Vlastimil Lejsek

Vlastimil Lejsek (21 July 1927 in Brno – 12 March 2010 in Brno) was a Czech composer and pianist.

Biography

Lejsek was the son of the Moravian choirmaster Frantisek Kvetoslav Lejsek. He studied at the Brno Conservatory and the Academies of Music in both Prague and Brno with Frantisek Schafer, Jan Erml and František Maxián. During his studies he received awards at many competitions, such as the International Smetana Competition (Prague) and Franz Liszt Competition (Budapest).

With his wife, Vera Lejskova, he established a famous piano duo, collaborating with composers such as Milhaud, Britten, Lutoslawski and Shostakovich, and recording for the first time Dvořák's 4-hand works and many more. As a solo pianist, he premiered many works of his colleagues, as well as of his own.

The main body of his musical output consists music for piano duo (like Brazilian Dances, Dances of Masters, Inventions, Moravian Ballades) and piano solo (Preludes, Sonatella, Pianists and Horses, The Moon Suite).

Besides being a composer and a performing and recording pianist, Lejsek also served at the music faculties of the Conservatory and Janáček Academy of Music in Brno. He was a member of Moravian Composer's Club (founded by Janáček) and also founder of the International Schubert Competition for Piano duos in Jesenik (Czech republic), one of the foremost music events of his country.

His wife is, besides a pianist, a writer, journalist and critic working for both press and radio. Together they were an important and inspiring couple in Czech musical life. Their life and work is depicted in the book "Interviews without piano" by Jan Trojan.

Selected works

Opera
Orchestral
Concertante
Chamber music
Piano solo
Piano 4 hands
Piano 6 hands
2 Pianos
2 Pianos 8 hands
Vocal
Choral

References

  1. Lejsek's biography at http://www.pianosociety.com

External links

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