CRAMER, JOHANN BAPTIST

born Feb. 24, 1771, Mannheim, Rhenish Palatinate died April 16, 1858, London one of the leading pianists of the period of transition from Classicism to Romanticism, composer, and founder (1824) of the London music publishing firm Cramer & Company. Cramer was taken to England in 1772 by his father. His piano teachers included the noted pianist and composer Muzio Clementi, under whom he developed the exceptional abilities that gained him a European reputation as a performer. His playing stressed smoothness and clarity and was restrained in comparison with the bravura of the later Romantic pianists. A prolific composer, he is remembered for his piano studies, which, like his playing, were highly regarded by Beethoven.