Menahem Pressler facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Menahem Pressler
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Pressler in 2009
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| Born | 16 December 1923 |
| Died | 6 May 2023 (aged 99) |
| Occupation | Pianist |
Menahem Pressler (Hebrew: מנחם פרסלר) was a famous pianist. He was born in Germany on December 16, 1923, and passed away on May 6, 2023. He became an Israeli-American citizen later in his life.
Pressler was from a Jewish family. In 1939, his family had to leave Nazi Germany because of a terrible event called Kristallnacht. This event involved attacks against Jewish people. They first went to Italy, then to Palestine. Sadly, many of his relatives, like his grandparents, died in special camps during that time.
His amazing music career began when he won first prize at the Debussy International Piano Competition in San Francisco in 1946. After that, he performed for the first time at Carnegie Hall in New York City with the Philadelphia Orchestra.
Contents
A Life in Music
Teaching and Performing
From 1955, Pressler taught piano at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music. He was a very respected professor there.
His first performance as a chamber musician was in 1955. A chamber musician plays in small groups. He joined the Beaux Arts Trio as their pianist. The trio also had Daniel Guilet on violin and Bernard Greenhouse on cello.
The Beaux Arts Trio
Even though he was the newest member at first, Menahem Pressler was the only original member who stayed with the Beaux Arts Trio for its entire history. The group changed members several times, but he was always there until the trio stopped performing in 2008.
In 2010, he played at the Rheingau Musik Festival with Antônio Meneses. Meneses was the last cellist of the Beaux Arts Trio.
Returning to Germany
In 2008, Pressler went back to Germany. This was for the 70th anniversary of Kristallnacht, the event that made his family leave.
In January 2014, when he was 90 years old, he performed for the first time with the famous Berlin Philharmonic orchestra. His performance with them and conductor Sir Simon Rattle on New Year's Eve 2014 was shown live on TV around the world.
Recordings and Albums
The Beaux Arts Trio made many recordings for a company called Philips. Pressler also recorded solo piano music. He released albums on labels like La Dolce Volta and Deutsche Grammophon. In 2018, he dedicated an album of French music to his friend, Annabelle Whitestone. He had also recorded a lot of solo piano music in the early 1950s for the American label MGM.
Awards and Honors
Menahem Pressler received many special awards and honors throughout his life.
Special Degrees
He was given honorary doctorates from several universities. These included the University of Nebraska and the San Francisco Conservatory of Music.
Music Awards
Pressler was nominated for six Grammy Awards. He also received a lifetime achievement award from Gramophone magazine. Other awards include the International Classical Music Awards and Chamber Music America's Distinguished Service Award. He also received the Gold Medal of Merit from the National Society of Arts and Letters.
International Recognition
He received the German Critics “Ehrenurkunde” award. He was also chosen to be a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. In 2007, he became an Honorary Fellow of the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance. This was to recognize his long career in music.
In 2005, Pressler received two very important international awards:
- The German Bundesverdienstkreuz (Cross of Merit), which is Germany’s highest honor.
- France’s highest cultural honor, the Commandeur in the Order of Arts and Letters award.
In 2015, he received another Honorary Doctorate from the Royal Academy of Music London. He also got the Lifetime Achievement Award from ECHO Classic in Germany. In 2016, he was given the Lifetime Achievement Award from Les Victoires de la Musique Classique in France. In December 2017, he received an Honorary Doctorate from Ben Gurion University in Beer Sheba, Israel.
See also
In Spanish: Menahem Pressler para niños
