What is Alfred Cortot?
[[Image:Alfred Cortot 01.jpg|thumb|Alfred Cortot]] '''Alfred Denis Cortot''' (born [[Nyon]], 26 September 1877; died [[Lausanne]], 15 June 1962) was a [[French people|French]]-[[Swiss people|Swiss]] [[pianist]] and [[conducting|conductor]]. He is one of the most famous 20th century musicians. He was especially known for his playing of piano music by [[19th century]] [[Romantic music|Romantic]] composers such as [[Chopin]] and [[Schumann]]. He formed a [[piano trio]] with the [[violin]]ist [[Jacques Thibaud]] and the [[cello|cellist]] [[Pablo Casals]]. He was a piano teacher and conductor. ==Early life and education== Cortot (pronounce “Cor-toe”) was born in [[Nyon]] in the French-speaking part of [[Switzerland]]. His father was French and his mother was Swiss. Cortot studied at the [[Paris Conservatoire]]. His teachers were Emile Descombes and Louis Diémer. He won a first prize (''premier prix'') in 1896. His first public concert was at the Concerts Colonne in 1897 when he played [[Ludwig van Beethoven|Beethoven]]'s Piano [[Concerto]] No. 3. He helped [[opera]] singers to learn their music, and became assistant conductor at the [[Bayreuth Festival]]. In 1902 he conducted [[Richard Wagner|Wagner’s]] ''[[Götterdämmerung]]''. It was the first time it had been performed in [[Paris]]. He formed a concert society to perform [[Richard Wagner|Wagner]]'s ''[[Parsifal]]'', [[Ludwig van Beethoven|Beethoven]]'s ''[[Missa Solemnis (Beethoven)|Missa solemnis]]'', [[Johannes Brahms|Brahms]]' ''[[Ein deutsches Requiem|German Requiem]]'', and new works by French composers. ==Career== In 1905, Cortot formed a trio with [[Jacques Thibaud]] and [[Pablo Casals]], which became the most famous [[piano trio]] of the time. There are still several recordings of their playing. From 1907 to 1923, Cortot taught at the [[Conservatoire de Paris|Paris Conservatoire]], where his pupils included [[Clara Haskil]], [[Dinu Lipatti]], [[Vlado Perlemuter]]. In 1919, he founded the [[École Normale de Musique de Paris]]. Many people cam