Alexander Dreyschock

Alexander Dreyschock (15 October 1818 – 1 April 1869) was a Czech pianist and composer. He was the brother of Raimund Dreyschock and the uncle of Felix Dreyschock. Life and career Born in Žáky in Bohemia, his musical talents were first noticed aged eight, and at age 15 he travelled to Prague to study piano and composition with Václav Tomášek. By the age of twenty, Dreyschock undertook his first professional tour in December 1838, performing in various northern and central towns in Germany. Subsequent tours saw him visiting Russia (1840–42), Paris (spring 1843), London, the Netherlands, Austria and Hungary (1846), as well as Denmark and Sweden in 1849. Elsewhere he caused a sensation with prodigious execution of thirds, sixths, and octaves, plus other tricks. When he made his Paris debut in 1843 he included a piece for the left hand alone. Dreyschock’s left hand was renowned, and his most famous technical stunt was to play the left-hand arpeggios of Chopin’s Revolutionary Étude in octaves. Observers of the time reported that he played it in correct tempo, and it is known that he programmed it in all of his recitals. Johann Baptist Cramer, who heard Dreyschock play in Paris, exclaime