Passionate about chamber music, and eclectic in his practice, he collaborates with talented musicians and has made several recordings, with violinist Isabelle Durin (Un violon dans l’histoire), saxophonist Jérôme Laran (Hikari), Les Siècles soloists (Le carnaval des animaux by Saint-Saëns on period instruments), Les Frivolités parisiennes (Yes! by Maurice Yvain), Cyrille Dubois and the Ensemble ArteCombo (Broadway Rhapsody – for which he is also the arranger, and which has just been awarded 5 Diapasons)… exploring a wide range of musical genres.
His musical career began with his family at the age of 8, and at 15 he entered the CRR in Toulouse. Curieux, insatiable, et décidé à devenir musicien, il suit alors une formation riche dans plusieurs conservatoires (CRR de Paris, CRR de Boulogne), qui se conclut au CNSM de Paris ; il rencontre des pédagogues de premier plan (M.P. Siruguet, H. Cartier Bresson, T. Escaich, J.F Zygel, A. Louvier, P.L. Aimard…) et récolte en quelques années seulement ses premiers prix en piano, analyse, musique de chambre, harmonie, contrepoint, fugue, improvisation, pédagogie… En parallèle, il suit de nombreuses master classes et bénéficie des conseils de grands musiciens (Arie Vardi, Leon Fleisher, Jean François Heisser, Hatto Beyerle, Maria Kliegel). He is a prizewinner in the EMCY (European Music Competition for Youth) and YAMAHA competitions, and has been awarded a SACEM grant.
His lifelong passion for sight-reading, accompaniment and the symphonic repertoire led him to win a first prize in Jean Koerner’s demanding class at the Paris Conservatoire. It was a decisive encounter that led him to work under a number of conductors, including Pierre Boulez, Kasuchi Ono, John Axelrod, Christoph Eschenbach and Peter Eotvös. He defends contemporary music, commissions works by young composers, and continues to collect scores and delve into the vast piano repertoire in search of little-known treasures. He has written several articles on the music of our time for the Ensemble Intercontemporain (EIC); he has been a mediator for the Philharmonie de Paris and the Opéra Bastille, and has published an article on improvisation (in the book Formation Musicale, Formation du musicien), as well as a dissertation on the symbolism of tonalities. He also gives lectures ( At the heart of “By heart” ; musical memory with or without a score, and How to pace your time as a musician? Managing your working time better).
Deeply committed to passing on his art, and passionate about teaching, he has taught music in all its facets: holding a C.A in piano at just 23, he has taught piano for over 20 years at the CRR in Boulogne and in international academies, but he has also taught musical analysis (CRR in Paris), deciphering (Pôle supérieur 93), chamber music (Côte de Nacre academy), accompaniment (CNSM), improvisation (CRR in Paris)…
He was selected to take part in the IN.TUNE Alliance, a European initiative to enable teachers from Europe’s top conservatoires to work together and reflect on the future of teaching.
These multiple experiences have nurtured his innovative approach to piano teaching, which seeks to weave links between all disciplines, from analysis to improvisation, from the purely physical and technical aspects (body mapping, Feldenkrais, etc.) to questions of creative working methods (memorisation, cognitive aspects, etc.).
Michael Ertzscheid teaches in French, English and Spanish.
Since 2019, he has been teaching piano pedagogy at the CNSMD in Paris, as part of the C.A. diploma course, and since 2005 piano at the CRR in Boulogne-Billancourt.
