Unlocking the Magic of Liszt weekend for Advanced pianists with Florian Mitrea

Advanced pianists will be thrilled to have the opportunity to spend a weekend Beyond the Legend: Unlocking the Magic of Liszt with extremely popular Finchcocks tutor, Florian Mitrea. Below, Florian describes his plan for group sessions, helping guests to clarify, polish and gain performance experience and confidence in works they are preparing – and of course better understand the “Devil’s Pianist” and how to play his music.

This course is aimed at those beyond grade 8, preparing for – or at – diploma standard, or higher.

For many pianists, Franz Liszt stands like a mountain on the horizon: awe-inspiring and intimidating. Yet behind the legend lies a composer of extraordinary imagination, humanity, spirituality, wit, and charm whose music is far more accessible than its reputation suggests. This course invites you to step beyond the myths and discover a Liszt you can understand, enjoy, and ultimately, play with great pleasure.

Through a combination of group workshops, private lessons, performance classes, guided listening, and discussion, participants will explore carefully chosen works spanning the breadth of Liszt’s output, from intimate poetic miniatures to deeply spiritual masterpieces. Along the way, we will encounter one of history’s greatest musicians, a most fascinating personality who was a visionary artist, a celebrity virtuoso, a philanthropist, a teacher, a thinker, and a Franciscan. All at once!

By the end of the course, participants will feel more confident approaching Liszt’s music and the wider Romantic repertoire; gain a deeper understanding of Liszt’s life, personality, and artistic ideals; discover exciting new repertoire suited to all playing levels; develop more effective and efficient approaches to technique and practice; learn to project greater colour, character, and storytelling at the piano; and leave with a renewed sense of curiosity, inspiration, and artistic ambition.

Formal tuition takes place in interactive workshops, performance classes and one-to-one lessons. Workshop topics will include:

• The Secret Workshop: Liszt’s Lost Technical Exercises

  What if you could sit at the piano and work from the exercises Liszt himself used with his students? In this workshop, we will explore the remarkable collection of technical exercises that Liszt never published during his lifetime. Collected and later published by one of his pupils after his death, these extraordinary studies offer a rare glimpse into the workshop of the greatest piano teacher of the 19^th century. Together we will examine some of the exercises, discuss the technical and musical principles hidden within them, and discover how they can transform our own playing. Participants will then head to the practice rooms to experiment with specific tasks before regrouping to share and compare results, and draw conclusions. This is an opportunity to learn directly from Liszt’s pedagogical legacy.

• Beyond the Rhapsodies: The Hidden Worlds of Liszt

  There is far more to Liszt than dazzling virtuosity and thundering Hungarian Rhapsodies. This workshop explores the astonishing diversity of Liszt’s piano music, focusing particularly on works that reveal his introspective, spiritual, poetic, and deeply personal side. We will examine a range of accessible and rewarding repertoire that challenges many assumptions about the composer, from meditative religious works to pieces of profound emotional depth or simplicity. Along the way we will consider Liszt’s identity as a committed Franciscan Catholic and ask whether history may have misunderstood him. Was he really the flamboyant showman, or was that perhaps only one, overblown aspect of a far more complex figure? Through discussion, score study, listening, and practical exploration at the piano, participants will encounter a composer whose inner world may prove even more fascinating than his public image.

  Selected pieces of one to two pages in length will be distributed in advance and should be prepared before the course. These pieces will form the basis of our practical work and discussion during this workshop.

As usual, everyone will have access to their own grand piano for the weekend – including our new Steinway – and have plenty of time to practise in our vaulted piano cellar. There are enough pianos for everyone, with no need to book in a particular practice session slot.

Into the Abyss, Then Into the Light: Liszt’s Great B-Minor Visions

Saturday evenings are often the highlight of our weekend courses. Guests have the opportunity to experience an intimate salon concert in the family’s main hall, relaxing with a glass of wine, the open fire and listening to inspirational playing from their tutor.

Florian’s evening recital explores two of Liszt’s most profound and compelling musical journeys: the Ballade No. 2 in B minor and the monumental Sonata in B minor. Both works stand among the most daring achievements of the Romantic era, transforming the piano into an instrument of drama, philosophy, poetry, and transcendence. From moments of terrifying power to passages of radiant stillness, these masterpieces reveal Liszt at the height of his imaginative powers. This recital offers an opportunity to hear in action the artistic ideals discussed throughout the course, illustrating the vision of a composer whose works continue to challenge, but most importantly, inspire.

And of course, it goes without saying that you can expect the usual!

Guests will:

• Have the chance to play in and observe two performance masterclasses.
• Will receive one-to-one lessons with Florian.
• Enjoy access to play on our 9 grand pianos anytime between 7am and 8pm.
• Experience a salon-style concert performed by Florian exclusively for guests.
• Have the chance to take part in a recital on the Bosendorfer in the main hall of the family home.
• Join and socialise with a group 8 fellow piano enthusiasts during lunch and dinner.
• Dine in style with lunches and three course dinners prepared by our fabulous chef.
• Experience the Finchcocks bubble, hailed as a “paradise for pianists” by BBC Music Magazine and stay in a grade 1 listed country manor.

Plus ones are very welcome on our courses, with a room surcharge dependant on whether they are a playing or non-playing guest. Please ask for further details.

This is a unique, luxury UK-based piano gem and an experience that you won’t forget anytime soon. Many guests continue friendships made on these courses, encouraging each other on in the piano playing on Whatsapp, organising private piano meet ups further down the line… and bumping into each other again on future courses!

For booking enquiries, please fill in the form below.