Esther Nielsen Vagning (28 Jun 1905 – 31 December 1986) was a Danish pianist who made an impressive début in the

Tivoli Concert Hall Tivoli Concert Hall () is a 1,660-capacity concert hall at Tivoli Gardens in Copenhagen, Denmark. The building, which was designed by Frits Schlegel and Hans Hansen, was built between 1954 and 1956. The concert hall is used for classical music ...

in 1928, playing Beethoven's Third Piano Concerto. Over more than 50 years, she performed widely in Denmark and abroad, both as a soloist and accompanist. She also taught at the

Royal Danish Academy of Music The Royal Danish Academy of Music, or Royal Danish Conservatory of Music (), in Copenhagen is the oldest professional institution of musical education in Denmark as well as the largest, with approximately 400 students. It was established in 186 ...

Biography

Born on 28 June 1905 in

Strib :''Strib is also the nickname of the Minneapolis Star Tribune'' Strib is a town in Region of Southern Denmark, Denmark, with a population of 5,280 (1 January 2025).Funen Funen (, ), is the third-largest List of islands of Denmark, island of Denmark, after Zealand and North Jutlandic Island, Vendsyssel-Thy, with an area of . It is the List of islands by area, 165th-largest island in the world. It is located in th ...

, Esther Vagning was the daughter of the carpenter Ebbe Nielsen (1860–1953) and Mette Nielsen (1862–1942). In her early childhood, the family including seven children moved to nearby

Middelfart Middelfart is a town in central Denmark, with a population of 16,749 . The town is the municipal seat of Middelfart Municipality on the island of Funen (). Etymology The name Middelfart, first recorded as "Mæthælfar" in Valdemar's Census Book ...

. Vagning started to play the piano when she was three, taking lessons from Mary Tauber, a competent teacher in Nørre Åby. In her early teens, she started to accompany silent films in the local cinema. She went on to play with several competent Funen musicians, including the violinists Peder Møller, Leo Hansen and Niels Simon Christiansen, and the opera singer Else Schøtt. When she was 17, she received private lessons from Agnes Adler in

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

. She completed her studies in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, France, with the Spaniard Santiago Riera and in

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

, Germany, under

Edwin Fischer Edwin Fischer (6 October 1886 – 24 January 1960) was a Swiss classical pianist and conductor. He is regarded as one of the great interpreters of J.S. Bach and Mozart in the twentieth century. Biography Fischer was born in Basel and studied m ...

. Vagning made her début playing Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 3 at the so-called "Young Evening" in the Tivoli Concert Hall in 1928, after rehearsing for only 20 minutes with the orchestra. She became increasingly popular, performing in 1,289 concerts over the next 25 years, of which 49 were abroad, not just in Scandinavia but also in England, France, Belgium, the Netherlands and Switzerland. She also played as a soloist and accompanist on the radio, including from 1936 to 1944 for the radio choir. She frequently performed in a trio with the violinist

Henry Holst Henry Holst (25 July 1899 – 19 October 1991) was a Danish violinist. In his early career he was leader of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra under Wilhelm Furtwängler. From the 1930s to the mid-1950s he was based in England, as a soloist and teac ...

and the cellist Erling Bløndal Bengtsson. From 1940, Vagning often played in the ''Kammermusikforeningen'' (Chamber Music Society), becoming an honorary member at their 90th anniversary in 1958. From 1960 to 1975, she taught at the Royal Danish Academy of Music, where she trained many notable pianists, including Jutta Rohard, Merete Westergaard,

Elisabeth Westenholz Elisabeth Westenholz is a Danish pianist and organist. She has been called one of Denmark’s premier performers by the ''Kristeligt Dagblad''. Biography Westenholz was born in 1942 in Copenhagen. Both her parents played the piano, and her fat ...

and Dorthe Kirkeskov. Vagning continued to perform at concerts, performing at the 50th-anniversary concert in 1979. Even after moving to an old people's home, she continued to play for the residents. Esther Vagning died on 31 December 1986 in Copenhagen.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vagning, Esther 1905 births 1986 deaths 20th-century Danish pianists 20th-century women pianists Danish classical pianists Danish women classical pianists Musicians from the Region of Southern Denmark People from Middelfart Municipality