German-born French pianist, composer, and teacher whose compositions, mainly for piano, exhibit an emphasis on virtuosity.

Educated at the Paris Conservatory from 1799 to 1801, Kalkbrenner went on to Vienna, studying with J.G. Albrechtsberger (Albrechtsberger, Johann Georg) and Joseph Haydn (Haydn, Joseph) between 1803 and 1804. He began his career as a pianist with his move to London in 1814. He returned to Paris in 1824, joining the piano-building firm of Pleyel. The decade 1825–35 saw the height of his reputation as a performer, but after 1835 his fame was eclipsed by a new generation of pianists that included Franz Liszt (Liszt, Franz), Frédéric Chopin (Chopin, Frédéric), and Sigismond Thalberg (Thalberg, Sigismond).

Kalkbrenner's playing was marked by clarity and a beauty of tone, although it was said to be lacking in emotional power. As a teacher, he invented a hand guide for the development of technique and wrote a piano method.