Munz, Mieczyslaw
Munz, Mieczyslaw
Munz, Mieczyslaw, esteemed Polish-American pianist and pedagogue; b. Kraków, Oct. 31, 1900; d. N.Y., Aug. 25, 1976. He studied piano and composition at the Vienna Academy of Music, and later at the Hochschule für Musik in Berlin, where his principal teacher was Busoni. He made a brilliant debut in Berlin in 1920 as soloist in 3 works on the same program: the Brahms Piano Concerto in D minor, Liszt’s Piano Concerto in A, and Variations symphoniques by Franck. His American debut took place in a solo recital in N.Y. on Oct. 20, 1922; he subsequently was soloist with a number of orchs. in the U.S.; also toured Europe, South America, Australia, and Japan. He taught at the Cincinnati Cons, of Music (1925–30); then was on the faculty of the Curtis Inst. of Music in Philadelphia (1930–32; 1941–63); from 1946 to 1965 he taught at the Peabody Inst. in Baltimore; also was a prof, of piano at the Juilliard School of Music in N.Y. (1963–75). In 1975 he was given a tenured appointment at the Toho Gakuen School of Music in Tokyo, but he was forced to return to the U.S. due to illness. He was highly esteemed as a teacher; his students included Emanuel Ax and liana Vered. His piano playing was distinguished by a fine Romantic flair supported by an unobtrusive virtuoso technique.
—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis Mclntire