Frédéric Kalkbrenner was a French pianist, teacher, and composer of the Romantic period known for his piano concertos, chamber music, and numerous works for piano. As a pianist, he was admired for his brilliant tone, virtuosity, and highly refined finger control. Kalkbrenner was born in 1785, while his parents were traveling from Kassel to Berlin. He began studying music at a very young age from his father, who was the kapellmeister to the queen of Prussia. He received a privileged schooling at Rheinsberg Castle, and when he was six years old, he performed a concerto by Haydn for the queen. He enrolled at the Paris Conservatory in 1796, where he studied with François Nicodami, Louis Adam, and Charles-Simon Catel. He was an excellent student and received first prizes in both piano and harmony when he graduated in 1801. For the next few years, Kalkbrenner supported himself by touring and performing in Germany and he became very well-known as a virtuoso pianist. He settled in Vienna in 1803 and studied composition with Antonio Salieri, Johann Albrechtsberger, and Joseph Haydn, and he also befriended Beethoven, Clementi, and Hummel. After completing his studies in 1805, Kalkbrenner resumed his career as a pianist in Germany. He returned to Paris in the following year, where he became more focused on composing but saw less activity as a performer. In 1814, he moved to England and quickly rose to the upper ranks of the musical community there. His sensational style attracted a large following of both students and patrons, and he quickly became very wealthy. Kalkbrenner's success and popularity peaked from 1825 to 1835, and it was also around this time that he published his famous Méthode pour apprendre le piano-forte à l’aide du guide-mains, Op. 108. He started teaching his piano training course, which he recommended to the young Frédéric Chopin in 1831, but Chopin politely declined. However, the composer had great admiration for Kalkbrenner, and they remained friendly and supportive of each other's careers. As Liszt, Chopin, and Thalberg ascended to fame in the late 1830s, Kalkbrenner's popularity declined, but he was a shrewd entrepreneur and became a partner in the successful Pleyel piano manufacturing company. He retired from performing in 1839 due to poor health, but he composed and taught until he died from cholera in 1849. In modern times, his music has been recorded by artists such as Luigi Gerosa, Duo Praxedis, and the Linos-Ensemble, and can be heard on the 2024 release The Romantic Piano Concerto, Vol. 86: Tellefsen, Kalkbrenner by Howard Shelley and the Nuremberg Symphony Orchestra. ~ RJ Lambert, Rovi

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