by In the two decades before he retired from concert performance at the age of 77 at the age of 77, Alfred Brendel was probably the most famous classic pianist in the world. However, consideration of his game was never universal; What his many admirers in his interpretations were looking for, taken into account and in profound ones heard others than colorless and lacked spontaneity. But Brendel’s lasting popularity is shown by his recorded legacy, which is certainly extensive enough for generations to make its own stature. In a recording career that stretched over half a century, he made more than 100 albums, including three complete cycles of the Beethoven sonatas.
When his career set out, Beethoven and the other great composers of the Austrian tradition – Haydn, Mozart, Schubert, Brahms – were increasingly the focus of Brendel’s recitial repertoire, but a look at a chronology of his records revealed how far his musical interests were really. If there are Brendels Discs from Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven and Schubert, which are primarily valued, there are still a lot to discover among the countless recordings he left us. The following recordings are therefore a personal choice; It could be very different on another day.
Busoni: Fantasia Contrappuntistica (1953)
Busoni was a composer who fascinated Brendel, but he took up very little from the piano music, with the exception of this early performance of the most demanding solo work of the Italian musician.
Mussorgsky, Balakirev and Stravinsky (1955)
A sample from the beginning of his career of some Russian repertoire, with which Brendel was later never associated in his life.
Liszt: Opera transcriptions (1958)
Liszt, especially the large Bminor sonata, remained part of Brendel’s repertoire for a large part of his career, but early on he spread his network much broader, as this collection shows.
Schumann: Working for Oboe (1980)
Brendel recorded relatively little chamber music, but he did some discs as a companion, including a winter value with Dietrich Fischer-Diekau and this jewel-like collection, in which he worked the greatest oboist of Age, Heinz Holliger.
Mozart: The Piano Concertos (1980s)
The cycle of the Mozart piano concerts, which Brendel started with Neville Marriner and the Academy of St. Martin-In-the-Fields, was one of the 1980s.
Haydn: 11 Sonatas (1986)
The essence of Brendel’s style, which is completely lacking in affects and mannerisms.
Schubert: Piano sonata D958, 959 & 960 (1988)
Schubert’s late sonatas always seem to be the best of Brendel, his intellectual rigor, his sense of poetry and sometimes sheer fun.
Brahms: Piano concert No. 1 (1987)
Especially in later years, Brendel didn’t play much of Brahms’ Solo -Klaviermusik, but he played the concerts, like this great report on the first, with Claudio Abbado and the Berlin Philharmonic Shows.
Beethoven piano concert No. 5 (1988)
A majestic live performance of the Kaiser concert with Kurt Masur.
Beethoven: Diabelli variations (1990)
As masterfully as all of his Beethoven appearances were, it often seemed that the Diabelli variations with their quick mood changes, moments of self -observation and evil humor had published the best of Brendel.
Beethoven: Piano sonata OPP 90, 101, 106.109, 110, 111 (1993)
A compilation from the second of Brendels three Beethoven -Sonata cycles, which was just published when he wanted to start a third digital cycle for Philips.
Schönberg: piano concert (1996)
After the early years, Brendel played very little music of the 20th century, but Schönberg’s concert remained part of his repertoire; This recording, in which Michael Gielen serves, is one of at least two that he made.
