DUSSEK, JAN LADISLAV

Dussek also spelled Duek, or Dusik born Feb. 12, 1760, Cslav, Bohemia [now in Czech Republic] died March 20, 1812, St. Germain-en-Laye, France Bohemian pianist and composer, best known for his piano and chamber music. The son of a cathedral organist, Dussek studied music with his father and showed great skill as a pianist and organist at an early age. He sang in the choir at Iglau (Jihlava) and later studied theology at Prague. After working as an organist, in 1782 he made his debut as a virtuoso pianist in the Netherlands, where he attained a great reputation and wrote a large number of accompanied sonatas for pianoforte and strings. In Hamburg that same year he studied under C.P.E. Bach. He subsequently toured as a pianist in Berlin, St. Petersburg, and Paris and in Italy. He made a successful debut in 1790 in London. There he established a music shop, but the business failed, and in 1799 Dussek fled from England to escape his creditors. He subsequently stayed in Hamburg and Berlin and lived in the household of Charles-Maurice de Talleyrand in Paris from about 1807 until his death. As a pianist Dussek possessed great dexterity and could elicit a singing tone that was much praised by his contemporaries. He is said to have been the first pianist to place his piano sideways on the platform, so that the public could see a profile view of the performer. Dussek's own musical compositions include a considerable number of pianoforte sonatas and concerti and numerous chamber works for piano and strings. His piano sonatas represent him at his best; and, though his works are largely forgotten, he influenced the growth of piano technique, both as pianist and as composer.