Liszt and poetry

Thomas Owen Mastroianni earned B.S. and M.S. degrees from Juilliard School of Music, where he was a scholarship student of Beveridge Webster, in 1959. He continued his doctoral studies under the legendary former professor of the Liszt Academy, Béla Böszörményi Nagy, and Sidney Foster, at Indiana University Bloomington. Between 1961-1972 he was professor of piano and department head at Texas University, and between 1972-1981 he was dean of the School of Music of The Catholic University of America. From 1981, for nearly two decades he was Professor and Chairman of Piano at the university, and he has been Professor Emeritus there since 2000.

Alongside his teaching activities he has appeared as a concert pianist in 20 countries on four continents, and among his recordings are outstanding CDs of piano works by Brahms, Liszt and Debussy. He was awarded the Medal of the Hungarian Liszt Society in 1992 for his work connected with the oeuvre of Liszt. Dr. Mastroianni is a co-founder of the Amalfi Coast Music Festival in Italy and he regularly teaches, performs and gives master classes there, he is a frequent adjudicator at international piano competitions, he is a member of American educational and accreditation committees, and president of the American Liszt Society. Despite his university commitments he finds time to give performances and master classes worldwide, and besides work on the art of Liszt and the Romantic composers he devotes particular attention to the physiological aspects of piano technique. Dr. Mastroianni regularly publishes articles and lectures on topics covering the physical and mental conditioning of performers, concentration, memory, practice and stress management.

The master class on 8 and 9 April 2014 being held in classroom XXIII of the main building of the Liszt Academy will focus on Liszt piano works which have a literary association (Harmonies Poétiques et Réligeuses, the Petrarch Sonnets,  Après une lecture du Dante, Mephisto Waltz, song and opera transcriptions etc.). During the lecture – illustrated with screenings and musical interludes – that accompanies the course Dr. Mastroianni will examine the significance of tonalities, figuration, scales, chords and formal elements that can be perceived on a basis of a close reading of the music and texts.

Applications for an active role in the course (in English) will only be accepted from DLA students and regular students of the Liszt Academy majoring in piano, where possible with a Liszt work appropriate to the topic of the course. Participation as an observing student is free of charge for students of the Liszt Academy and the Béla Bartók Vocational Secondary School of Music, while outsiders can join the course on payment of HUF 3000/day. Participation – both active and passive – requires registration at szabo.agnes@lisztacademy.hu, latest by 28 March 2014.