Edwin Fischer

For the American tennis player, see Edwin P. Fischer.

Edwin Fischer (October 6, 1886 – January 24, 1960) was a Swiss classical pianist and conductor. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest interpreters of traditional Germanic repertoire of the twentieth century, and one of the finest piano pedagogues of the modern era.

Biography

Fischer was born in Basel and studied music first there, and later in Berlin at the Stern conservatory under Martin Krause. He first came to prominence as a pianist following World War I. In 1926, he became conductor of the Lübeck Musikverein and later conducted in Munich. In 1932 he formed his own chamber orchestra, and was one of the first to be interested in presenting music of the Baroque and Classical periods in an historically accurate way. Though his performances were not particularly historically accurate by present-day standards, they were for his time; e.g., he did conduct concertos by the likes of Bach and Mozart from the keyboard, which at the time was most unusual. His interpretations, even of Bach and Handel, were Romantically conceived, with a wide use of dynamics, and extremely compelling.

In 1932 he returned once again to Berlin, succeeding his great contemporary Artur Schnabel in a teaching role at the Berlin Hochschule für Musik after Schnabel's departure from Nazi Germany. In 1942 he moved back to Switzerland, temporarily putting his career on hold through World War II. After the war, he began to perform again, as well as giving master classes in Lucerne, which were attended by a number of later prominent pianists, Alfred Brendel, Helena Sá e Costa, Paul Badura-Skoda, Mario Feninger and Daniel Barenboim among them.

Two drawings of Fischer by the German artist and musician Fritz Tennigkeit (1892–1949)

As well as solo recitals, concerto performances and conducting of orchestral concerts, Fischer was also engaged in chamber music. Particularly highly regarded was the piano trio he formed with the cellist Enrico Mainardi and the violinist Georg Kulenkampff (who was replaced by Wolfgang Schneiderhan after Kulenkampff's death).

Fischer published a number of books on teaching, and one on the piano sonatas of Beethoven. He also made a number of recordings, including the first complete traversal of Bach's The Well-Tempered Clavier for EMI, recorded between 1933 and 1936. Other classic recordings by Fischer include Bach keyboard concertos, miscellaneous solo Bach works, such as the Chromatic Fantasy and Fugue, various concertos and sonatas by Mozart and Beethoven, Schubert's "Wanderer" Fantasie and Impromptus, and Brahms' Second Concerto, conducted by Wilhelm Furtwängler. Fischer's historically important recordings have been reissued on CD by EMI and by specialty labels such as APR, Music & Arts, Pearl, and Testament. Those of the Mozart Concertos K. 453, 466, 482, 491, & 503 (G major, D minor, E-flat major, C minor, and C major) are particularly outstanding, especially the last three with the inspired, powerful conducting of John Barbirolli, Lawrance Collingwood, and Josef Krips respectively, in 1935, 1937, & 1947.

Fischer also accompanied Elisabeth Schwarzkopf in a renowned early-to-mid-1950s EMI LP of Schubert Lieder. His last musical collaboration was with the violinist Gioconda de Vito. During their recording sessions for the Brahms violin sonatas Nos. 1 and 3, he had to go to London for medical treatment; there he was told he was seriously ill. He died shortly afterwards in Zurich.

Pupils of Edwin Fischer

For Fischer's notable students, see List of music students by teacher: A to F#Edwin Fischer.

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