Don't see a video or hear the audio? Download the latest version of Flash Player to view the videos.
Walter Hautzig
Prelude in D-flat Major ("raindrop"),
Grand Polonaise Brillante Opus 22
by Frederic Chopin
Accompanied by the Baylor Orchestra
Thomas Schow, Conducting
Recorded February 20, 2006
Internationally acclaimed pianist Walter Hautzig performed at Baylor during the Upper and Middle School chapels on February 20, visited with students in the English IV Holocaust class, and also performed a magnificent evening concert on February 21. We are grateful to Maestro Hautzig for his generosity and contribution to our community.
Writing about Hautzig some years ago, The San Francisco Chronicle called him "An absolute master. " Similar accolades have followed him throughout his long and distinguished career on four continents. Hautzig was born in Vienna where he began his musical studies, which continued at the Jerusalem Conservatory. He has made his home in the United States since the 1940's when he graduated from the Curtis Institute of Music. He has appeared in countless recitals in some 50 countries and has performed with leading orchestras in New York, Baltimore, Berlin, Zurich, Barcelona, Brussels, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Oslo, Helsinki, Mexico City, Bogota, Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Tokyo, Sydney, Melbourne, Auckland, Wellington and many others throughout the world.
Hautzig has been praised for his "cultivated tonal beauty" (Die Welt, Berlin), "radiant sound" (Philadelphia Inquirer), "unforgettable Emperor Concerto" (El Tiempo, Bogota), "performance which impressed for its sheer virile integrity" (Auckland Star), "distinguished pianism" (Baltimore Sun), and for his "musicianship, taste and technical mastery" (Jerusalem Post), and "natural spontaneity" (Japan Times). HiFi News of London summed up Walter Hautzig's artistry with these words, "He is a pianist who constantly demands and gets your attention because he is always being creative."
"Mr. Hautzig was a young man growing up in Vienna in 1936 and has an inspiring tale about escaping the Nazis and also has the unique perspective of actually witnessing the Anschluss. His past appearances at Baylor have always generated a great deal of interest and he has consistently been a favorite of our students. As anyone who knows him can attest, he is a great humanitarian and his concern for his fellow man is even more impressive than his prodigious talent," said Tom Schow, Baylor's band and orchestra director.
Chattanooga, TN 37405