Jan Jiracek von Arnim
Jan Jiracek von Arnim is a winning laureate of the Ferruccio Busoni International Competition in Italy, the Maria Canals International Piano Competition in Spain, and the Van Cliburn Piano Competition. He maintains an active performance schedule in venues around the world, such as Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center in New York, Musashino Hall Tokyo, Seoul Arts Center, Philharmonie Berlin, and Musikverein in Vienna. He also gives master classes on a regular basis in North America, Asia and Europe. Jiracek von Arnim was appointed professor for piano at the Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst Wien in 2001. He is frequently invited as a juror for numerous international piano competitions, such as the Busoni International Piano Competition and the Hamamatsu Competition, Japan. Since 2011, he has served as the Artistic Director of the International Beethoven Piano Competition Vienna.
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Teaching
In 2001, Jan Jiracek von Arnim was appointed professor for piano at the University for Music and Performing Arts Vienna, making him the youngest tenured professor in the history of that school. His students are regular prizewinners at international Piano Competitions. Mr. Jiracek von Arnim gives masterclasses on a regular basis, most recently at the Vienna Musikseminar, Mendelssohn Academy Leipzig, the Academy of Music in Katowice, PTNA Japan, Hamamatsu International Piano Academy and Paderewski Piano Academy.
He is a frequent juror at international piano competitions, e.g. Tchaikovsky for young musicians, London Piano Competition, Lev Vlassenko Competition Brisbane, Lalla Meryem International Piano Competition Rabat, Paderewski Piano Competition, Dong-A Piano Competition Seoul. Mr. Jiracek von Arnim also gives speeches and lectures on a regular basis, covering topics like "Frédéric Chopin as a piano pedagogue" or the development of Piano Pedagogy. Every year, he is invited by the Vienna Musikverein to give lecture concerts with his students on composers such as Franz Liszt, Sergej Rachmaninoff or Frédéric Chopin.
In 2012, Jan Jiracek von Arnim received an Honorary Professorship of the China Conservatory of Music in Beijing, China.
Mr. Jiracek von Arnim is the Artistic Director of the International Beethoven Piano Competition Vienna and Chairman of the Jury of that competition, which is being held every four years.
NEW YORK TIMES
Just as the quadrennial Van Cliburn International Piano Competition was heading into its final weekend in Fort Worth, a star of the 1997 Cliburn, Jan Jiracek, turned up at Alice Tully Hall to give a dazzling performance of the Liszt E flat major Concerto with the Riverside Symphony. Mr. Jiracek was a favorite among critics and other music professionals as well as with the audience in 1997, and he was the clear winner in an informal press room poll, but the jury apparently thought otherwise. That he was not awarded one of the top three prizes seemed proof that the mechanisms for selecting the most original and exciting players in competitions are fatally flawed.
Mr. Jiracek seems none the worse for the experience. His fresh, buoyant account of the Liszt on Thursday evening created the illusion that this showpiece is a greater work than it is. That isn't to say that he ignored the showiness. In the opening bars he produced as grand a sound as one could want and showed that the flair for dramatic phrasing that was his hallmark in 1997 remains a central part of his arsenal. Nor did he skimp on the fireworks in the finale.
But there was more than that. Mr. Jiracek knows when and how to let drama melt into lyricism, or to transform a solid wall of piano sound into a texture of crystalline clarity. And his reading of the Allegro vivace was crisp, spirited and enlivened by a subtle humor.
(Allan Kozinn)
LOS ANGELES TIMES
Jiracek possesses a muscular, broad, colorful technique, makes music with great spontaneity and communicates strongly with his listeners. His program showed his strenghts, his impeccable taste and his love of music.
DIE WELT (GERMANY)
A Young Majesty at the Piano
Germany’s man at the piano, Jiracek joins the ranks of a new generation of pianists who do not need to fear comparison with pianists of the past.
“The marvelous Jan Jiracek von Arnim thrilled the world so greatly when we first heard him and he is continuing his brilliant career both in the United States and abroad.”
BBC MUSIC MAGAZINE, "WHO IS WHO IN MUSIC"
"A forceful, mature personality with a formidable technique and playing of emotional depth."