Artist description Pianist

Music Style Classical

Musical Influences Cortot, Perlemutter,

Artist History DAG ACHATZ has long been regarded as one of the most extraordinary pianists of his generation. His celebrated recording for BIS of his own transcription,. for piano 2 hands. of Stravinsky's Rite of Spring is widely acknowledged as among the great recordings of the 20th century. Having heard Achatz, Leonard Bernstein wasted no time asking him to transcribe his ballet, "Fancy Free" which Mr. Achatz then recorded along with his transcription of the Symphonic Dances from West Side Story. Born in Stockholm in 1942 of a Swedish mother and a Viennese father, both musicians, Mr. Achatz was raised in Switzerland, where he entered the Geneva Conservatory at age 8. Graduating with honors, he continued his studies with Greta Eriksson in Stockholm, with Guido Agosti in Siena, and with Alfred Cortot, Suzanne Roche and Vlado Perlemuter in Paris. In 1960 he claimed victory in the Rudolf Ganz Competition in Lausanne, and took first prize in 1964 at the coveted Maria Canals Competition in Barcelona. He was also a prize winner at the Bavarian Radio Competition in Munich and the Viotti Competition in Vercelli in 1963. He has since performed in more than 25 countries and in the major musical centers, including London, Paris, New York, Boston, Rome, Moscow, St. Petersburg, Vienna, Tokyo and Beijing. Has been a soloist with the radio orchestras of Stockholm, Munich, Paris, Stuttgart, Torino, Milan, and with the Orchestre de Pasdeloup of Paris, l'Orchestre de l'Opera de Monte-Carlo, Gewandhaus of Leipzig, Staatskapelle of Dresden, and with the philharmonic orchestras of Stockholm, Oslo, Barcelona and Lisbon. No stranger to international music festivals, he has participated in those of Montreux, Aix-en-Provence and Savonlina in Finland. Mr. Achatz has also collaborated with many of the eminent conductors fo the 20th cnntury including Celibidache, Bernstein, Kertesz, Zinman and others. His master classes have taken him to the Academi-Festival des Arcs in France, the Institute of Advanced Musical Studies in Montreux, the Osaka Conservatory in Japan, and the Umea International Academy in Sweden. He serves frequently on the juries of international competitions, including those at Jaen, the Clara Haskil, Vercelli, Paris, Oporto, Munich (Bavarian Radio Orchestra Competition), and many others. In chamber music and lieder, Mr. Achatz has performed with the Da Ponte Quartet, often with the singers Barbara Hendricks, Birgit Finnilia, Hugues Cuenod and Joanna Porackova, and in four-hand music with Yukie Nagai. His recordings number more than two dozen for BIS, CBS, EMI, Melodiya and Americus Records, and include a wide and unusual repertoire. His CD of the music of Gershwin was universally praised, as are his recordings of Scriabin, Schumann, Liszt, Ravel, Stenhammer, Grieg and othe

Instruments Piano

Albums BIS; CBS; EMI; Melodiya; Americus

Press Reviews "Ce diable d'interpret-arrangeur est un phenomene." Diapason, Paris. "There is a wonderful anatomical presence about this sound"..The New York Times. "You need hear only a few minutes of this recording to recognize Dag Achatz as not only a formidable technician but also a genuine pianist and musician with an especially fine ear for timbre...an iridescnet palette of tone colors that reveal him to be an exceptionally sensitive and subtle artist."'-- Paul Moor, Musical America. "Achatz, en demiurge absolu, se depense sans compter. Chef a la place du chef, il domine le hourvari granitique de Stravinsky. Son interpretation donne la fiever." --Le Mondxe de la Musique, Paris. "A pianist of great class" - La Vanguardia, Barcelona. " A big-boned performance with a large and warm tone and with real power, sustained atmosphere" -The Times, London. "...Playing of the very highest calibre, of real insight and cultivated sensitivity that is extremely rare...This is intimate and deeply personal playing that emanates from an inner committment. Achatz's use of sustaining pedal is absolutely impeccable...A disc of highly distinguished playing of the greatest artistic individuality" --james Methuen-Campbell, Records and Recording, London. "Hies level of dedication is matched by a complete technique and poetic insights...For anyone interested in Liszt, this disc is a must." the San Francisco Chronicle. "The sound quality is wonderful and the performance is beautiful, sensitive and thrilling."-- Record Geijutsu, Tokyo "Achatz puts his musicianship before his sleight-of-hand artistry. He demonstrates a blazing technique but never at the expense of the piece. All of the passion and complexity of Stravinsky's muisc is still there; how Achatz so successfully muscled it all in I will never understand."--Esquire "Dag Achatz est un pianiste dont on doit saluer bien bas les prodigieuses qualites instrumentles. Il a un toucher d'une incroyable variete et une virtuosite ebouriffante." La Suisse, Geneve "Brillantes und transparentes Spiel" --Neue Zurcher Zeitung, Zurich "He takes liberties and toys with his tunes [in the Gershwin] that no one but the composer and/or the very finest of jazz musicians would dare attempt." -- Gramophone "A sensitive and excellent pianist" --Sovietskaya Litvva, M

Location Montreux, Switzerland - Switzerland

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