Stančić initially studied piano in Zagreb and then moved to Berlin where he studied with Karl Heinrich Barth, Conrad Ansorge, and Ferruccio Busoni, who also taught him composition.
[1] Stančić had a career as a concert pianist, and later he became legendary Professor of Piano at the Music Academy in Zagreb.
[2] In 1960 he received the Vladimir Nazor Award for lifetime achievement in music.
Some of his notable students included Ivo Maček, Branka Musulin and Vladimir Krpan.
[1] The International Piano Competition Svetislav Stančić is named after him.