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| Alfred Brendel |
Alfred
Brendel, Austrian pianist, gave
a charming and knowledgeable talk about his new book the Pianist Bible with Jonathan Mills, composer and pianist and director of the Edinburgh International Festival, and
co-author Michael Morley at Edinburgh
International Book Festival 2013.
Firstly Brendel and co-author Michael Morley read excepts from his new book a Pianist’s Bible – with chapters on Emotion, Notation, Fantasy, Art and Artists, Humour, Wit and Wisdom.
The talk
really became interesting when the audience gave requests and questions.
One member
asked about his favourite recording by Brendel, which he said was Schubert
played with the Cleveland Quartet. He thought this recording was so together
and he wondered how older European players matched younger American
players.
Brendel said his
favourite composers were Bach, Handel,
Hadyn and Schubert. He said that great piano music was composed for ensembles. Someone
asked him was it about playing with feeling OR in time – to which he replied it
was about ‘feeling in time’!
He said
that the piano had the biggest solo repertoire. As the piano is more complex to
learn than other instruments such as violin or wind instruments, it therefore takes longer
to reach the peak of performance, usually between 40 and 60.
Brendel said
the biggest influence on his music was great conductors and great singers. He
said it was necessary to turn the piano into the orchestra and to understand
the ebb and flow between the genres and to control the rhythm and nuances.
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| Jonathan Mills |
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