Written by Michael Campion

Because of injuries suffered during the First World War, Paul Wittgenstein lost his right arm, and was forced from a promising career as a concert pianist. But far from giving up his dream, his indomitable spirit allowed him to start on a new course.

Keeping in mind the difficulty of re-learning a familiar technique, learning to play virtuoso piano music with the left hand alone is a pretty daunting task. Wittgenstein started on a course of study to develop the capabilities of his left hand. These studies were very different from basic left-hand technique because that hand was now responsible for all of the music-making, melody and harmony. Left-handed playing demands a relentless precision and the execution of seemingly impossible musical passages to make up for the missing fingers. But he did it.

With his new technique mastered, he began to commission new works from contemporary composers, enriching the meager repertoire that existed. Men, whose names were already the most famous in music such as Ravel, Prokofiev, Richard Strauss, Benjamin Britten and Erich Wolfgang Korngold, among others, penned new compositions for Wittgenstein.

With the performances of these pieces, the pianist’s fame spread. He developed a new teaching method for those with his limitations, and championed their cause.

Paul Wittgenstein continued to concertize and teach in the United States until his death on Long Island on March 3, 1961. During his successful career, he commissioned over thirty works for the left hand. The legacy of the music he left behind and his refusal to accept his circumstance as final are a testimony to Wittgenstein’s strength of character and his unconquerable spirit.

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