Beth's Piano Studio

3790 Kersdale Place
Grove City, Ohio 43123

614-420-6367

bakloes@gmail.com


Featured Composer for February
Stephen Heller

Stephen Heller is a composer who is known only for his piano works.  It is thought that he wrote a few songs, but they have never been found, and two of his works also have a violin part. 

Heller was born in Hungary in 1813.  He started piano lessons at the age of five, also learning harmony (music theory) at that age. At the age of nine, he went to Vienna to study, and when he was 14, he had his first concert tour.

Later, he became a music tutor which gave him more time to work on composition. He also spent some time in Paris, where he met a number of other well-known composers of the Romantic period, including Robert Schumann, who helped him get his music published.

Although he is known mostly for his “etudes” (short pieces written as exercises), he also wrote a number of other pieces which included variations, sonatas, fantasies, dance movements,  and smaller forms such as  nocturnes, waltzes, caprices and scherzos.  

Heller’s music is said to show a number of nationalistic styles, changing throughout his career, which influenced later composers.