Alfred Brendel: A Pianist’s “A” to “Z” is a captivating musical journey. In concise yet eloquent prose, this book unveils the brilliance of Brendel's artistry, delving into his career milestones, musical insights, and profound interpretations. This is an essential read for music enthusiasts, celebrating the legacy of a true virtuoso.
Here I highlight some interesting insights for you to read:
Arpeggio: It is easily forgotten that “arpeggio” derived from arpa (harp). The pianist should envisage a lady harpist controlling the rhythm and dynamics of her arpeggio with her gracious fingertips.
Cantabile: Listen to Edwin Fischer’s recording of the second movement of Bach’s F minor concerto.
Character: It is erroneous to think that the perception of form and structure will automatically reveal the character.
Conductor: Watching singers and conductors is, for the pianist, the most important source of learning.
Depth: What I have in mind is not depth or feeling but spatial, three-dimensional depth. Sound can be flat and spatial.
Endings: The end of a piece reaches the borders of silence. Endings can bring the piece to a close, but also, in some cases, unlock silence.
Fingering: There are fingerings for normal mortals, and those devised by great pianists. The fingerings of Bülow, d'Albert or Schnabel show distinct personality.
Humor: According to Georg August Griesinger, Haydn was able 'to lure the listener into the highest degree of the comical by frivolous twists and turns of the seemingly serious'.
The genius of precision and practicality was Bartók.
Moved, and Moving: C. P. E. Bach said that only the musician who is himself moved can move others. In contrast, Diderot and Busoni claimed that actors or musical performers who set out to move others must not themselves be moved, in order not to lose control. Let us try to be moved and controlled at once.
An important key to Mozart playing is operatic singing.
Pedal: If used expertly, the pedal creates color and atmosphere, adds warmth and declamation to the singing line, One of the greatest masters of the pedal I had the good fortune to hear was Wilhelm Kempff.
Pedal: It is not only the mechanism of hands, arms and shoulders that helps define the art of piano playing. There is also the sensitivity of our feet.
The basic tempo of a piece can only be determined once the performer has taken into account all its components: tempo indications, char-acters, dynamics, articulation, rhythmic subdivisions and pianistic feasibility.
TRILLS shouldn't sound like the ringing of one and the same doorbell.
Alfred Brendel's book list (highly recommended!)
A Pianist's A–Z: A piano lover's reader
by Alfred Brendel
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Music, Sense and Nonsense: Collected Essays and Lectures
by Alfred Brendel
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Alfred Brendel on Music: Collected Essays
by Alfred Brendel
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Me of All People: Alfred Brendel in Conversation with Martin Meyer
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Musical thoughts & afterthoughts
by Alfred Brendel
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One Finger Too Many
by Alfred Brendel
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Music Sounded Out: Essays, Lectures, Interviews, Afterthoughts
by Alfred Brendel
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Brendel was born in Wizemberk,[2] Czechoslovakia (now Loučná nad Desnou, Czech Republic) to a non-musical family. They moved to Zagreb, Yugoslavia (now Croatia), when Brendel was three years old and he began piano lessons there at the age of six with Sofija Deželić. He later moved to Graz, Austria, where he studied piano with Ludovica von Kaan at the Graz Conservatory and composition with Artur Michel. Towards the end of World War II, the 14-year-old Brendel was sent back to Yugoslavia to dig trenches.
After the war, Brendel composed music as well as continued to play the piano, to write and to paint. However, he never had more formal piano lessons and, although he attended master classes with Edwin Fischer and Eduard Steuermann, he was largely self-taught after the age of 16.[3]
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