Géza Zichy

Géza Zichy Count to Vásonykeö [ ɡe ː zɒ zitʃi ] ( born July 22, 1849 in Sztára, Austria - Hungary, now Stare, Slovakia, † January 14, 1924 in Budapest) was a Hungarian pianist and composer.

Life

Géza Zichy, who lost in a hunting accident at the age of fourteen his right arm, completed a piano training, inter alia, with Franz Liszt and studied composition with Robert Volkmann. Since 1890, he joined internationally as a pianist, praised among others by the music critic Eduard Hanslick. In addition, he was from 1875 to 1892 president of the Royal Hungarian State Music Academy and from 1891 to 1894 director of the Opera in Budapest, whose director at the time was Gustav Mahler.

He composed six operas, of which the Rákóczi trilogy had the most success, as well as the cantata Dolores and the ballet Gemma, a piano concerto, Piano Studies for the Left Hand and songs. He published a three-volume autobiography. His cousin Mihály Zichy (1827-1906) was known as a painter.