Classical music is a passed-on tradition and many pianists today can through their teachers trace their lineage back to Czerny who was a student of Beethoven, or to Liszt. I think it's fun for students to see these lineages to feel more connected to great teachers of the past. I have taken some time to trace a few of my teachers’ lineage, which show the diversity of training I have been blessed to receive:
Jean Park
Gilbert Kalish
Leonard Shure
Artur Schnabel
Theodor Leschetizky
Carl Czerny
Ludwig van Beethoven
Gilbert Kalish (b. 1935): Renowned American pianist, educator, and chamber musician, long affiliated with Stony Brook University and the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. He was a student of Leonard Shure. He was my doctoral teacher at Stony Brook University and I learned so much from him about playing and about life.
Leonard Shure (1910–1995): A prominent American concert pianist and highly influential teacher. He was Artur Schnabel’s first and only formal teaching assistant.
Artur Schnabel (1882–1951): A legendary Austrian-born pianist and composer, world-famous for his benchmark recordings of Beethoven's piano sonatas. He was a student of Theodor Leschetizky.
Theodor Leschetizky (1830–1915): One of the most important and influential piano pedagogues of the 19th and early 20th centuries. He was a direct student of Carl Czerny.
Carl Czerny (1791–1857): An immensely prolific Austrian composer, teacher, and pianist whose technical etudes remain a staple of piano pedagogy today. He studied directly under Ludwig van Beethoven.
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770–1827): The titanic German composer and pianist who bridged the Classical and Romantic eras.
Some more lineages of my teachers:
Eteri Andjaparidze
Yvetta Bachtadze
Alexander Iokheles
Konstantin Igumnov
Vera Gornostaeva
Heinrich Neuhaus
Daniel Epstein
Adele Marcus
Josef Lhevinne
Dorothy Taubman
Regina Yeh
Béla Síki
Ernst von Dohnányi
István Thomán
Franz Liszt
Byron Janis
Vladimir Horowitz
These lineages are a beautiful reminder that teachers live on through the generations of students they inspire.