Favorite Pianists

So, whose digital expressions do you most enjoy? Of course, you may still prefer to hear said digital expressions in analog, but that is beside the point. Now, I’m not only interested in who you like, but also, at least in a few instances, why you like them. Here’s my list. It is subject to change over time, of course, and I may inadvertently omit one or two names, so please forgive me.

Annie Fischer – Annie is the embodiment of Art itself. Too much praise, you may be wondering? I most emphatically think not. Granted, her repertoire is limited – to the finest piano music ever written – and there are woefully too few recordings by her (just where is that recording of Beethoven’s 3rd Piano Concerto with Fricsay playing the role of accompanist?! Calling the DG Originals planning staff!), but what is there is undeniably great. Transcendental, even. The notes may not all be perfectly executed, and she does not always adhere strictly to the markings, but who cares. Ultimately it is only the music that matters. That is what she does best.

Dinu Lipatti – When first I heard his playing of one of Bach’s partitas, I was hooked. When I then heard those wonderful renditions of two of Schubert’s Impromptus I was convinced he was great. The clincher was that most wonderful recording of Chopin’s waltzes. Truly masterful playing that I have not heard equaled, let alone bettered. Was Dinu Lipatti the greatest pianist who ever lived? Probably not, but he certainly ranks among the top 1% of the elite pianists. (There is no greatest single pianist, of course.) One of the most tragic losses in recorded music history, there is no doubt. I have read elsewhere that ones assessment of his playing can be colored by the knowledge that he died so young. I disagree. When I first heard his playing I did not know of his fate. When I did learn it, it made me appreciate what I heard that much more.

Maurizio Pollini – Truly awesome technique. His interpretations can be a little chilly, so to write, but notes are presented with absolute clarity and assurance. At his monumental best – Liszt’s Sonata, Beethoven’s Emperor (with Bohm, not Abbado), Stravinky’s Petrushka and Boulez’s Second Sonata* – he is almost unapproachable. He is not my favorite pianist in terms of inspirational musicianship, but he is so mesmerizing when he plays that I am compelled to stop all other activities and listen.

Wilhelm Kempff – The foil to Pollini. His later recordings are so full of light touches and interpretive insights that his lack of muscular playing goes unnoticed and unmissed. His Schubert is beyond reproach. His Schumann is wonderful, in the truest sense of that word. I must confess that his rendition on Beethoven’s Emperor with Leitner is, well, um, crappy, but when he plays the right works, Kempff delivers ‘da goods.

Walter Giesking – Not too much to write about him. His Debussy provides the benchmark against which all other recordings must be measured. His Beethoven is intriguing at least and among the greatest in some cases. Everything he recorded is worth hearing. Regularly.

Murray Perahia – His playing is a recently acquired taste for me. His Bach is quite something. His Schumann ain’t too shabby, neither. I’m not quite convinced he is suited to heavier fare, but what I’ve heard is excellent. His recent recording of the Goldberg Variations is a wondrous achievement, perhaps the finest recording ever of that work. (Keep in mind that I think Gould’s version ain’t as great as so many people claim it is. Oh, the Blasphemy!)

Thelonius Monk – A different idiom, to be certain, but how can one not admire and love this man’s music? I’m not sure if it’s his playing or his compositions, or a combination of both. I can just sit listening in a blissfully mesmerized state through entire discs.

Some others:

John Ogdon
Andras Schiff
Gyorgy Sandor
Bill Evans

*On the strength of the Boulez sonatas as played by Claude Helffer, I decided to get the very highly praised Pollini disc with the Second Sonata, Stravinsky’s Petrushka, Prokofiev’s Seventh Sonata, and Webern’s Variations. This is one of the greatest CDs ever compiled. If you do not own this disc, I implore you to go buy it. And that means you!