Elisabeth Klein
Encyclopedia
Elisabeth Klein was a Hungarian-Danish
pianist
.
(now Slovakia
) and grew up in Budapest
, Hungary
from the age of 3. She showed already at an early age a strong aptitude for playing the piano.
After graduating from the Franz Liszt Academy of Music
in Budapest, she studied privately with Béla Bartók
during 1934-1936.
She was in Denmark
at the outbreak of Second World War and remained there in Copenhagen
for the longest part of her life.
She married Jørgen Petersen (1916-1986), a Royal Danish Naval
Officer, December 21, 1941, and their first son, Ole Holger Petersen, was born in 1943.
After the War, during which Jørgen was exiled in Scotland
, their second son, Nils Holger Petersen, was born in 1946.
The family spent some years stationed with N.A.T.O. in Oslo
, Norway
, and in Kiel
, West Germany
.
Elisabeth Klein worked for many years with the Royal Danish Opera in Copenhagen, the Royal Danish Academy of Music in Copenhagen, Denmark and the Norwegian Academy of Music
, Oslo, Norway.
From her early interest in Contemporary music in the 1960s, she became a particular champion of and specialist in the performance of Contemporary Scandinavian piano music.
She also had an interest in International Women's Contemporary music. She performed concerts and recordings throughout Scandinavia
, many countries in Europe
,
U.S.A., Israel
, China
, and Mexico
. Her discography includes works of Bartók, Berg
, Stockhausen and many contemporary Scandinavian composers. A good number of works for piano were also dedicated to her by various composers.
In 1980 after her husband retired as a Rear Admiral
from the Royal Danish Navy
, they moved to Oslo, Norway where Elisabeth Klein continued to teach at the Norwegian Academy of Music until the age of 70. She spend her final years in Liverpool
, U.K. still actively performing and teaching piano.
Elisabeth Klein was awarded the Music Prize of Danish Radio in 1966, made an honorary artist of the Norwegian Composers Association in 1976, and became an honorary member of Women in Music in 1992.
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
pianist
Pianist
A pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers.-Choice of genres:...
.
Biography
Elisabeth Klein was born on July 23, 1911 in TrencsénTrencín
Trenčín is a city in western Slovakia of the central Váh River valley near the Czech border, around from Bratislava. It has a population of more than 56,000, which makes it the ninth largest municipality of the country and is the seat of the Trenčín Region and the Trenčín District...
(now Slovakia
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
) and grew up in Budapest
Budapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
, Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
from the age of 3. She showed already at an early age a strong aptitude for playing the piano.
After graduating from the Franz Liszt Academy of Music
Franz Liszt Academy of Music
The Franz Liszt Academy of Music is a concert hall and music conservatory in Budapest, Hungary, founded on November 14, 1875...
in Budapest, she studied privately with Béla Bartók
Béla Bartók
Béla Viktor János Bartók was a Hungarian composer and pianist. He is considered one of the most important composers of the 20th century and is regarded, along with Liszt, as Hungary's greatest composer...
during 1934-1936.
She was in Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
at the outbreak of Second World War and remained there in Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
for the longest part of her life.
She married Jørgen Petersen (1916-1986), a Royal Danish Naval
Royal Danish Navy
The Royal Danish Navy is the sea-based branch of the Danish Defence force. The RDN is mainly responsible for maritime defence and maintaining the sovereignty of Danish, Greenlandic and Faroese territorial waters...
Officer, December 21, 1941, and their first son, Ole Holger Petersen, was born in 1943.
After the War, during which Jørgen was exiled in Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, their second son, Nils Holger Petersen, was born in 1946.
The family spent some years stationed with N.A.T.O. in Oslo
Oslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
, and in Kiel
Kiel
Kiel is the capital and most populous city in the northern German state of Schleswig-Holstein, with a population of 238,049 .Kiel is approximately north of Hamburg. Due to its geographic location in the north of Germany, the southeast of the Jutland peninsula, and the southwestern shore of the...
, West Germany
West Germany
West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
.
Elisabeth Klein worked for many years with the Royal Danish Opera in Copenhagen, the Royal Danish Academy of Music in Copenhagen, Denmark and the Norwegian Academy of Music
Norwegian Academy of Music
The Norwegian Academy of Music is a music conservatory located in Oslo, Norway, in the neighbourhood of Majorstuen, Frogner. It is the largest music academy in Norway and offers the country's highest level of music education. As a university college, it offers both undergraduate and postgraduate...
, Oslo, Norway.
From her early interest in Contemporary music in the 1960s, she became a particular champion of and specialist in the performance of Contemporary Scandinavian piano music.
She also had an interest in International Women's Contemporary music. She performed concerts and recordings throughout Scandinavia
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...
, many countries in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
,
U.S.A., Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, and Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
. Her discography includes works of Bartók, Berg
Alban Berg
Alban Maria Johannes Berg was an Austrian composer. He was a member of the Second Viennese School with Arnold Schoenberg and Anton Webern, and produced compositions that combined Mahlerian Romanticism with a personal adaptation of Schoenberg's twelve-tone technique.-Early life:Berg was born in...
, Stockhausen and many contemporary Scandinavian composers. A good number of works for piano were also dedicated to her by various composers.
In 1980 after her husband retired as a Rear Admiral
Rear Admiral
Rear admiral is a naval commissioned officer rank above that of a commodore and captain, and below that of a vice admiral. It is generally regarded as the lowest of the "admiral" ranks, which are also sometimes referred to as "flag officers" or "flag ranks"...
from the Royal Danish Navy
Royal Danish Navy
The Royal Danish Navy is the sea-based branch of the Danish Defence force. The RDN is mainly responsible for maritime defence and maintaining the sovereignty of Danish, Greenlandic and Faroese territorial waters...
, they moved to Oslo, Norway where Elisabeth Klein continued to teach at the Norwegian Academy of Music until the age of 70. She spend her final years in Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
, U.K. still actively performing and teaching piano.
Elisabeth Klein was awarded the Music Prize of Danish Radio in 1966, made an honorary artist of the Norwegian Composers Association in 1976, and became an honorary member of Women in Music in 1992.