Stefan Mickisch,
Bayreuth Lecturer
Click on his name to visit his web site!
1. Recital review by Marcus Sgro, Webmeister
Stefan Mickisch's performance for us, which complemented Bayreuth programming highlighted by the visit of Wolfgang and Gudrun Wagner in February was a great success. The Society wishes him continued success and looks forward to his future recital.
Stefan Mickisch's transcriptions successfully captured the basic harmonies and orchestral detail in Wagner's music. The transcription process is a very difficult task. Wagner was a very detailed orchestral writer and the writing often spans several octaves and includes substantial polyphony. This makes performance of any transcript that faithfully captures a majority of the composition very difficult. Herr Mickisch succeeded on both fronts. The transcriptions were faithful to the score and captured much of Wagner's rich harmonic and polyphonic language. Like any other first rate musician, Herr Mickisch has long ago conquered almost literally every technical difficulty a composer can throw at him. This allows him to focus on finer interpretative details like phrasing and harmony.
I was very impressed with Herr Mickisch's concert. The transcription of the scene from Siegfried between Mime and the Wanderer was particularly delightful. This section of the opera is considered "boring" by some critics, a position I have never been able to understand. The scene delights me, and obviously it interests Herr Mickisch enough to make a transcription. The transcription was well played and judging from the applause, the audience thoroughly enjoyed this piece and the entire concert.
The following transcriptions were performed: Tristan & Isolde: Prelude and "Isolde's Transfiguration"; Parsifal: Prelude; Der Meistersinger von Nürnberg: Prelude; The Ring: Siegfried: Encounter Between Mime and the Wanderer from Act I; Götterdämmerung: Dawn and Siegfried's Rheinfahrte; Finale
2. Biography of Stefan Mickisch
(Source: CD "Stefan Mickisch auf Wagner's Steinway")
Stefan Mickisch, born in Schwandorf in the Bavarian Upper Palantine, is one of the most eminent of current German pianists. He has achieved world recognition through his Richard Wagner paraphrases.
Born into a musical family, he studied under Erich Appel in Nurenberg, Karl-Heinz Kammerling in Hannover, and Leonid Brumberg in Vienna. In the summer of 1998, he was honored with the responsibility of delivering the introductory lecture prior to each opera performance during the Bayreuth Festival. As the successor to Erich Rappl in this "cult appointment," Mickisch can claim striking success already, having attracted 7,500 attendees during his first season.
Stefan Mickisch sustains a wide piano repertory from Bach to the moderns. He won the "Jugend musiert" German youth competition a total of ten times. In addition, he holds awards from international piano competitions in Milan, Athens (Maria Callas medal), Montevideo, and Madrid.
Mickisch's extensive solo concert career has taken him to most European countries and all five continents, visiting Canada, the U.S.A., South America, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, and Japan. During an extremely successful 1998 tour, he gave recitals in Caracas, Dallas, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Honolulu, Washington D.C., New York, Detroit, and Ottawa.
Previous CD's released included Max Reger's"Bach Variations" op 81 which presents additional works by Bach, Franck, and Mickisch, released in 1992. This was followed in 1994 by a chamber music CD with works by Fanny Mendelssohn. 1995 saw his first recording of Wagner paraphrases by both Hugo Wolf and Stefan Mickisch ("Götterdämmerung ").
In 1992 Stefan Mickisch founded the "Robert Schumann Society of Bavaria" of which he is the artistic director. He has acted as judge at competitions, and his lectures at opera houses, in Germany and overseas, have proved extremely popular.
As a Lieder accompanist, Stefan Mickish has given recitals with famous singers including Robert Holl, Kurt Moll, Bernd Weikl, Siegfried Jerusalem, and Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau.
In 1999 he will play concerts in 11 countries, making his debut in London, Oslo, and Reykjavik.
3. Interview with Stefan Mickisch
Following is the transcript of an interview by Ms. Deborah Lamberton of Stefan Mickisch. It was originally aired on WETA 90.9 FM, Washington DC June 24, 1999.
Lamberton: Stephan Mickisch, what we're hearing now is music from Götterdämmerung. This is a paraphrase which you have written for the piano. This is also one of the works you will perform tonight at the German Embassy. As I look at the score here in my hand 54 pages of... a lot of black. This must have a tremendous undertaking for you.
Mickisch: Yes. Speaking about paraphrases, this is the longest paraphrase ever written on a Wagnerian work, Götterdämmerung 35 minutes. I did that in '94 and '95. It was an American inspiration. I stayed here in the Virginia Center for Creative Arts in '94 for eight weeks on a scholarship from Germany, and we were free to do anything. There were writers, painters, and musicians. Up to that time I didn't play Wagner on the piano. I loved Wagner, but I played Schubert, Beethoven, Reger, Schumann, Mozart, as every pianist does. So the American artist asked me, "what is your favorite composer?" I said, "Wagner!". They said, "Please play Wagner for us!". And then I sat down and I tried to do my first paraphrase of the end of Götterdämmerung, because there you have so many motives which carry philosophical ideas that one can explain what Wagner's music is about. And I started with that, and it was a big success and a new --"that's your path!, you will continue that path!" -- and other paraphrases came later like Tristan, Meistersinger, Parsifal, I'm at the beginning I would say.
Lamberton: So you're telling us that five years ago you hadn't performed Wagner paraphrases?.
Mickisch: No, because I do not so much like the Liszt transcriptions. There are 14 Liszt transcriptions [Franz Liszt was a prominent composer, virtuoso pianist, and father-in-law to Wagner], and I always felt it's Liszt, but not Wagner. He shows his octaves, he shows nice places of Wagner's work but only for 5 minutes or 6 minutes he doesn't show big developments. I was always interested in big developments. A whole section, such as the whole Rheinfahrte or the whole finale of Götterdämmerung, not just the part, and Liszt did not lead me to Wagner. It was my own love of the big orchestra,. I always thought more in terms of big orchestras and symphonies than mere piano fingering.
Lamberton: Well, now that you've found a niche for yourself, is this something you're going to continue?
Mickisch: Yes, I'm sure.
Lamberton: And the reception you have received?
Mickisch: It's very good. It's more than I suspected to be because at first I thought, "Would Wagnerians accept this?". This is Wagner, not piano music. They say, "now we can hear several things much better than in the orchestra because the piano has the quality of structuring, is clearer, and we hear things we didn't hear before in the orchestra.", for instance during the Rheinfahrte they say, "it's very nice to hear Wagner without that big soprano shrieking...[laughs]
Lamberton: They've actually said that? [laughs]
Mickisch: Yes,
Lamberton: The secret is out!
Mickisch: They say, it's very good to listen to Wagner without the stage, without a spoiled production; we're not forced to see something we do not want to see. We can just hear.
Lamberton: Stephan Mickish is in performance tonight at the German Embassy. Thank you so much for being here at WETA, and good luck with your journey. I'm sure it will be a long one, given the fact that it's Wagner, no?
Mickisch: Yes. And my goals go further, I want to build up a big, evening long paraphrase for each Wagner opera. So Tristan for two hours, Parsifal for three hours, and, I need several years for my vision.
Lamberton: And we'll be sure to have the energy drink at the side of the piano!
Mickisch: Exactly and to get rid of some stuff which is not necessary in life and to focus on that. Perhaps in ten years I'll have my own festival on the piano.
[The parts of the interview which follow were not broadcast.]
Lamberton: The music that we just heard [on the soundtrack] was performed on a very special instrument. Tell me about it.
Mickisch: This was Wagner's own instrument it's a gift from the United States, it was a gift from the New York Steinway factory for the first Ring cycle in Bayreuth in 1876. It's a nine foot Steinway, the biggest one it's a very good instrument. It has very rich bass, and long strings, and it was not played for a long period of time because Cosima did not like other people to play on that instrument after Wagner's death in 1883. So Wagner composed Parsifal completely on that Steinway and he did also some finalizing work on Götterdämmerung on that instrument. And we have that instrument right now in Villa Wahnfried in Bayreuth.
Lamberton: When you sit down to this instrument at the salon in Bayreuth, what do you think about before you start to play?
Mickisch: I feel to be very honored to have the opportunity to play that because it's a museum Steinway, a museum piece and nobody is allowed to play. You must have the permission of Wolfgang Wagner, who runs the Festival to play, or to make recordings, and there are only two pianists who could have a concert and recording, Gerhard Opits and myself.
Lamberton: Do you have to approach it differently, technically?
Mickisch: Yes, the bass is very rich and in the upper regions of the piano there are some tricks to make the piano sound in that quality we expect Steinways of our days to sound. You have to get accustomed to the instrument intuitively and by trying a bit. It's not so easy in the beginning. But then you can do it.
Lamberton: On the high end, in the upper registers, what is that like?
Mickisch: The upper two octaves are brilliant, but below the upper two octaves there are two octaves which are a bit muddy, and this is a big problem for Meistersinger. If you have a big range of sounds anywhere, upper region, middle region, lower region then you have to balance. You have to make a certain amount of balance to get the right sound.
Lamberton: That balance is achieved technically with the amount of pressure?
Mickisch: Yes, and by pedaling. The instrument is the best for Parsifal and Tristan because the sound is lyrical, and the bass is always carrying the sound. It's difficult for Meistersinger.
Lamberton: When we talk about transcriptions and arrangements and so forth of opera works and orchestral works, the piano is basically a percussion instrument in how it works. So, how is it that you have to approach these pieces to make them work on the piano?
Mickisch: A famous pianist like Schnabel or Serkin always pointed out that the piano is not a percussion instrument but a melody instrument which makes beautiful melodies and you have to sing on the piano and that's true
Lamberton: Depending on who's playing it of course
Mickisch: Of course, but I would say Wagner is so rich as a composer you can't just play it. You can play that on the organ, you can do it on the piano, it depends on your skills, what you can reach with Wagner's music, but it's Parsifal, it sounds good on the piano. My goal is to replace the orchestra. When I have a good piano I can reach that aim. I can replace an orchestra, I can imitate the instruments, and we have some means the orchestra does not have, for instance the pedal. So in Parsifal, there are these high three flutes left over, and if they are not quite in tune it's always bad. You have no sound to carry these flutes. It's very good on the piano. Sounds better, sounds much better.
Lamberton: Do you hear it in your head first and then play it, or do you perform it as you hear it?
Mickisch: You mean the orchestra?
Lamberton: Well, yes. What I'm getting at is, do you have a aural vision in your head of the sound you want to get out of the piano...
Mickisch: Yes. I have an aural vision, and it's hard to get that vision. The vision is always, nearly always beyond what you reach. If I have a very good piano, a very good shape, and a very good audience, then I can reach everything. But I would say 5 times a year, out of 70 concerts. Wagner himself said for the very best performance you need a very good audience which shares the feelings of the artist, and a good instrument of course.
(End of Interview)