My absolute favorite pianist. 91, 2 weeks shy of 92. So much to say about him, so little of it matters now. Rest in peace, along with my other favorite musician, Anner Bijlsma. Can't believe my #1 & 2 favorite musicians have passed within just a few short weeks of each other. Feels even worse than when Frans Brüggen and Christopher Hogwood did the same thing in 2014! :(
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Oh man. Sad to hear - but what an extraordinary and long legacy, and he kept active right up until the end too. Have to admire that (and maybe envy a little).
Will listen to some PBS tomorrow, along with the nearly exactly half-his-age Dina Ugorskaja.
And just 5 months after his duo partner Jörg Demus died. What a career and life, though - over 60 years between his earliest and latest commercial recordings.
(Pianists are just dropping like flies now, it seems - three posts in 18 hours.)
A real bummer of a day to visit the site. Too much sad news.
Sad news. I guess I will dig out his Schubert tomorrow. I have little of him solo, but a fair bit where he is playing chamber music.
You can go one better as apparently PBS is still alive and kicking. This is fake news and PBS sent an e-mail to his good friend Albert Frantz stating that he is indeed alive and well. You can view this on Mark Ainley's 'The Piano Files' FB page.
https://www.facebook.com/ThePianoFilesWithMarkAinley/photos/a.10151977735029674/10157743203594674/?type=3&eid=ARB7DF27GMh_kVFQIzfy1sFtSmCWNY6r_Lmzid6IEPSSREmqpjOFk-WMruFkHXI5EX1T-a5P8QRa1LTq&__tn__=EEHH-R
It reminds me of Mark Twain's "The report of my death has been greatly exaggerated!"
Quote from: Holden on September 18, 2019, 11:47:38 PM
You can go one better as apparently PBS is still alive and kicking. This is fake news and PBS sent an e-mail to his good friend Albert Frantz stating that he is indeed alive and well. You can view this on Mark Ainley's 'The Piano Files' FB page.
https://www.facebook.com/ThePianoFilesWithMarkAinley/photos/a.10151977735029674/10157743203594674/?type=3&eid=ARB7DF27GMh_kVFQIzfy1sFtSmCWNY6r_Lmzid6IEPSSREmqpjOFk-WMruFkHXI5EX1T-a5P8QRa1LTq&__tn__=EEHH-R
It reminds me of Mark Twain's "The report of my death has been greatly exaggerated!"
That IS good news, although his long-term illness appears to be worse. I am delighted to be wrong in this case, although he is one of the people whom you would least expect fake news to be spread. :-\
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I don't even have that many recordings by him, but they were all very good imho.
Weird to read about his passing, because I had been thinking about him this week, after I re-read some chapters in the (Dutch) Eduard van Beinum biography. Van Beinum and Badura-Skoda exchanged some letters in the 1950s about 'how to play 18th century music in a more authentic way'.
I still hope that Badura-Skoda's fortepiano Beethoven set will be re-released sometime. I don't have it and, from what I read on the world wide web, I understand it's a very good one. I already like his modern piano set very much.
May he rest in peace.
Quote from: Marc on September 19, 2019, 05:30:50 AM
I don't even have that many recordings by him, but they were all very good imho.
Weird to read about his passing, because I had been thinking about him this week, after I re-read some chapters in the (Dutch) Eduard van Beinum biography. Van Beinum and Badura-Skoda exchanged some letters in the 1950s about 'how to play 18th century music in a more authentic way'.
I still hope that Badura-Skoda's fortepiano Beethoven set will be re-released sometime. I don't have it and, from what I read on the world wide web, I understand it's a very good one. I already like his modern piano set very much.
May he rest in peace.
I see you didn't notice the latest developments. 0:)
Quote from: North Star on September 19, 2019, 08:11:41 AM
I see you didn't notice the latest developments. 0:)
You just beat me to a rectification. But, again, it took me about 5 minutes to log in, and then I saw your post.
Earlier this afternoon, when it took me even longer to enter the site, I just read the first post of this thread and reacted immediately.
Lazy me. Apologies.
Still: I really do hope his fortepiano Beethoven set will be re-released in due time. ;)
Quote from: Marc on September 19, 2019, 08:19:02 AM
Still: I really do hope his fortepiano Beethoven set will be re-released in due time. ;)
The Mozart set is for me even more special, though this may be a reflection of my attitude to the music as much as anything else. I enjoy Mozart's piano sonatas more than Beethoven's. One thing I appreciate about Badura Skoda is the physicality of the performances, in the sense that he tries to use the characteristics of the piano, all the asperities, to enhance the music, rather than to smooth things over, hide things.
I think that Paul Badura Skoda is one of the most interesting pianists on record.
Fabulous pianist possessing great versatility. I particularly treasure two LPs of Haydn sonatas with him playing a Johann Schantz pianoforte circa 1790.
Now it seems to be real.
https://www.diepresse.com/5696324/paul-badura-skoda-huter-der-wiener-musiziertradition-ist-tot
Quote from: North Star on September 26, 2019, 03:17:21 AM
Now it seems to be real.
https://www.diepresse.com/5696324/paul-badura-skoda-huter-der-wiener-musiziertradition-ist-tot
*sigh*. :'( When I was looking for the earlier information I discovered how ill he has been and it seemed inevitable this day would arrive soon. So it goes... RIP, Master.
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(https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/71bO6HxM2UL._SX522_.jpg)
I've had this 2013 recital on my wish list for over a month now. Some of Mozart's greatest minor key works. Maybe it was premonitory :-[
Quote from: André on September 26, 2019, 11:56:17 AM
(https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/71bO6HxM2UL._SX522_.jpg)
I've had this 2013 recital on my wish list for over a month now. Some of Mozart's greatest minor key works. Maybe it was premonitory :-[
That looks very tempting. I have the complete sonatas, but I think this is a newer effort, and the other works always have the greatest appeal too.
Très bien....
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Quote from: André on September 26, 2019, 11:56:17 AM
(https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/71bO6HxM2UL._SX522_.jpg)
I've had this 2013 recital on my wish list for over a month now. Some of Mozart's greatest minor key works. Maybe it was premonitory :-[
If you don't have the CD in which he partners with Jorg Demus in Mozart, which is a sort of companion to that CD, you should also get that.
Quote from: JBS on September 26, 2019, 06:55:33 PM
If you don't have the CD in which he partners with Jorg Demus in Mozart, which is a sort of companion to that CD, you should also get that.
(https://i.imgur.com/IGDNt3w.jpg)
Absolutely. Very nice recital that was, too. When I was buying this one tonight, the review talked about a series of 3 disks on Gramola, which I assumed to be this one, the Demus one, and one other. But I couldn't seem to locate the one other, so am curious about it. Guess I'll have to hunt it down tomorrow. All of the works on this disk are also in the complete sonatas box, I am looking forward to comparing the work of the 87 year old PBS with the 30 years younger man in his prime.
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Quote from: Gurn Blanston on September 26, 2019, 07:19:11 PM
(https://i.imgur.com/IGDNt3w.jpg)
Absolutely. Very nice recital that was, too. When I was buying this one tonight, the review talked about a series of 3 disks on Gramola, which I assumed to be this one, the Demus one, and one other. But I couldn't seem to locate the one other, so am curious about it. Guess I'll have to hunt it down tomorrow. All of the works on this disk are also in the complete sonatas box, I am looking forward to comparing the work of the 87 year old PBS with the 30 years younger man in his prime.
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There's a CD of Mozart sonatas, one of Mozart concertos, one of "Viennese dances", one of Schubert piano trios, and a couple of PBS in concert from two or three decades ago (one with Demus, btw).
Type "Badura Skoda Gramola" into the Amazon search box.
https://www.youtube.com/v/DWs1qw91Nhk
https://www.youtube.com/v/2YUnLMlGFkk
RIP. A great loss --- although, at 91, not completely unexpected.
Quote from: Florestan on September 27, 2019, 01:36:59 AM
(https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/91GL8h7QWVL._SS500_.jpg)
I'm not quite keen on fortepianos but this is very good. First, the musicianship and music-making is something else. Second, the instrument's sound, though quaint, makes listening to two of my favorite Beethoven sonatas ---- Pastoral and The Tempest --- a most satisfying experience. I wouldn't be surprised if any time soon I'll be listening to the whole cycle from the first disc to the last.
Quote from: Florestan on September 27, 2019, 09:25:49 AM
RIP. A great loss --- although, at 91, not completely unexpected.
I'm not quite keen on fortepianos but this is very good. First, the musicianship and music-making is something else. Second, the instrument's sound, though quaint, makes listening to two of my favorite Beethoven sonatas ---- Pastoral and The Tempest --- a most satisfying experience. I wouldn't be surprised if any time soon I'll be listening to the whole cycle from the first disc to the last.
Just last week I encouraged a friend elsewhere to try some of that set (he got the LP's!) and since his taste was much like yours, I was rather gratified at his wild enthusiasm. He told me the
Hammerklavier was like hearing it for the first time. I don't know, that has been 90% of my Beethoven keyboard listening for over 15 years now, so it just sounds normal to me. If normal means 'the way I expect it to sound'.
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Quote from: Gurn Blanston on September 27, 2019, 09:53:11 AM
Just last week I encouraged a friend elsewhere to try some of that set (he got the LP's!) and since his taste was much like yours, I was rather gratified at his wild enthusiasm. He told me the Hammerklavier was like hearing it for the first time. I don't know, that has been 90% of my Beethoven keyboard listening for over 15 years now, so it just sounds normal to me. If normal means 'the way I expect it to sound'.
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I know what I'll be listening to tonight (among others). Thanks fo the tip, will report.
(https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/81nMuSGiNUL._SS500_.jpg)
I've only seen this streaming or for download. These are mostly trio recordings with Antonio Janigro and Jean Fournier and duos with Demus from the 50s. The mono sounds is very vibrant, and I can put away the various amateur rips the I've collected over the years.
https://www.prestomusic.com/classical/products/8366527--the-paul-badura-skoda-edition-chamber-recordings
One of my favorite pianists, and one of my favorite people in the classical world. Like Yehudi Menuhin, he just always seemed like a radiantly good-hearted person. Still, 91 is a good age. Perhaps I will binge later--his Schubert, LvB, Haydn, and WAM are all among the very, very best.
Quote from: Florestan on September 27, 2019, 10:26:21 AM
I know what I'll be listening to tonight (among others). Thanks fo the tip, will report.
(https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/511id1-jsfL._SL500_.jpg)
Ummmm, no. The playing is still outsanding but it's ruined by the instrument's sound: weak and unpleasant. The Caspar Schmidt fortepiano in the Pastoral was much better. Sorry, I really wanted to like it, but I didn't.
Quote from: Florestan on September 28, 2019, 12:48:02 AM
(https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/511id1-jsfL._SL500_.jpg)
Ummmm, no. The playing is still outsanding but it's ruined by the instrument's sound: . . .
I wonder why he chose that piano.
Quote from: Florestan on September 28, 2019, 12:48:02 AM
(https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/511id1-jsfL._SL500_.jpg)
Ummmm, no. The playing is still outsanding but it's ruined by the instrument's sound: weak and unpleasant. The Caspar Schmidt fortepiano in the Pastoral was much better. Sorry, I really wanted to like it, but I didn't.
:D
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Quote from: Mandryka on September 28, 2019, 05:39:39 AM
I wonder why he chose that piano.
So you agree about the bad sound?
Whatever the reason, it was a very poor choice imo.
Speaking of Hammerklavier, my current favorite is this:
(https://www.limelightmagazine.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/11b3f14f-4798356.jpg)
Quote from: Florestan on September 28, 2019, 09:15:29 AM
So you agree about the bad sound?
Whatever the reason, it was a very poor choice imo.
Speaking of Hammerklavier, my current favorite is this:
What I noticed was that the timbre of the bass registers contrasted interestingly with the timbres of the upper registers, and that asperity in the sound made me prick up my ears in some of the first movement, about 6 minutes in.
Quote from: Mandryka on September 28, 2019, 11:44:17 AM
What I noticed was that the timbre of the bass registers contrasted interestingly with the timbres of the upper registers, and that asperity in the sound made me prick up my ears in some of the first movement, about 6 minutes in.
Oh, then I got you all wrong! You seem to like it, while I dislike it. :D
Now that I think of it, it's only too frequently that we hear of Beethoven being ahead of his time. But why should this be true only in terms of the music itself? As far as I'm concerned, it's at least equally true in terms of the sound itself --- those wretched fortepianos, bar very few exceptions, can't hold a candle to a Steinway or a Boesendorfer or a Fazioli.
Quote from: Florestan on September 28, 2019, 12:34:56 PM
Oh, then I got you all wrong! You seem to like it, while I dislike it. :D
Now that I think of it, it's only too frequently that we hear of Beethoven being ahead of his time. But why should this be true only in terms of the music itself? As far as I'm concerned, it's at least equally true in terms of the sound itself --- those wretched fortepianos, bar very few exceptions, can't hold a candle to a Steinway or a Boesendorfer or a Fazioli.
;D
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Quote from: Florestan on September 28, 2019, 12:34:56 PM
Oh, then I got you all wrong! You seem to like it, while I dislike it. :D
.
I'm just trying to make sense of it rather than judge it.
Quote from: Florestan on September 28, 2019, 12:34:56 PM
Now that I think of it, it's only too frequently that we hear of Beethoven being ahead of his time. .
No. According to John Cage, Beethoven was wrong.
Quote from: Mandryka on September 28, 2019, 01:47:14 PM
I'm just trying to make sense of it rather than judge it.
Okay. Have you made sense past about 6 minutes in?
Quote from: Mandryka on September 28, 2019, 01:50:23 PM
No. According to John Cage, Beethoven was wrong.
John who?
Quote from: John Cage, "Defense of Satie," in John Cage, ed. Richard Kostelanetz (New York: Praeger, 1970):81.With Beethoven the parts of a composition were defined by means of harmony. With Satie [...] they were defined by means of time-lengths. The question of structure is so basic, and it is so important to be in agreement about it, that we must now ask: Was Beethoven right or [...] Satie? I answer immediately and unequivocally, Beethoven was in error, and his influence, which has been extensive as it is lamentable, has been deadening to the art of music."
Quote from: John CageWith Beethoven the parts of a composition were defined by means of harmony. With Satie [...] they were defined by means of time-lengths. The question of structure is so basic, and it is so important to be in agreement about it, that we must now ask: Was Beethoven right or [...] Satie? I answer immediately and unequivocally, Beethoven was in error, and his influence, which has been extensive as it is lamentable, has been deadening to the art of music."
Rubbish. Manure. Two centuries from now on,
Beethoven will still be played and revered, while John Cage will be a mere footnote of interest to pedantic cacademics, if at all.
Quote from: Florestan on September 28, 2019, 02:16:40 PM
Rubbish. Manure. Two centuries from now on, Beethoven will still be played and revered, while John Cage will be a mere footnote of interest to pedantic cacademics, if at all.
:laugh: :laugh: :laugh:
Well put.
Quote from: Florestan on September 28, 2019, 12:45:09 PM
Should I take that as an oblique agreement?
No, you can take it as I am not going to argue with you, but if I was, I would be laughing at you the entire time. But no, we are friends... :D
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Rest in peace to the great Paul Badura-Skoda. Unfortunately, I know his name more than any of his music. What would be a good place to start? I know he has recorded the complete Schubert sonatas several times, including completions of unfinished sonatas that he assembled himself. I'll have to sample these different cycles and see if any are worthy. I do not have any complete Schubert sonata cycle.
Quote from: vers la flamme on September 28, 2019, 04:44:49 PM
. What would be a good place to start?
The Astrée Mozart. Chopin etudes.
I'm starting to think that his fortepiano recordings are the core part of the legacy. The modern piano recordings are fine but it's not there that he has something special to say.
Quote from: Mandryka on September 28, 2019, 10:40:24 PM
The Astrée Mozart. Chopin etudes.
I'm starting to think that his fortepiano recordings are the core part of the legacy. The modern piano recordings are fine but it's not there that he has something special to say.
Thanks, well put. Also agree about the Mozart. I have the Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven and Schubert sets. All great, but the Mozart is especially superior.
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