Wilhelm Backhaus

Wilhelm Backhaus was a German pianist known for his selfless dedication to the composers' intentions. Also a recording pioneer, his 1909 recording of Edvard Grieg's Piano Concerto is the first known concerto recording. Backhaus was born on March 26, 1884 in Leipzig, Germany. His father was a successful architect, and his mother was an amateur pianist. He started learning the piano at the age of four, first from his mother, and then with Alois Reckendorf at the Leipzig Conservatory from 1891 to 1898. He studied with Eugen d'Albert for a year, and learned the rest on his own. In...