, (7 June 1923 – 10 October 1990) was an Argentine actor. Career Of German and Swiss descent, he played leading roles on stage and in films in Argentina. He went to Hollywood in the 1950s ...
in the 1955 film ''
Magic Fire ''Magic Fire'' is a 1955 American biographical film about the life of composer Richard Wagner, released by Republic Pictures. Directed by William Dieterle, the film made extensive use of Wagner's music, which was arranged by Erich Wolfgang Korng ...
''; by Dirk Bogarde in the 1960 film ''
Song Without End ''Song Without End'', subtitled ''The Story of Franz Liszt'', is a 1960 biographical film romance made by Columbia Pictures. It was directed by Charles Vidor, who died during the shooting of the film and was replaced by George Cukor. It was produ ...
''; by
Imre Sinkovits Imre Sinkovits (21 September 1928 in Budapest – 18 January 2001 in Budapest) was a Hungarian actor. Career After a year in Downtown Theatre and another in Youth Theatre, in 1949 he got a job in National Theatre, where he stayed until ...
in the 1970 in hungarian-soviet co-production
Márton Keleti Márton Keleti (27 April 1905 – 20 June 1973) was a Hungarian film director. He directed 50 films between 1937 and 1973. His 1959 film '' Yesterday'' was entered into the 1st Moscow International Film Festival. Selected filmography * '' ...
film ''
Dreams of Love – Liszt ''Dreams of Love – Liszt'' ( hu, Szerelmi álmok – Liszt, also known in English as ''The Loves of Liszt'') is a Hungarian-Soviet epic musical/drama produced and directed by Márton Keleti, ba ...
''; by
Jeremy Irons Jeremy John Irons (; born 19 September 1948) is an English actor and activist. After receiving classical training at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, Irons began his acting career on stage in 1969 and has appeared in many West End theatre ...
in the 1974 BBC Television series ''
Notorious Woman ''Notorious Woman'' is a 1974 BBC television serial based on the life of the French author George Sand. It starred Rosemary Harris in the title role. The seven episodes were written by Harry W. Junkin and directed by Waris Hussein. In the United ...
''; by
Roger Daltrey Roger Harry Daltrey (born 1 March 1944) is an English singer, musician and actor. He is a co-founder and the lead singer of the rock band The Who. Daltrey's hit songs with The Who include " My Generation", " Pinball Wizard", " Won't Get Fooled ...
in the 1975 Ken Russell film ''
Lisztomania Lisztomania or Liszt fever was the intense fan frenzy directed toward Hungarian composer Franz Liszt during his performances. This frenzy first occurred in Berlin in 1841 and the term was later coined by Heinrich Heine in a feuilleton he wrote on ...
''; by Iván Darvas and Géza D. Hegedűs in the 1982 Hungarian television series ''
Liszt Franz Liszt, in modern usage ''Liszt Ferenc'' . Liszt's Hungarian passport spelled his given name as "Ferencz". An orthographic reform of the Hungarian language in 1922 (which was 36 years after Liszt's death) changed the letter "cz" to simpl ...
'' by
Miklós Szinetár Miklós Szinetár (born 8 February 1932) is a Hungarian film director and screenwriter. He directed more than 20 films between 1962 and 1991. His 1979 film ''The Fortress (1979 film), The Fortress'' was entered into the 11th Moscow Internationa ...
; in the 1986 Franco-German film ''
Wahnfried Wahnfried was the name given by Richard Wagner to his villa in Bayreuth. The name is a German compound of (delusion, madness) and (peace, freedom). Financed by King Ludwig II of Bavaria, the house was constructed from 1872 to 1874 under Bayr ...
'' directed by
Peter Patzak Peter Patzak (2 January 1945 – 11 March 2021) was an Austrian film director and screenwriter. He directed 60 films from 1973 to 2021. His film ''Kassbach – Ein Porträt'' was entered into the 29th Berlin International Film Festival and his f ...
; and by in the 1991 British-American film ''
Impromptu An impromptu (, , loosely meaning "offhand") is a free-form musical composition with the character of an ''ex tempore'' improvisation as if prompted by the spirit of the moment, usually for a solo instrument, such as piano. According to ''Allgeme ...
''.Mitchell, Charles P. ''The Great Composers on Film, 1913 through 2002''. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland, 2004, pp. 57, 293.


References


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* * * * * 1887–1888) * * * * (1881–1882) * * * * * ** . In ** . In ** . In * * * * * * * * * * *


External links

* * * * * * * * – in German {{DEFAULTSORT:Liszt, Franz 1811 births 1886 deaths 19th-century classical composers 19th-century classical pianists 19th-century conductors (music) 19th-century Hungarian musicians 19th-century Hungarian Roman Catholic priests 19th-century male musicians 19th-century organists Catholic liturgical composers Composers for pedal piano Composers for piano Composers for pipe organ Franz Liszt Academy of Music faculty Honorary Members of the Royal Philharmonic Society Hungarian classical composers Hungarian classical organists Hungarian classical pianists Hungarian conductors (music) Hungarian Freemasons Hungarian male classical composers Hungarian music educators Hungarian opera composers Hungarian people of German descent Hungarian philanthropists Hungarian Romantic composers Male classical pianists Male conductors (music) Male opera composers Male classical organists Members of the Third Order of Saint Francis Musicians from Paris Musicians from Weimar Organ improvisers People from Oberpullendorf District Piano pedagogues Pupils of Carl Czerny Recipients of the Pour le Mérite (civil class) Hungarian emigrants to Germany