Claude Kahn (9 November 1935 – 17 November 2023) was a French classical pianist, internationally known for his interpretations of especially the music of Chopin, but also of

French music ''French music'' may refer to: *Music of France, music of the French people in France ''French music'' may also refer to the music of French-speaking countries: * Music of Quebec, music of the French-Canadians in Canada, most often Québécois or ...

(

Debussy Achille Claude Debussy (; 22 August 1862 – 25 March 1918) was a French composer. He is sometimes seen as the first Impressionism in music, Impressionist composer, although he vigorously rejected the term. He was among the most influe ...

, Fauré,

Ravel Joseph Maurice Ravel (7 March 1875 – 28 December 1937) was a French composer, pianist and conductor. He is often associated with Impressionism in music, Impressionism along with his elder contemporary Claude Debussy, although both composer ...

) as soloist or accompanied by great orchestras in the world. He founded and directed a piano competition in 1970, to become international as the ''Concours International de Piano Claude Kahn''. He founded the conservatoire of

Antibes Antibes (, , ; ) is a seaside city in the Alpes-Maritimes Departments of France, department in Southeastern France. It is located on the French Riviera between Cannes and Nice; its cape, the Cap d'Antibes, along with Cap Ferrat in Saint-Jean-Ca ...

in 1971 and directed it until 1991.

Biography

Born in

Marseille Marseille (; ; see #Name, below) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Bouches-du-Rhône and of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region. Situated in the ...

, Kahn started playing the piano at the age of four, then for over 10 years was a student of

Marguerite Long Marguerite Marie-Charlotte Long (13 November 1874 – 13 February 1966) was a French pianist, pedagogue, lecturer, and an ambassador of French music. Life Early life: 1874–1900 Marguerite Long was born to Pierre Long and Anne Marie Antoin ...

. His other teachers were

Yves Nat Yves Philippe Avit Nat (29 December 1890 – 31 August 1956) was a French pianist and composer. Biography Nat was born in Béziers and showed an early aptitude for both piano and composition. By the age of seven he was allowed to improvise each ...

and

Nadia Boulanger Juliette Nadia Boulanger (; 16 September 188722 October 1979) was a French music teacher, conductor and composer. She taught many of the leading composers and musicians of the 20th century, and also performed occasionally as a pianist and organis ...

. He received a prize for best interpretation at the Franz Liszt Competition in Budapest at age 15, as well as the Medal of the Competition in Geneva. He played more than 2000 concerts worldwide, as a soloist and with orchestras including the

Orchestre National de France The Orchestre National de France (; ; abbr. ONF) is a French symphony orchestra based in Paris, founded in 1934. Placed under the administration of the French national radio (named Radio France since 1975), the ONF performs mainly in the Grand ...

, the Orchestre de la garde républicaine, the

London Symphony Orchestra The London Symphony Orchestra (LSO) is a British symphony orchestra based in London. Founded in 1904, the LSO is the oldest of London's orchestras, symphony orchestras. The LSO was created by a group of players who left Henry Wood's Queen's ...

, the Israel Symphony Orchestra and the

Philadelphia Orchestra The Philadelphia Orchestra is an American symphony orchestra, based in Philadelphia. One of the " Big Five" American orchestras, the orchestra is based at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, where it performs its subscription concerts, n ...

. In 1970, he created the "Claude Kahn International Piano Competition" which became "International" in 1980 and European in 1990. The finals and the concert of the winners traditionally take place at the

Salle Gaveau The Salle Gaveau, named after the French piano maker Gaveau, is a classical concert hall in Paris, located at 45-47 rue La Boétie, in the 8th arrondissement of Paris. It is particularly intended for chamber music. Construction The plans for t ...

in Paris. Among the winners are Bernard d'Ascoli, Delphine Bardin, Giovanni Bellucci,

François Daudet François Daudet (born 20 January 1965) is a French classical pianist. Born in Lyon, Daudet won first prize for piano at the Conservatoire de Paris, and first grand prize at the international Claude Kahn competition in 1983. He benefited from G ...

, Kazuoki Fujii and

Alexandre Tharaud Alexandre Tharaud (born 9 December 1968) is a French pianist. He is active on the concert stage and has released a large and diverse discography. Life and career Born in Paris, Tharaud discovered the music scene through his mother who was a danc ...

. Kahn founded the Conservatoire de Musique et d'Art Dramatique d'Antibes-Juan les Pins in

in 1971 and directed it until 1991. He also directed the

Cagnes-sur-Mer Cagnes-sur-Mer (, literally ''Cagnes on Sea''; ) is a French Riviera town near Nice that is in the Alpes-Maritimes department, in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, in southeastern France. Geography Cagnes-sur-Mer is a town in southeaste ...

conservatoire. He was awarded the Palmier d'Or "for his promotion of classical music throughout the world", was made

Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres The Order of Arts and Letters () is an order of France established on 2 May 1957 by the Minister of Culture. Its supplementary status to the was confirmed by President Charles de Gaulle in 1963. Its purpose is the recognition of significant ...

, and received the

Palmes Académiques Palmes is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Sir Brian Palmes, English landowner and politician * Sir Guy Palmes, English politician * Brian Palmes MP * Lieutenant General Francis Palmes * Major Billie Palmes * Captain Laurence P ...

and the Mérite National. Kahn died on 17 November 2023, at age 88.

Recordings

Kahn recorded more than 25 albums, especially of works by Chopin, his favourite composer, but also

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791) was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition and proficiency from an early age ...

Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. He is one of the most revered figures in the history of Western music; his works rank among the most performed of the classical music repertoire ...

Schubert Franz Peter Schubert (; ; 31 January 179719 November 1828) was an Austrian composer of the late Classical period (music), Classical and early Romantic music, Romantic eras. Despite his short life, Schubert left behind a List of compositions ...

Liszt Franz Liszt (22 October 1811 – 31 July 1886) was a Hungarian composer, virtuoso pianist, conductor and teacher of the Romantic period. With a diverse body of work spanning more than six decades, he is considered to be one of the most pro ...

Schumann Robert Schumann (; ; 8 June 181029 July 1856) was a German composer, pianist, and music critic of the early Romantic music, Romantic era. He composed in all the main musical genres of the time, writing for solo piano, voice and piano, chamber ...

Brahms Johannes Brahms (; ; 7 May 1833 – 3 April 1897) was a German composer, virtuoso pianist, and conductor of the mid- Romantic period. His music is noted for its rhythmic vitality and freer treatment of dissonance, often set within studied ye ...

Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer during the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music made a lasting impression internationally. Tchaikovsky wrote some of the most popular ...

Rachmaninoff Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninoff; in Russian pre-revolutionary script. (28 March 1943) was a Russian composer, virtuoso pianist, and conductor. Rachmaninoff is widely considered one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a composer, one of ...

, Debussy, Fauré, Ravel, and others. They include: * Liszt: '' Hungarian Fantasy'', Piano Sonata in B minor (1960). * Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No. 1 / Liszt: ''Hungarian Fantasy'', with the Cologne Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Wolfgang Rößler (1963) * Ravel:

Piano Concerto A piano concerto, a type of concerto, is a solo composition in the classical music genre which is composed for piano accompanied by an orchestra or other large ensemble. Piano concertos are typically virtuosic showpieces which require an advance ...

and Piano Concerto for the Left Hand, with the

conducted by Georges Tzipine (1978) * Chopin: Piano Concerto No. 2 and Preludes, with the

NDR Symphony Orchestra The NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra () is a German radio orchestra. Affiliated with the ''Norddeutscher Rundfunk'' (NDR; North German Broadcasting), the orchestra is based at the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg, Germany. Earlier the ensemble was call ...

conducted by Wolfgang Rößler (1978) * Rachmaninoff: Piano Concerto No. 2 / Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 9, with the Orchestre Symphonique Français conducted by Sabine Diaz (2005) * Debussy: ''24 Préludes'' (1979) * Liszt: ''Hungarian Fantasy'', NDR Symphony Orchestra conducted by Wolfgang Rößler, '' Grand galop chromatique'', Piano Sonata in B minor (1979). * Ravel: ''

Gaspard de la nuit ''Gaspard de la nuit'' (subtitled ''Trois poèmes pour piano d'après Aloysius Bertrand''), M. 55 is a suite of piano pieces by Maurice Ravel, written in 1908. It has three movements, each based on a poem or ''fantaisie'' from the collection '' ...

'', Fauré: ''Thème et variations'' (1980) * ''Les Bis'', works by composers from Bach to

Scriabin Alexander Nikolayevich Scriabin, scientific transliteration: ''Aleksandr Nikolaevič Skrjabin''; also transliterated variously as Skriabin, Skryabin, and (in French) Scriabine. The composer himselused the French spelling "Scriabine" which was a ...

(1984) * Debussy: 24 ''Préludes'' (1998)

References

External links

Official website

55ème Concours International de Piano Claude Kahn 2024
* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kahn, Claude 1935 births 2023 deaths 20th-century French male classical pianists 20th-century French classical pianists 21st-century French male classical pianists 21st-century French classical pianists Musicians from Marseille