Ragna Schirmer (born 1972) is a German classical pianist.
on Bach Cantatas Website
Life
Born in
Hildesheim
Hildesheim (; nds, Hilmessen, Hilmssen; la, Hildesia) is a city in Lower Saxony, Germany with 101,693 inhabitants. It is in the district of Hildesheim, about southeast of Hanover on the banks of the Innerste River, a small tributary of the ...
, from 1991 Schirmer studied with
Karl-Heinz Kämmerling
Karl-Heinz Kämmerling (6 May 1930 – 14 June 2012) was a notable German academic teacher of classical pianists, who trained pianists at the Mozarteum in Salzburg and the Hochschule für Musik, Theater und Medien Hannover for careers as performe ...
at the
Hochschule für Musik und Theater Hannover. From 1993, she continued her studies in Paris with
Bernard Ringeissen
Bernard Ringeissen (born 15 May 1934) is a French classical pianist.
He was born in Paris in 1934. His first teacher, at age 7, was Georges de Lausnay. He entered the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique in 1947, aged 12, and won the Pr ...
. In 1995 she completed her studies with a diploma (with top marks), and in 1999 she completed her
soloist training with a concert exam. Since then she has taken part in several master classes. From 2001 to 2011 Ragna Schirmer was professor of piano at the
Hochschule für Musik und Darstellende Kunst Mannheim and today promotes young talents in
Halle Halle may refer to:
Places Germany
* Halle (Saale), also called Halle an der Saale, a city in Saxony-Anhalt
** Halle (region), a former administrative region in Saxony-Anhalt
** Bezirk Halle, a former administrative division of East Germany
** Hall ...
.
Schirmer received a scholarship from both
Deutscher Musikrat and the
Studienstiftung des Deutschen Volkes. She is the only pianist to have won the
International Johann Sebastian Bach Competition
The International Johann Sebastian Bach Competition (german: Internationaler Bach Wettbewerb Leipzig, links=no) is a music competition in Leipzig, Germany, held by the Bach-Archiv Leipzig. It was founded in 1950 and was held every four years from ...
in
Leipzig
Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as ...
twice,
in 1992 and 1998.
As her first CD, she released a recording of Bach's
Goldberg Variations
The ''Goldberg Variations'', BWV 988, is a musical composition for keyboard by Johann Sebastian Bach, consisting of an aria and a set of 30 variations. First published in 1741, it is named after Johann Gottlieb Goldberg, who may also h ...
in 2000. This and other CDs have received awards in professional music journals. She was
artist in residence
Artist-in-residence, or artist residencies, encompass a wide spectrum of artistic programs which involve a collaboration between artists and hosting organisations, institutions, or communities. They are programs which provide artists with space a ...
in
Heidelberg
Heidelberg (; Palatine German language, Palatine German: ''Heidlberg'') is a city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Neckar in south-west Germany. As of the 2016 census, its population was 159,914 ...
in 2010. In 2012 she was honoured with the
Handel Prize
The Handel Prize (german: Händel-Preis) is an annual award, instituted in 1956, which is presented by the city of Halle, in Germany, in honour of the celebrated Baroque composer George Frideric Handel. It is awarded, "for exceptional artistic ...
of
Halle Halle may refer to:
Places Germany
* Halle (Saale), also called Halle an der Saale, a city in Saxony-Anhalt
** Halle (region), a former administrative region in Saxony-Anhalt
** Bezirk Halle, a former administrative division of East Germany
** Hall ...
,
and in 2019 she received – together with the musicologist
Janina Klassen
Janina Klassen (born in 1953) is a German musicologist and professor at the Hochschule für Musik Freiburg.
Life and career
Born in Bad Salzuflen, Klassen studied musicology, German studies, philosophy and Italian in Freiburg im Breisgau, Vie ...
– the
Robert Schumann Prize of the City of Zwickau.
References
External links
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Ragna Schirmers Homepage
{{DEFAULTSORT:Schirmer, Ragna
1972 births
Living people
People from Hildesheim
Women classical pianists
German classical pianists
21st-century classical pianists
21st-century German musicians
Handel Prize winners
21st-century women pianists