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MANFRED WAGNER-ARTZT

p i a n o


Born in Vienna, Manfred Wagner-Artzt was admitted to study at the former „Academy of Music and performing Art“ in Vienna in the class of Richard Hauser at the age of 13. Four years later he continued his education with the renowned pianist Alexander Jenner and obtained his concert pianist diploma in 1974. Only a few months later he gained a second diploma, by finishing his studies of chamber music. He is renowned as a soloist, a chamber musician and a Lied-accompanist, promoted by Erik Werba.

He won the gold medal at the International Piano Competition in Vercelli. Since then he has toured extensively in many European countries, in the United States, in Russia, in Japan, Buenos Aires, Hong Kong, and in the Near and Middle East.

He has appeared in many prestigious concert halls e.g. the Great Hall and the "Brahmssaal" of the Wiener Musikverein, Great Hall, "Mozartsaal" and "Schubertsaal" of the Wiener Konzerthaus, Brucknerhaus Linz, Mozarteum Salzburg, Berlin Philharmonie, Oetker-Hall Bielefeld, WDR-Cologne Large Broadcasting Hall, Munich Am Gasteig, London Saint John's Smith Square, Paris Salle Gaveau, Rotterdam De Doelen, Amsterdam Concertgebouw, Budapest Great Hall of the Liszt-Conservatory, Moscow Rachmaninow Hall, Saint Petersburg Eremitage Theater, Warsaw Philharmonie,  Washington National Gallery, Johannesburg Philharmonie, etc. as well as in many international festivals  (Vienna Festival Weeks, Carinthian Summer Festival Ossiach, "Schubertiade" Feldkirch, B'nai B'rith Festival in London, Buenos Aires Chopin Festival, Mozart Festival Orléans, Antonin "Chopin w Barwach Jesieni" Festival, Chopin-Festival Gaming, HongKong Music Festival, Wolf Trap Barns USA, etc.)

His artistic activities are documented in many recordings for international radio and TV stations (ORF Austria, WDR-Cologne, CCTV China, RIAS Berlin, PRiTV Poland, NOS Netherlands, RTS Serbia, HRT Croatia, Kazakh Radio, SABC South Africa, etc.), as well as on records and CDs, recorded for companies as EMI, GRAMOLA, MDG, KKM, DIVERTIMENTO, etc.

A significant part of his concert-activities involve collaborations with some of the most famous instrumentalists performing today e.g. with the members of the Alban Berg Quartet, of the Vienna String-Sextet, of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, with Heinrich Schiff, Christian Altenburger, Ernst Kovacic, Ludwig Streicher, the Aron Quartet, etc.

Together with his wife, the pianist SUSANNA ARTZT, he has dedicated for many years his interest to the wonderful repertoire of piano music for Four Hands and Piano Duet as the „ARSIO PIANO DUO“.

As a member of the „exxj" (Ensemble 20th Century) between 1975 and 2010 he has been involved in many developments in contemporary music.

He has given master-classes and lecture-recitals for several times at the famous Moscow Tchaikovsky-Conservatory, as well as in the USA, in Austria and other European countries and has been assistant professor at the European Academy in Montepulciano. He has been a member of the jury of the International Competition of the University of Maryland and last but not least he has worked as an editor for “Universal Edition” where he prepared the new edition of the “Mouvement for Piano-Quartet” by Gustav Mahler and recently the never before released piano music by Franz Schreker.

Since October 1975 he has been teaching as a professor at the University of Music in Vienna where he has been nominated in 1999 as “Ordinarius” for piano, which is comparable to the “tenure professor” in the United States.

From 2006 to 2020 he has been vice-president of the International Chopin Society in Vienna.

In 1997 Manfred Wagner-Artzt has been honoured for his merits in the improvement of the cultural relationship between Austria and Poland as the President of the Republic of Poland awarded him the "Cross of Cavalier".

In 2013 he has been honoured with the "Honour in Gold for Services to the Republic of Austria,
in 2016 with the "Great Honour in Gold for Services to the Federal State of Lower Austria".