Burning the Piano

Send us Fan MailYou know, Every generation has its superstar — the one who turns talent into legend, and performance into art.  For us, that might mean Elton John or Lady Gaga. But in the 1800s, one name ruled the musical world like a comet blazing across the sky: Franz Liszt.A man whose concerts caused hysteria, whose charm        melted hearts, and whose fingers seemed touched by lightning.So let’s pull back the velvet curtain and step into the age of Lisztomania!Ghost soundMaestro Liszt, welcome.Thank you, Herr Bartley. Speaking across centuries is a strange delight — music is the bridge that time cannot burn.Let’s begin at the beginning. You were born in 1811 in Raiding, Hungary, the son of a musician employed by the Esterházy family. How did music first enter your life?Ah, Monsieur Bartley, Music was like breathing. My father played cello, piano, violin — he introduced me to the piano, and I was performing publicly at nine. By eleven, I studied with Czerny in Vienna, a pupil of Beethoven himself. The training was rigorous, but awe-inspiring.Support the showThank you for experiencing Celebrate Creativity.