Introduction To

The Composer

Franz
LiSzt
Franz Liszt was born on October 22nd, 1811 in
Raiding, Austria.

After showing prodigious musical talent

at an early age, Liszt’s father Adam
Liszt is an official at the Hungarian
court of the Esterhazy, began giving him
music lessons on the piano.
 Liszt made his debut, giving his first recital at the
age of nine.
Soon after, funded by Prince Nikolaus, he travelled to
Vienna to continue his music education. There he met
Ludwig van Beethoven and Franz Schubert.

In 1834 he began a liaison with the Countess Marie

d’Agoult. This affair bore 3 children, one of which, their
second daughter Cosima who later married composer
Richard Wagner.
 Liszt’s striking looks, his larger than life personality, his
affairs with married noblewomen, and his virtuosic music
ability, which some say was rivaled only by the talents of
Niccolo Paganini, truly make him a rockstar of his day.

The apex of Liszt’s career were the years spent in Weimar between
1848 and 1859. It was during this time that he composed most of
his major works including the E-flat Piano Concerto, the B minor
Sonata, Hungarian Rhapsodies, the Faust symphony, the Dante
symphony, over a dozen symphonic poems, and many other pieces.
After traveling to Bayreuth, Germany to attend a
music festival, Franz Liszt died of pneumonia
on July 31st, 1886, at the age of 75.