In memoriam George Kern

George Kern studied at the Juilliard School with Rosina Lhevinne and Kurt Neumüller (performance diploma) and Lied accompaniment with Paul von Schilhawsky at what was then the Hochschule Mozarteum. He was awarded the Bernhard Paumgartner Medal by the International Mozarteum Foundation. He was also pianist in Sandor Vegh’s studio and worked as a répétiteur at the Mozarteum International Summer Academy. Concerts as a soloist, chamber musician and Lied accompanist took him to Asia, North and Central America and throughout Europe. In Austria, he gave concerts at the Musikverein in Vienna (Brahmssaal), the Brucknerhaus in Linz, the Bösendorfersaal in Vienna and at the Mozarteum Foundation.

He performed at international festivals in Paris, Brussels, Prades, Lugano and was the pianist in the Trio Amadé. He collaborated with the Henle Verlag München and the composer’s heirs to perform world premieres of works by Claude Debussy in Paris (Radio France) Brussels (RTBF) and Vienna.

As a highly respected pedagogue, he gave courses in Japan, Korea and France, and delivered lectures at a number of music universities in the United States (Boston University, University of Illinois, Indiana University, University of Miami, Rutgers University, San Francisco Conservatory). He was Visiting Guest Professor at the Toho School in Tokyo.

He also served for many years as an artistic adviser to the Komischen Kammeroper München, and as a juror at international competitions in France, Italy and Cyprus. He was one of the founders of the Internationalen Soloists‘ Course run by the Mährischer Philharmonie.

The Mozarteum University mourns the passing of an exceptional artist and colleague and will remember him with deep gratitude and affection.

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When I first joined Prof. George Kern's class, I was both surprised and touched by the freedom he gave us as students. “Convince me” was his response when I, out of habit, asked for specific instructions. Through this liberating approach to teaching, and through the colourful sound of the Russian piano school that he had adopted from Rosina Lhevinne, he created a space in which each and every one of us could remain authentic as musicians. He never restricted the students’ free spirit, but actively encouraged it. The artistic independence he fostered in us was clearly audible and palpable in class concerts and recordings.

Thanks to his calmness and constant support, I was also able to follow my interests and inner impulses — and in doing so discovered my dream profession, working as a collaborative pianist with singers. Even in his final year, during my postgraduate studies, he continued to give me essential guidance in this field.

I have now been a pianist, Lied accompanist and répétiteur in the vocal department at the Mozarteum University in Salzburg for twelve years. Time and again, I return to the book by Paul von Schilhawsky, with whom the young George studied at the Mozarteum, to find answers to my questions. What we receive from our teachers, we pass on to our students. That's the way of the world.

With heartfelt gratitude,
Almira Kreimel
(Former student of George Kern)

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George Kern passed away in December last year, and I was honoured to be asked to describe my relationship with him in a few brief lines. Not only were we both born in 1948, we also came to know each other during our time studying together at the Mozarteum. It was there that we performed Robert Schumann’s Piano Concerto with the university orchestra as part of a university concert: he was the soloist and I the conductor.

It remains a very fond memory to this day, and even then our collaboration was characterised by mutual respect. George Kern was a pianist of the highest artistic calibre. I still vividly remember a Prelude and Fugue in C-sharp minor (Book II) by J. S. Bach, with an astonishingly fast fugue. Whenever I hear this work, I still think to myself, “That is how it should be played — just as George played it back then.” This was followed by a brilliant performance of Maurice Ravel’s Gaspard de la nuit, in which he captivated the audience with his true virtuosity.

Our paths then diverged for a few years, only to bring us back together again later as colleagues in education. Here, too, his comments during examinations were always guided by high artistic standards, yet never became aggressive, even when one disagreed with him. This was a quality that was unfortunately all too rare and immensely valuable in the already tense atmosphere of an examination.

All in all, he was a colleague, a friend and an artist whose death fills all who knew him well with deep sadness.

Klaus Kaufmann
(Professor of Piano, former Head of Department,
Dean of Studies and Senate Member)