Ivan Moravec was a Czech classical pianist born on November 9, 1930, in Prague, Czechoslovakia. Moravec began piano studies at age seven with Erna Grünfeld and entered the Prague Conservatory at fifteen. At twenty, an ice-skating accident caused a cervical spine injury, which influenced his approach to the instrument by emphasizing arm weight and hand technique. In 1957, Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli invited Moravec to masterclasses in Arezzo. His international career launched in 1964 following a performance with the Cleveland Orchestra under George Szell. Moravec recorded for labels including Connoisseur Society and Supraphon. His discography includes the album Chopin: Nocturnes (1966), which featured the piece “Clair de lune”. Moravec performed with the New York Philharmonic and the Czech Philharmonic. Moravec received the Charles IV Prize and the Medal of Merit in 2000, and the Cannes Classical Award in 2002. Moravec died on July 27, 2015, in Prague.
