Great classical pianists


Alexandra Dovgan is the pianist of her generation.

 

In the last century there was Richter. Today Trifonov. Now a new phenom. What is it in the Russian water that produces such giants of the keyboard?

We enjoy all great pianists. Rubinstein, Pollini, Argerich, Backhaus, Kempf, Michelangeli, Schnabel, Pogorelic, Gilels. Please add your favorite to this embarrassment of pianistic riches. But there is primus inter pares. 

chowkwan

@ fuzztone Just curious, who did you study under?

Mrs. See. Later Mr. Horwath.

Don’t want to waste bandwidth by starting a flamewar but ...

Saw Horowitz once. He always set aside a number of seats for students at discounted price. And they were good seats like center third row. Not nosebleed section. Phenomenal tone. No matter how loud he played and he did play loud the tone never never ever broke up or even a hint of breaking up. That said his technical perfection left me cold emotionally. Or maybe I don’t connect with Scriabin. But his recording of pictures is great. The end is terrifying.

Saw Arrau twice. Sorry trolls but yawn.

Ashkenazy. xlnt. Heard him at a matinee then drove across town to see Jarrett who was in his imperious phase. No coughing. No shuffling. No nuttin’. He’s mellowed.

Argerich and Pollini a step above. Pollini would play it completely differently in performance than practice. It was the inspiration of the moment.

You don’t think it can get better then comes Trifonov. He caresses each individual note as if it’s his personal friend. Usually a long gap in time before the next best of their generation by definition. Surprise! Along comes Dovgan. Other posters mentioned Sokolov. Yes! And he said of Dovgan, she is not a child prodigy. Meaning Pallas Athena sprung fully formed from the head of Zeus.

Zimerman skates up to the edge, but he never goes over.

Excited to explore the many names posted that are new to me.

 

Some favorites: Slava Richter - love everything he played. Radu Lupu - his Schuman and Grieg are top notch. RIP Radu. I'm really liking Daniel Trifonov and Leif O. Andnes as well. Andnes does a great Ossia cadenza (Rach 3). My favorite is still Horowtiz. 

As indicated by others, there are so very many.

I saw Lang Lang play at The Barbican, London, a few months ago, and thought him impressively mechanical yet unmusical and without soul.

You might enjoy the wonderful Spanish player, Alicia de Larrocha, who passed in 2009, and recorded much on usually well turned out Decca records.

If you web search for: Hélène Grimaud, and look for "videos" the first film that comes up is:  Beethoven - Piano Concerto No. 4, Op. 58 (Orchestre de Paris ...  a most spellbindingly touching performance on the evening after 9/11, of Grimaud and the Philharmonie de Paris under Eschenbach. There is a Guardian review of the concert explaining the circumstances of the day's events and the resulting music making. Grimaud is a highly intelligent and sensitive player. 

Aldo Ciccolini playing Satie (EMI records) and more.

Yevgeny Sudbin is a super music maker based in the UK, whose Scarlatti Piano Sonatas are stellar. I heard him play at the Sheldonian Theatre, Oxford, he has great feeling and judgement, as have so many of his and even younger generations of students who must conjure with the greats noted above.

Finally, I mention Anna Szałucka, a Polish player based in London also of great interpretive intelligence and energy. I disclose she taught my daughter all the way through to a distinction at grade 8. The BBC has broadcast her live, she has won piano competitions at Tallinn, and much more. Electric. Enjoy.