Carl Czerny
Pianist
Composer whose etudes became standard use in pianistic pedagogy. Forgotten for a time, he was later rediscovered.
He was a child prodigy and started composing music at the age of seven. He did not regard himself as a showman, however.
He also became a successful piano teacher, giving up to 12 lessons each day to Viennese nobility.
He was born into a musical family with a grandfather who was a violinist and a father who was an oboist, organist, and pianist.
He became one of Ludwig van Beethoven's students when he was 10 years old, thanks to an impressive performance he gave of the composer's Pathétique Sonata.