Anton de Kontski
Encyclopedia
Anton de Kontski was a Polish
pianist and composer. He was also known as Antoni Kątski and Antoine de Kontski, sometimes with the appellation "Chevalier."
Anton de Kontski was one of five children, all musical. His sister Eugenia (b. 1816) was a singer; brother Stanislaw (b. 1820) a pianist who taught piano in Paris and composed salon pieces; brother Apolinary (1825-1879) a virtuoso violinist, composer and teacher who debuted at five at the St. Petersburg court, studied with Paganini, toured Europe, and finally settled in Warsaw where in 1860 he founded the Music Institute; and brother Karol (1815-1867), violinist and composer, member of the orchestra of the Opéra-Comique
in Paris.
Anton himself was a pianist and composer, a student of John Field
in Moscow and a child prodigy. He was also something of a showman: he advertised himself as the only living pupil of Beethoven and used to play at least one piece in each concert with his hands under a folded blanket placed on the keyboard. In 1896, when de Kontski was visiting pianist with the Wellington Orchestral Society in New Zealand, the conductor Alfred Hill
resigned in protest at this trick which he considered charlatanry.http://www.dnzb.govt.nz/dnzb/default.asp?Find_Quick.asp?PersonEssay=2H35
Two years before his death he embarked on a world tour, giving concerts in California and the Far East. His piece entitled "Polish Patrol" was published in Los Angeles in 1895 by The Barlett Music Co. with a portrait of the composer on the cover, and his "Awaking the Lion" was very popular in 1870s California. A sign of his popularity is the fact that The Etude used his "Dance des Sorcières" as their first title when they began publishing sheet music in 1883.
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
pianist and composer. He was also known as Antoni Kątski and Antoine de Kontski, sometimes with the appellation "Chevalier."
Anton de Kontski was one of five children, all musical. His sister Eugenia (b. 1816) was a singer; brother Stanislaw (b. 1820) a pianist who taught piano in Paris and composed salon pieces; brother Apolinary (1825-1879) a virtuoso violinist, composer and teacher who debuted at five at the St. Petersburg court, studied with Paganini, toured Europe, and finally settled in Warsaw where in 1860 he founded the Music Institute; and brother Karol (1815-1867), violinist and composer, member of the orchestra of the Opéra-Comique
Opéra-Comique
The Opéra-Comique is a Parisian opera company, which was founded around 1714 by some of the popular theatres of the Parisian fairs. In 1762 the company was merged with, and for a time took the name of its chief rival the Comédie-Italienne at the Hôtel de Bourgogne, and was also called the...
in Paris.
Anton himself was a pianist and composer, a student of John Field
John Field (composer)
John Field was an Irish pianist, composer, and teacher. He was born in Dublin into a musical family, and received his early education there. The Fields soon moved to London, where Field studied under Muzio Clementi...
in Moscow and a child prodigy. He was also something of a showman: he advertised himself as the only living pupil of Beethoven and used to play at least one piece in each concert with his hands under a folded blanket placed on the keyboard. In 1896, when de Kontski was visiting pianist with the Wellington Orchestral Society in New Zealand, the conductor Alfred Hill
Alfred Hill
Alfred Francis Hill CMG OBE was an Australian/New Zealand composer, conductor and teacher.-Biography:Alfred Hill was born in Melbourne in 1869. His year of birth is shown in many sources as 1870, but this has now been disproven. He spent most of his early life in New Zealand...
resigned in protest at this trick which he considered charlatanry.http://www.dnzb.govt.nz/dnzb/default.asp?Find_Quick.asp?PersonEssay=2H35
Two years before his death he embarked on a world tour, giving concerts in California and the Far East. His piece entitled "Polish Patrol" was published in Los Angeles in 1895 by The Barlett Music Co. with a portrait of the composer on the cover, and his "Awaking the Lion" was very popular in 1870s California. A sign of his popularity is the fact that The Etude used his "Dance des Sorcières" as their first title when they began publishing sheet music in 1883.
Sources
- Theodore Presser biography
- Zieliński, Jarosław . "The Poles in Music." Polish Music Journal, Vol. 5, No. 2 (Winter 2002)