Edwin Fischer in the wardrobe of the Mozarteum before his concert on 7 August 1946
Edwin Fischer (6 October 1886 – 24 January 1960) was a Swiss classicalpianist and conductor. He is regarded as one of the great interpreters of J.S. Bach and Mozart in the twentieth century.
Fischer was born in Basel and studied music first there with Hans Huber, and later in Berlin at the Stern conservatory under Martin Krause. He first came to prominence as a pianist following World War I. In 1926, he became conductor of the Lübeck Musikverein and later conducted in Munich. In 1932, he formed his own chamber orchestra, and was one of the first to be interested in presenting music of the Baroque and Classical periods in a historically accurate way. Although his performances were not historically accurate by present-day standards,[according to whom?] they were for his time; e.g., he did conduct Bach and Mozart concertos from the keyboard, an unusual practice at that time.
Two drawings of Fischer by the German artist and musician Fritz Tennigkeit (1892–1949)
Fischer also accompanied Elisabeth Schwarzkopf in a renowned 1950s EMI LP of Schubert Lieder. His last musical collaboration was with the violinist Gioconda de Vito. During their recording sessions for the Brahmsfirst and third violin sonatas, he had to go to London for medical treatment, where he was told he was seriously ill. He died shortly afterwards in Zürich. His mortal remains were cremated and his ashes buried at the Friedental cemetery in Lucerne.
Fischer, Edwin, Musikalische Betrachtungen, Im Infel 1949 (Reflections on Music) (French Edition: Considérations sur la musique, Editions du Coudrier, 1951)
Fischer, Edwin, Ludwig van Beethovens Klaviersonaten: Ein Begleiter für Studierende und Liebhaber, 1954 (Beethoven's Piano Sonatas: A Guide for Students and Amateurs, 1959)
Fischer, Edwin, Johann Sebastian Bach: Eine Studie
Bredow, Moritz von. 2012. "Rebellische Pianistin. Das Leben der Grete Sultan zwischen Berlin und New York." (Biography on Edwin Fischer's student, Grete Sultan. Many details referring to Fischer and another student, Katja Andy. In German.). Schott Music, Mainz, Germany.ISBN978-3-7957-0800-9