Michał Bergson (Bergsohn), or Michel Bergson (20 May 18209 March 1898) was a Polish composer and pianist, promoter of Frédéric Chopin.

Biography

Born in

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...

, Bergson was the son of Gabriel Bereksohn, grandson of Berek and

Temerl Bergson Temerl Bergson (also spelled Tamarel; Hebrew name Tamar; surname alternately Sonnenberg or Berekson; he, תמריל ברגסון, died 1830) was a Polish Jewish businesswoman. She was a supporter of Jews living in Warsaw and patroness of the Ha ...

, and great-grandson of Samuel Zbytkower. His children included the influential French philosopher Henri Bergson and artist and occultist

Moina Mathers Moina Mathers, born Mina Bergson (28 February 1865 – 25 July 1928), was an artist and occultist at the turn of the 20th century. She was the sister of French philosopher Henri Bergson, the first man of Jewish descent to be awarded the Nobel Pri ...

, wife of

Samuel Liddell MacGregor Mathers Samuel Liddell (or Liddel) MacGregor Mathers (8 or 11 January 1854 – 5 or 20 November 1918), born Samuel Liddell Mathers, was a British occultist. He is primarily known as one of the founders of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, a cerem ...

. He learned from

Friedrich Schneider Johann Christian Friedrich Schneider (3 January 1786 in Alt-Waltersdorf – 23 November 1853 in Dessau) was a German pianist, composer, organist, and conductor. Schneider studied piano first with his father Johann Gottlob Schneider (senior), and ...

, Carl Friedrich Rungenhagen, and

Wilhelm Taubert Carl Gottfried Wilhelm Taubert (23 March 1811 – 7 January 1891) was a German pianist, composer, and conductor, and the father of philologist and writer Emil Taubert. Life Born in Berlin, Taubert studied under Ludwig Berger (piano) and Bernhard K ...

and worked mainly in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

and Switzerland. In 1863 Michal Bergson became professor at the Conservatory in

Geneva , neighboring_municipalities= Carouge, Chêne-Bougeries, Cologny, Lancy, Grand-Saconnex, Pregny-Chambésy, Vernier, Veyrier , website = https://www.geneve.ch/ Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevr ...

, and later was its head. Bergson had by that time married a native of

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other English counties, functions have ...

, Katherine Levison, they lived in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

and

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

, finally settled there. He died in London.

Compositions

* ''Luisa di Montfort'' (performed in 1847) * 'Scene and Air' from ''Luisa di Montfort'' for clarinet and piano * ''Salvator Rosa'' * ''Qui va à la chasse, perd sa place'' (1859) * Mazurka, Opp. 1 and 48 * ''Le Rhin'', Op. 21 * ''12 Études caractéristiques'' * ''Concerto Symphonique pour piano avec orchestra'', Op. 62 (performed 1868)DUX 1704, reviewed at MusicWeb International
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External links

Notes

19th-century Polish Jews

Michal Michal (; he, מיכל , gr, Μιχάλ) was, according to the first Book of Samuel, a princess of the United Kingdom of Israel; the younger daughter of King Saul, she was the first wife of David (), who later became king, first of Judah, ...

19th-century Polish composers Polish classical pianists Male classical pianists Jewish classical pianists Musicians from Warsaw 1820 births 1898 deaths 19th-century classical pianists Male composers 19th-century Polish musicians 19th-century male musicians 19th-century musicians {{Poland-composer-stub