1. Menahem Pressler was a German-born Israeli-American pianist and academic teacher.
17 Facts About Menahem Pressler
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Menahem Pressler was known for his work with the Beaux Arts Trio that he co-founded in 1955, playing until its dissolution in 2008, in hundreds of recordings and thousands of concerts.
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Menahem Pressler's playing was described as focused on elegance, delicacy and clarity.
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Menahem Pressler was born Max Jakob Pressler in Magdeburg on 16 December 1923 and began playing the piano at the age of six.
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Menahem Pressler's family fled Nazi Germany in 1939, initially to Italy, and then to Israel.
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Menahem Pressler toured playing with leading orchestras in North America and Europe, in Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas, New York, Pittsburgh, San Francisco, Brussels, Helsinki, London, Oslo, and Paris.
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From 1955, Menahem Pressler taught on the piano faculty at the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University Bloomington, where he held the rank of Distinguished Professor of Music as the Charles Webb Chair.
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Menahem Pressler was the only original member to perform with the group through its entire existence, including several changes of membership, up to disbanding in 2008.
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Menahem Pressler returned to Germany in 2008 on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of Kristallnacht.
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At the beginning of the 1950s, Menahem Pressler recorded a substantial quantity of solo piano music, and of music for piano and orchestra by various composers for the American label MGM.
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Menahem Pressler was married to Sara Scherchen from 1949 until her death in 2014, and they had two children.
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Menahem Pressler died in London on 6 May 2023, at age 99.
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In 2005, Menahem Pressler received the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany, the nation's highest honour, and was named a Commandeur in the Order of Arts and Letters award.
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Menahem Pressler was appointed an Honorary Fellow of the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance, in recognition of a lifetime of performance and leadership in music, in 2007.
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Menahem Pressler received a Chamber Music America's Distinguished Service Award, the Gold Medal of Merit from the National Society of Arts and Letters.
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Menahem Pressler was a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
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Menahem Pressler received lifetime achievement awards from Gramophone magazine, the International Classical Music Awards, ECHO Classic in Germany and Les Victoires de la Musique Classique in France.