Ryszard Bakst (4 April 1926 – 25 March 1999) was a Polish pianist and distinguished

piano teacher Piano pedagogy is the study of the teaching of piano playing. Whereas the professional field of music education pertains to the teaching of music in school classrooms or group settings, piano pedagogy focuses on the teaching of musical skills t ...

Background

Bakst was a descendant of the Russian artist

Léon Bakst Léon (Lev) Samoylovich Bakst (), born Leyb-Khaim Izrailevich Rosenberg (; – 27 December 1924),

. His teachers were initially his mother and pianist

Józef Turczyński Jozéf Turczyński (18841953) was a Polish pianist, pedagogue and musicologist who exercised a powerful influence over the development of piano teaching and performance, especially in the works of Frédéric Chopin, during the first half of the 20t ...

, then Abram Lufer (who had won 4th Prize at the 1932 Chopin International Piano Competition) and later

Konstantin Igumnov Konstantin Nikolayevich Igumnov (March 24, 1948) was a Soviet and Russian pianist and pedagogue. In 1946, he was recognized as the People's Artist of the USSR. Biography Igumnov studied under Nikolai Zverev, and at Moscow Conservatory under A ...

and

Heinrich Neuhaus Heinrich Gustav Neuhaus (, , Genrikh Gustavovič Nejgauz, 10 October 1964) was a Russian pianist and teacher. Part of a musical dynasty, he grew up in a Polish-speaking household. He taught at the Moscow Conservatory from 1922 to 1964. Neuhaus ...

at the

Moscow Conservatory The Moscow Conservatory, also officially Tchaikovsky Moscow State Conservatory () is a higher musical educational institution located in Moscow, Russia. It grants undergraduate and graduate degrees in musical performance and musical research. Th ...

, and finally with pianist

Zbigniew Drzewiecki Zbigniew Drzewiecki (; 8 April 189011 April 1971) was a Polish people, Polish pianist who was for most of his life a teacher of pianists. He was especially associated with the interpretation of Frédéric Chopin's works. His pupils include severa ...

. Bakst was a prize winner at the

IV International Chopin Piano Competition The IV International Chopin Piano Competition () was held from 15 September to 15 October 1949 in Warsaw. The first competition after World War II, it was held in connection with the centenary of Chopin's death. Polish pianist Halina Czerny-Ste ...

in Warsaw in 1949 and performed in

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

and the United States the Far East and numerous other places around the world. He was particularly known for his interpretations of Chopin but also played composers as diverse as Aaron Copland and Juliusz Zarębski. He immigrated to

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

in 1968 and did not return to Poland until 1988 when he appeared in a televised concert at the Warsaw Philharmonic Hall. Among the most gifted students he taught, according to Bakst himself, are Andrew Wilde and Pawel Skrzypek, and, for her complete Bach performances, Jill Crossland. Others whom Bakst held in high regard are Alicja Fiderkiewicz,

Janusz Olejniczak Janusz Olejniczak (; 2 October 1952 – 20 October 2024) was a Polish classical pianist, academic teacher and actor. He made an international career as a pianist, especially with the piano music of Chopin which he played on modern and period i ...

and Ronan O'Hora, whilst the long list of other students includes the highly successful Paul Lewis as well as Marta Karbownicka, Graham Scott, Robyn Koh, Mark Anderson,

Matthew Schellhorn Matthew Schellhorn (born 4 February 1977 in Yorkshire) is an English classical pianist. Biography Education Matthew Schellhorn studied at Chetham's School of Music in Manchester and Girton College, Cambridge. His teachers included David Hartig ...

, Peter Seivewright, Timothy Horton, David Moss and many others. He also gave lessons to popular music artists, such as

Don Airey Donald Smith Airey (born 21 June 1948) is an English musician. He came to prominence as the keyboardist of the rock band Rainbow during 1979–1982. He has been the keyboardist of Deep Purple, the band from which Rainbow was a spinoff, since 2 ...

Deep Purple Deep Purple are an English rock band formed in London in 1968. They are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal music, heavy metal and modern hard rock, although their musical style has varied throughout their career. Originally for ...

. In 2013, multiple allegations were made that Bakst had sexually abused students he taught at

Chetham's School of Music Chetham's School of Music () is a private co-educational boarding and day music school in Manchester, England. Chetham's educates pupils between the ages of 8 and 18, all of whom enter via musical auditions. The music school was established i ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bakst, Ryszard Russian classical pianists Polish male classical pianists British classical pianists 1926 births 1999 deaths Prize-winners of the International Chopin Piano Competition Moscow Conservatory alumni 20th-century Polish classical pianists 20th-century Polish composers 20th-century British musicians 20th-century British male musicians