Jean Micault

Jean Micault (born 28 December 1924 in Bois-Colombes; died 16 November 2021) was a French pianist and music educator. He was a direct descendant of Philippe-Alexandre Le Brun de Charmettes, a well-known French historian, writer and administrative expert of the 18th and 19th century. Life Micault was interested in music from a young age. He studied harmonic theory and earned a diploma as a music educator. His teacher was, among others, the French pianist and music teacher Alfred Cortot. He first studied with him and then worked for a long time as his assistant at the Accademia Musicale Chigiana in Siena (Italy). Subsequently, he was a pupil of the internationally renowned Beethoven specialist Wilhelm Backhaus. Micault then was appointed professor at the École Normale de Musique de Paris, where he taught continuously until 2006. At the same time, Micault succeeded Walter Gieseking and Andor Foldes as professor of piano at the Hochschule für Musik Saar in Saarbrücken in 1979. From 1996 to 2005, he was also in charge of the "Masterclasses" in piano and voice at the Conservatory Thionville, Lorraine. In addition to his pedagogical work, Micault performed as a concert pianist of international standing in numerous countries around the world. He was considered one of the main interpreters of the Romantic repertoire (Beethoven, Schumann, Chopin, Liszt), but he also addressed other styles. Among other things, he included the works of the hitherto lesser-known French composer Maurice Journeau in his repertoire, thus helping this composer to become better known. Furthermore, Micault accompanied vocal interpreters from the field of lyric singing.