Alfred Brendel

Started by B_cereus, March 03, 2009, 02:28:03 PM

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Octave

I saw a little GMG discussion of Brendel very recently, including some complimentary comments on his Schubert and Mozart.  Looks like his book A PIANIST'S A-Z: A PIANO LOVER'S READER will be published later this year. 
http://www.amazon.com/Pianists--Z-Piano-Lovers-Reader/dp/0571301843/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1372330711&sr=1-1&keywords=alfred+brendel

A friend sent me an excerpt printed in the NYRB:
http://www.nybooks.com/articles/archives/2013/jul/11/alfred-brendel-a-pianists-a-to-v/
Help support GMG by purchasing items from Amazon through this link.

Wakefield

Quote from: Octave on June 27, 2013, 03:01:37 AM
I saw a little GMG discussion of Brendel very recently, including some complimentary comments on his Schubert and Mozart.  Looks like his book A PIANIST'S A-Z: A PIANO LOVER'S READER will be published later this year. 
http://www.amazon.com/Pianists--Z-Piano-Lovers-Reader/dp/0571301843/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1372330711&sr=1-1&keywords=alfred+brendel

A friend sent me an excerpt printed in the NYRB:
http://www.nybooks.com/articles/archives/2013/jul/11/alfred-brendel-a-pianists-a-to-v/

It should be a very rewarding reading because Brendel is not just a great pianist, but also a profound intellectual. This mix is very evident when you hear his piano performances and his explanations on Schubert's works available in these superb DVDs:



:)
"One of the greatest misfortunes of honest people is that they are cowards. They complain, keep quiet, dine and forget."
-- Voltaire

Octave

Quote from: Gordon Shumway on June 27, 2013, 11:08:27 AM
It should be a very rewarding reading because Brendel is not just a great pianist, but also a profound intellectual. This mix is very evident when you hear his piano performances and his explanations on Schubert's works available in these superb DVDs:

Yes, thanks for mentioning those; I have been meaning to check that set out.  I have the Eloquence reissue box of his (mostly) 70s Schubert, and it's outstanding.  It includes his famous Impromptus recordings, which I recommend to anybody and everybody.

I think I remember hearing that he was good friends with Isaiah Berlin, and played at Berlin's funeral or memorial service.  I might even have seen a forward by one man in another's book?  My Berlin's in boxes.
Has anyone read Brendel's poetry?  The titles of a couple of his volumes of poetry are cute: ONE FINGER TOO MANY and CURSING BAGELS.  I think those have since been collected into a single volume.
Help support GMG by purchasing items from Amazon through this link.

Jay F

I've always liked Brendel on record. He's who brought me into the fold. This was my first classical CD:

[asin] B00000E3KE[/asin]

Rinaldo

No recent love for Brendel? Today, I've listened to a bunch of different performances of Liszt's Dante Sonata and Brendel was the first one where the music clicked with me. Brains, not brawls!

https://www.youtube.com/v/FpWD6pLTHLk

There's also an anecdote I have to share: few years ago, a friend of mine attended one of Brendel's lectures on 'humor in classical music'. When speaking about Haydn, Brendel played an excerpt from one of the mentioned works. The audience (mostly retired folks) giggled all the way through and when the excerpt was over, they burst out laughing and clapped. Brendel nonchalantly turned around and explained that to give an example, he purposefully ommited 'all the humorous parts' and now he'll play the piece again, this time with those parts included.

As my friend said, you could hear a pin drop.

Mookalafalas

Quote from: Rinaldo on February 11, 2015, 05:49:19 AM
No recent love for Brendel? Today, I've listened to a bunch of different performances of Liszt's Dante Sonata and Brendel was the first one where the music clicked with me. Brains, not brawls!

https://www.youtube.com/v/FpWD6pLTHLk

There's also an anecdote I have to share: few years ago, a friend of mine attended one of Brendel's lectures on 'humor in classical music'. When speaking about Haydn, Brendel played an excerpt from one of the mentioned works. The audience (mostly retired folks) giggled all the way through and when the excerpt was over, they burst out laughing and clapped. Brendel nonchalantly turned around and explained that to give an example, he purposefully ommited 'all the humorous parts' and now he'll play the piece again, this time with those parts included.

As my friend said, you could hear a pin drop.

Whoops ;D ;D

Yesterday I stumbled onto an album of Brendel playing Haydn. I never associated him with Haydn and put it on with very low expectations.  It was surprisingly romantic sounding (I'm used to the forte-piano style), but it really worked, for me at least.  I look forward to playing it again.
It's all good...

Old Listener

Quote from: Mookalafalas on February 13, 2015, 03:43:02 AM
Yesterday I stumbled onto an album of Brendel playing Haydn. I never associated him with Haydn and put it on with very low expectations.  It was surprisingly romantic sounding (I'm used to the forte-piano style), but it really worked, for me at least.  I look forward to playing it again.

You like box sets. Here is one for you

[asin]B001JJX7ME[/asin]

Brendel is my favorite performer for Haydn piano sonatas.

Mookalafalas

Quote from: Old Listener on February 13, 2015, 06:46:24 PM
You like box sets. Here is one for you

[asin]B001JJX7ME[/asin]

Brendel is my favorite performer for Haydn piano sonatas.

  Thanks for this recommendation, Old Listener.  I do like box sets, very much. Perhaps it is my distinguishing feature as a GMG member, for better or worse :) I will get the full set of this and listen to it. Thank you very much for bringing it to my attention.
It's all good...

jlaurson

Quote from: Mookalafalas on February 14, 2015, 05:54:36 AM
  Thanks for this recommendation, Old Listener.  I do like box sets, very much. Perhaps it is my distinguishing feature as a GMG member, for better or worse :) I will get the full set of this and listen to it. Thank you very much for bringing it to my attention.
Seconded: The best box of Alfred Brendel's playing and the best box of Haydn being played. A total winner! Comes the closest to capturing Brendel at his wittiest self in concert. (Whereas many recordings fall short.)
Best Recordings of 2009 (#3)
http://ionarts.blogspot.com/2009/12/best-recordings-of-2009-3.html



Old Listener

Quote from: jlaurson on February 14, 2015, 05:58:58 AM
Seconded: The best box of Alfred Brendel's playing and the best box of Haydn being played. A total winner! Comes the closest to capturing Brendel at his wittiest self in concert. (Whereas many recordings fall short.)
Best Recordings of 2009 (#3)
http://ionarts.blogspot.com/2009/12/best-recordings-of-2009-3.html


Well, today I've been listening to Brendel playing Beethoven piano sonatas No. 15-18 from this box and loving each of these performances.  I've had the set for some time and listened to all 32 sonatas.  I like the entire set.

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This is the set recorded starting in 1992.  (The third set by Brendel.)  I like it better than the early set on Vox.

Artem

I like this CD a lot and would highly recommend it.

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I also tried his Beethoven, but somehow it didn't click with me as much as that specific Bach CD.

Abuelo Igor

He's a great pianist, but I'm not too fond of him. His 70s Beethoven cycle was a little laid back for my taste. I saw a TV broadcast of one of his musical lectures and couldn't understand why they were so admired in some quarters: he just read from one of his books, which didn't strike me as particularly insightful, and played a couple of examples from time to time which didn't particularly illustrate what he had said. I didn't think that he was a born communicator in any ways other than playing the piano, and even when he plays I think he's holding himself back. I really prefer players who involve themselves heavily in whatever it is they're playing.
L'enfant, c'est moi.

Sean

I saw him with Rattle and the CBSO in the late 80s doing a sensitive Beethoven Four and a rather too smooth Brahms One.

George

Quote from: Old Listener on February 13, 2015, 06:46:24 PM
You like box sets. Here is one for you

[asin]B001JJX7ME[/asin]

Brendel is my favorite performer for Haydn piano sonatas.

That's a wonderful set!

I got this Schubert set recently. I don't enjoy much of what I have heard of Brendel, but this set is absolutely terrific!

"I can't live without music, because music is life." - Yvonne Lefébure