Francis Planté (2 March 1839 – 19 December 1934) was a French

pianist A pianist ( , ) is a musician who plays the piano. A pianist's repertoire may include music from a diverse variety of styles, such as traditional classical music, jazz piano, jazz, blues piano, blues, and popular music, including rock music, ...

famed as one of the first ever recording artists. Planté was born in

Orthez Orthez (; ; , ) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department, and region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, southwestern France. It lies 40 km NW of Pau on the Southern railway to Bayonne. The town also encompasses the small village of Sai ...

. He studied piano under Antoine Marmontel, his career beginning at the age of seven in Paris. While there he met and befriended many like-minded musicians who would have a long-lasting effect on his career. These included

Franz Liszt Franz Liszt (22 October 1811 – 31 July 1886) was a Hungarian composer, virtuoso pianist, conductor and teacher of the Romantic music, Romantic period. With a diverse List of compositions by Franz Liszt, body of work spanning more than six ...

, with whom he played arrangements of two of Liszt's symphonic poems (''

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'', and '' Tasso, Lamento e Trionfo'') for 2 pianos,

Hector Berlioz Louis-Hector Berlioz (11 December 1803 – 8 March 1869) was a French Romantic music, Romantic composer and conductor. His output includes orchestral works such as the ''Symphonie fantastique'' and ''Harold en Italie, Harold in Italy'' ...

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Felix Mendelssohn Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic music, Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions inc ...

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 Thalberg was born in Pâquis near Geneva on 8 January 1812. Thalberg asserted that he ...

and Charles-Marie Widor. He toured the concert platforms of Europe after leaving Paris, expanding his reputation for quality of tone and virtuosic, emotional interpretations. The death of his wife in 1908 resulted in him retiring from the stage, except for charity performances and concerts in aid of those wounded in the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. He had many pupils, including Alexander Brailowsky. He died in Saint-Avit. Planté is featured in the 1999 DVD '' The Art of Piano'', in which a short excerpt from the film of him playing Chopin's Étude in C, Op. 10 No. 7 can be seen. Francis Planté's style is considered very different from modern-day recording artists. The recordings available suggest a more paced performance with a more prominent accent on each beat and with the notes more pronounced. Recordings that Planté made include: * Chopin: Études Op. 10, Nos. 4, 5 and 7 * Chopin: Études Op. 25, Nos. 1, 2, 9 and 11 *

Berlioz Louis-Hector Berlioz (11 December 1803 – 8 March 1869) was a French Romantic music, Romantic composer and conductor. His output includes orchestral works such as the ''Symphonie fantastique'' and ''Harold en Italie, Harold in Italy'' ...

: Serenade * Mendelssohn: Scherzo in E, Op. 16, No. 3. * Boccherini: Minuet

References

External links

Recordings

''Francis Planté: The Complete Issued Recordings''
(Marston Records)

(Arbiter Records) 19th-century French male classical pianists 19th-century French classical pianists 20th-century French male classical pianists 20th-century French classical pianists Pupils of Antoine François Marmontel 1839 births 1934 deaths People from Orthez {{classical-pianist-stub