Del.icio.usXaver Scharwenka
He studied music in Berlin under Theodor Kullak, and toured as a concert pianist from 1874. In 1877 he premiered what was to be his most popular work, a piano concerto. In 1881 he founded his own music school in Berlin, and from 1891 to 1898 directed his Scharwenka Music School in New York City. In addition to his activities as a composer, pianist, and founder of a music school, he also organized a series of concerts (focusing mainly on works by prominent composers of the century, Beethoven, Berlioz and Liszt among them) His compositions are little played today, though some of his shorter piano pieces are sometimes heard. His Methodik des Klavierspiels was published in Leipzig in 1907.
He was a famous interpreter of Chopin, and was renowned for the beauty of his piano tone. Works by Scharwenka include an opera (Mataswintha), a symphony, four piano concertos, as well as chamber music and numerous piano pieces.
Franz Xaver Scharwenka was the brother of Philipp Scharwenka, also a composer.