Peter Ritzen (born 21 January 1956) is a Flemish pianist composer and conductor.

Life and career

Peter Ritzen studied piano and chamber music at the Royal Conservatory of his native city

Ghent Ghent ( nl, Gent ; french: Gand ; traditional English: Gaunt) is a city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of the East Flanders province, and the third largest i ...

. His teachers were

Louis Pas Louis may refer to: * Louis (coin) * Louis (given name), origin and several individuals with this name * Louis (surname) * Louis (singer), Serbian singer * HMS ''Louis'', two ships of the Royal Navy See also Derived or associated terms * Lew ...

and

François Glorieux François () is a French masculine given name and surname, equivalent to the English name Francis. People with the given name * Francis I of France, King of France (), known as "the Father and Restorer of Letters" * Francis II of France, King o ...

. He continued his training at the

Mozarteum Mozarteum University Salzburg (German: ''Universität Mozarteum Salzburg'') is one of three affiliated but separate (it is actually a state university) entities under the “Mozarteum” moniker in Salzburg municipality; the International Mo ...

Salzburg Salzburg (, ; literally "Salt-Castle"; bar, Soizbuag, label=Austro-Bavarian) is the fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020, it had a population of 156,872. The town is on the site of the Roman settlement of ''Iuvavum''. Salzburg was founded ...

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

, with the

Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...

pianist A pianist ( , ) is an individual musician who plays the piano. Since most forms of Western music can make use of the piano, pianists have a wide repertoire and a wide variety of styles to choose from, among them traditional classical music, j ...

Tatiana Nikolayeva Tatiana Petrovna Nikolayeva (russian: Татья́на Петро́вна Никола́ева, ''Tat'jana Petrovna Nikolajeva''; May 4, 1924November 22, 1993) was a pianist, composer, and teacher from the Soviet Union. Life Nikolayeva was bor ...

. He graduated with the Diplôme Supérieure d'Exécution for

Piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a musica ...

from the Ecole Normale de Musique de Paris '

Alfred Cortot Alfred Denis Cortot (; 26 September 187715 June 1962) was a French pianist, conductor, and teacher who was one of the most renowned classical musicians of the 20th century. A pianist of massive repertory, he was especially valued for his poeti ...

'. His teacher there was the

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken *Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin screenwr ...

pedagogue Marian Ribicky. As a concert pianist, Ritzen has played throughout Europe, Asia and the US. He cooperated as a soloist with many well-known orchestras and ensembles. He is an acclaimed interpreter of

Franz Liszt Franz Liszt, in modern usage ''Liszt Ferenc'' . Liszt's Hungarian passport spelled his given name as "Ferencz". An orthographic reform of the Hungarian language in 1922 (which was 36 years after Liszt's death) changed the letter "cz" to simpl ...

Theodor Leschetizky Theodor Leschetizky (sometimes spelled Leschetitzky, pl, Teodor Leszetycki; 22 June 1830 – 14 November 1915 was an Austrian- Polish pianist, professor, and composer born in Landshut in the Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria, then a crown land ...

. His contact with the

Chinese Culture Chinese culture () is one of the world's oldest cultures, originating thousands of years ago. The culture prevails across a large geographical region in East Asia and is extremely diverse and varying, with customs and traditions varying grea ...

resulted in a whole repertoire of own China related compositions. As a result of free classical improvising in concerts on the piano, he transcribed numerous Chinese folk songs, award-winning movie themes and Viennese waltzes. Ritzen is a composer of massive works with many performers (+400). His transcendental

symphony A symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, most often for orchestra. Although the term has had many meanings from its origins in the ancient Greek era, by the late 18th century the word had taken on the meaning co ...

'Heavenly Peace', world premiered in 2005 is a typical work in this magnitude. Ritzen is a performing artist for

Naxos Records Naxos comprises numerous companies, divisions, imprints, and labels specializing in classical music but also audiobooks and other genres. The premier label is Naxos Records which focuses on classical music. Naxos Musical Group encompasses about ...

. Ritzen is the founder and artistic director of the International

Summer

Academy An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosop ...

at the

Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst Wien The University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna (german: link=no, Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst Wien, abbreviated MDW) is an Austrian university located in Vienna, established in 1817. With a student body of over three thous ...

(

University of Music and Performing Arts, Vienna The University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna (german: link=no, Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst Wien, abbreviated MDW) is an Austrian university located in Vienna, established in 1817. With a student body of over three thousa ...

) since 1991. In 2000 & 2004 he was invited to be the artistic director and chairman of the

Jury A jury is a sworn body of people (jurors) convened to hear evidence and render an impartial verdict (a finding of fact on a question) officially submitted to them by a court, or to set a penalty or judgment. Juries developed in England du ...

of the International Piano Competition '

' in Taipei. Between 2009 and 2014, Ritzen was invited by the

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of v ...

Ministry of Culture Ministry of Culture may refer to: * Ministry of Tourism, Cultural Affairs, Youth and Sports (Albania) * Ministry of Culture (Algeria) *Ministry of Culture (Argentina) * Minister for the Arts (Australia) *Ministry of Culture (Azerbaijan) * Ministry ...

to perform large scale piano concerts all over China. In 2015, Ritzen was appointed

artistic director An artistic director is the executive of an arts organization, particularly in a theatre or dance company, who handles the organization's artistic direction. They are generally a producer and director, but not in the sense of a mogul, since the ...

of the New Cosmos International Music Festival. The inaugural concert was held at the Haydnsaal of

Schloss Esterházy Schloss Esterházy ( hu, Esterházy-kastély) is a palace in Eisenstadt, Austria, the capital of the Burgenland state. It was constructed in the late 13th century, and came under ownership of the Hungarian Esterházy family in 1622. Under Paul I, ...

Eisenstadt Eisenstadt (; hu, Kismarton; hr, Željezni grad; ; sl, Železno, Austro-Bavarian: ''Eisnstod'') is a city in Austria, the state capital of Burgenland. It had a recorded population on 29 April 2021 of 15,074. In the Habsburg Empire's Kingdom ...

under Ritzen's baton. The world-famous cellist

Christine Walevska Christine Walevska (born March 8, 1945, Los Angeles) is an American classical cellist. She is known for her numerous recordings with Philips Records and performing concerts worldwide. In 1975, she became the first concert musician to perform ...

was one of the featured soloists. The festival intends to combine Far East Musicians with European Music traditions. Since 2016, Ritzen has been music director of the Vienna-based New Cosmos Philharmonic. The orchestra is featured as the festival orchestra at the annual New Cosmos International Music Festival in Vienna. In 2017, Ritzen conducted at the Golden Hall of

Musikverein The ( or ; ), commonly shortened to , is a concert hall in Vienna, Austria, which is located in the Innere Stadt district. The building opened in 1870 and is the home of the Vienna Philharmonic orchestra. The acoustics of the building's 'Gr ...

in Vienna, the New Cosmos Philharmonic, the world premiere of his Symphonic Poem, 'Die Wildrose'. A work for grand orchestra, organ, chorus and soloists. The libretto is based on Flemish translated poems (to German language) by

Anton van Wilderode Cyriel Paul Coupé (1918–1998) was a Belgian diocesan priest, teacher, writer and poet, also known by the pseudonym Anton van Wilderode. Life Coupé was born in Moerbeke-Waas on 28 June 1918. He was ordained as a priest on 21 May 1944 in the ...

(1918–1998). One of the soloists was the famous Baritone

Peter Edelmann Peter Edelmann (born 1962) is an Austrian operatic baritone. Since 1 January 2018, he has been the artistic director of the Seefestspiele Mörbisch. Life Born in Vienna, Edelmann graduated in singing from the under his father, the bass Otto E ...

(son of the legendary

Otto Edelmann Otto Edelmann (5 February 1917 – 14 May 2003) was an Austrian operatic bass. Life Edelmann was born in Vienna and studied singing with Gunnar Graarud. His debut was at Gera as Figaro in Mozart's ''The Marriage of Figaro''. He later sang th ...

), besides Ritzen's wife Stella Zhang-Ritzen, soprano. In 2018, Ritzen became the president of Gesellschaft der New Cosmos Freunde in Wien/Vienna New Cosmos society. This non-profit organization combines the International Leschetizky Academy (1992), New Cosmos International Music Festival (2015) and New Cosmos Philharmonic (2016). The organization aims to progress intercultural links with European Traditions and the Far East, China in particular. On 28 November 2018, Ritzen was knighted Officer in the Order of Leopold. Flemish Culture Minister Sven Gatz awarded the merit, granted by the Belgian King Filip, to Ritzen at the Belgian Embassy of Beijing in China. Ritzen was appointed in June 2019 as intendant of the Leschetizky World Congress on 3–5 October 2019 in

Bad Ischl Bad Ischl (Austrian German ) is a spa town in Austria. It lies in the southern part of Upper Austria, at the Traun River in the centre of the Salzkammergut region. The town consists of the Katastralgemeinden ''Ahorn'', ''Bad Ischl'', ''Haide ...

, Austria

Compositions

''Piano''

*Chinese

Rhapsody Rhapsody may refer to: * A work of epic poetry, or part of one, that is suitable for recitation at one time ** Rhapsode, a classical Greek professional performer of epic poetry Computer software * Rhapsody (online music service), an online mu ...

Nr.1 (1987) *Chinese

Nr.2 'Dance of the little happy Buddhas' (1989) *Chinese

Nr.3 'Chinese Market' (1989) *

Sonata Sonata (; Italian: , pl. ''sonate''; from Latin and Italian: ''sonare'' rchaic Italian; replaced in the modern language by ''suonare'' "to sound"), in music, literally means a piece ''played'' as opposed to a cantata (Latin and Italian ''cant ...

for

('Adamant Variations') (1991) *Award Winning Movie Themes (1999)

3 free transcriptions on famous movie themes 3 (three) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 2 and preceding 4, and is the smallest odd prime number and the only prime preceding a square number. It has religious or cultural significance in many socie ...

*4 Transcriptions on Viennese Waltzes of

Johann Strauss II Johann Baptist Strauss II (25 October 1825 – 3 June 1899), also known as Johann Strauss Jr., the Younger or the Son (german: links=no, Sohn), was an Austrian composer of light music, particularly dance music and operettas. He composed ov ...

Franz Lehár Franz Lehár ( ; hu, Lehár Ferenc ; 30 April 1870 – 24 October 1948) was an Austro-Hungarian composer. He is mainly known for his operettas, of which the most successful and best known is '' The Merry Widow'' (''Die lustige Witwe''). Life ...

Robert Stolz Robert Elisabeth Stolz (25 August 188027 June 1975) was an Austrian songwriter and conductor as well as a composer of operettas and film music.Stanley Sadie Ed. (2002) ''The New Grove Dictionary of Opera'', Oxford University Press Biography ...

(2008) *4 Transcriptions on Chinese folk songs (2009)

'' Chamber music''

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: ** Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Ca ...

Songs for soprano & piano on poems by Santiago Rupérez-Durá (1989) *15 Transcriptions on Chinese folk songs for soprano & strings. (1998) *

Piano Quintet In classical music, a piano quintet is a work of chamber music written for piano and four other instruments, most commonly a string quartet (i.e., two violins, viola, and cello). The term also refers to the group of musicians that plays a pian ...

in F♯ minor (2006) * Eyskens

Lieder In Western classical music tradition, (, plural ; , plural , ) is a term for setting poetry to classical music to create a piece of polyphonic music. The term is used for any kind of song in contemporary German, but among English and French ...

Nr.1-2 for soprano, baritone and piano on text of

Mark Eyskens Marc Maria Frans, viscount Eyskens (born 29 April 1933), known as Mark Eyskens, is a Belgian economist, professor and politician in the Christian People's Party, now called Christian Democratic and Flemish, and briefly served as the prime minist ...

(2015) *Eyskens Lieder: 3 songs for Soprano & Piano on Flemish poems by

(2016) *Pauls Lieder'':'' 5 songs for Soprano and Piano on German poems by Ilse Pauls (Vienna) (2016)

'' Concertos for piano and orchestra''

*Concerto Nr.1 'China in the Year of the Dragon'. (A

paraphrase A paraphrase () is a restatement of the meaning of a text or passage using other words. The term itself is derived via Latin ', . The act of paraphrasing is also called ''paraphrasis''. History Although paraphrases likely abounded in oral tra ...

on Southern Chinese Opera: 'A Fantastic Dream in the Garden') (1989) *Concerto 'The Last Empress' (

Paraphrase A paraphrase () is a restatement of the meaning of a text or passage using other words. The term itself is derived via Latin ', . The act of paraphrasing is also called ''paraphrasis''. History Although paraphrases likely abounded in oral tra ...

on the Chinese

Peking Opera Peking opera, or Beijing opera (), is the most dominant form of Chinese opera, which combines music, vocal performance, mime, dance and acrobatics. It arose in Beijing in the mid-Qing dynasty (1644–1912) and became fully developed and recognize ...

'Last Empress' 1908) (1994) *Concerto for

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the northe ...

(2000)

'' Orchestral works''

*Chinese

requiem A Requiem or Requiem Mass, also known as Mass for the dead ( la, Missa pro defunctis) or Mass of the dead ( la, Missa defunctorum), is a Mass of the Catholic Church offered for the repose of the soul or souls of one or more deceased persons, ...

for soprano,

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a musica ...

choir A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which s ...

, grand

orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * bowed string instruments, such as the violin, viola, c ...

en Chinese

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Exc ...

, on a poem by Santiago Rupérez Durá. (1990–1994) *Chinese Violin Rhapsody (1994) *Chinese Flute Concerto (1995) *Symphonic Poem 'Hua Chiao' verseas Chinesefor soprano and orchestra. (Libretto:Santiago Rupérez Durá) (1997) *Transcendental

Symphony A symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, most often for orchestra. Although the term has had many meanings from its origins in the ancient Greek era, by the late 18th century the word had taken on the meaning co ...

'Heavenly Peace' for

organ Organ may refer to: Biology * Organ (biology), a part of an organism Musical instruments * Organ (music), a family of keyboard musical instruments characterized by sustained tone ** Electronic organ, an electronic keyboard instrument ** Hammond ...

, grand

- & instruments and soloists. ibretto: Santiago Rupérez Durá(2003) *Sacred symphonic poem:'Finis est infinitus' for soprano,

, large ensemble and