Alex Gerhard Blin, born 1916 in Łódź (Poland), died 1993 in Tübingen (Germany), studied music (piano instruction and then finishing a concert pianist course) at the State Conservatory and Music Academy in Poznań (Poland). Studied music theory with renown Polish composers and musicologists (Szeligowski, Wiechowicz, Dr. Gieburkowski and others). 1938 Diploma of the Piano Master Class (with Prof. Bohdan Zaleski, Odessa). Already during his studies, the young musician performed in broadcasts of Radio Poznań, where he continued to contribute as concert pianist until the outbreak of WWII. At the same time he was an organist and conductor of the choir of the evangelical-lutheran church in Poznań.

In 1940 he married Christina Ciechanowska (born 1922, deceased 1993) who was also active as a piano teacher and held a Diploma for music instruction. They had two sons (Nikolaus Alex, b. 1946; Alex Heinz, b. 1952).

During the war, he was sent to perform at the “Front Theater“, after the end of the war he was political prisoner in Poland.

He worked from 1948 until his emigration to Germany as a piano teacher at music academies in Łódź, Jelenia Góra, and at last in Wałbrzych, where he was promoted 1954 to the post of Director of the State Conservatory. At the same time he was active as a pianist in numerous concerts, radio broadcasts and piano soirées.

By the end of 1958 emigration to West Germany, staying initially in various relocation camps; during this time he performed already at his first radio recordings in Stuttgart. 1961 until 1971 he was piano teacher at the conservatory “Pfälzisches Musikkonservatorium“ in Kaiserslautern, and active as a musicologist (working especially on folklore and music of Latin American and Slavic cultures), as a music critic for national and international news media during several years, and as collaborator of the adult high school “Volkshochschule Mannheim” (with about 200 seminars on music topics). 1972-1977 faculty member of the State Music Academy Mannheim-Heidelberg, and from 1971 on teacher at the Mannheim City Conservatory.

1962 A. Blin became section chairman of the German association of musicians and music teachers “Deutscher Tonkünstler- und Musiklehrerverband” and animated the Mannheim section in pedagogical, social and artistic areas by organizing several musical competitions for young people, chamber music concerts with musicians from Mannheim, panel discussions with renown international composers (W. Lutosławski, C. Santoro, S. Adler, W. Ludewig, K. Meyer und K. Moszumańska -Nazar), numerous music student auditions and concerts (also at hospitals and rest homes for the elderly), and by stimulating the commission of compositions for new concert and pedagogical music literature.

As a founding member of the Society for New Music in Mannheim, A. Blin was also during several years member of its directive body. He is also co-founder and has been a member of the group MVM (musica viva mannheim), committed since 1973 to the musical avantgarde via exemplary chamber music performances. The pianist initiated in Mannheim around 1970 his first piano soirée cycles with introductory lectures: “20^th century piano music” – contemporary music of Poland, Hungary, Spain, USA, Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, France etc. – with several world premieres (compositions by W. Dębski, R. Maciejewski, L. De Pablo, L. Werle, B. Nilsson, C. Santoro, K. Moszumańska-Nazar, A. Ginastera and others) and German premieres; some of these compositions are dedicated to A. Blin.

In numerous radio performances, piano soirées in Germany and other countries, and in his records, Alex Blin has also introduced to the audience many unknown or less known composers of contemporary music.

Discography

Iberoamerikanische Klaviermusik im 20. Jahrhundert (Da Camera SP 93106)

Zeitgenössische polnische Klaviermusik (RBM 3022)

Contemporary Piano Music from Latin America (Musical Heritage Inc., New York)

Musik in 20. Jahrhundert – Kammermusik con Claudio Santoro (RBM 3005)

Reflexionen über Mozart - musica viva mannheim (RBM 3060)