POLL: 5 Pianists you like the most (140 famous pianists listed)

[piazzo23]

You have to vote 5 pianists. And you can change your mind and modify them any day.

Don´t forget to ask for missing pianists, I´ll add them to the list.

It´s the most sensate way to do this poll.

Corrected various important pianists missing. And alphabetical order

The last title was a little confusing so I expect more votes this time.

It would be really exciting!!! 

NOTE: Pianists I added later will be in the bottom of the list, not in alphabetic order.
That´s because if I change pianist places, the votes are still in their row.
So if you can´t find your pianist in the alphabetical list, look below the "others..." option


Nils gave me the adventage to add pianists to the options, so "others..." should be empty. Just tell me your missing pianists and when I add them to the list you can change your votes, from "others..." to the new added pianists.

[da_bachtopus]

I greatly enjoy Ingrid Haebler's playing of Mozart; I'd like to see her added so I can vote properly.

[pianodaria]

I chose Rachmaninov, Sofronitsky, Gilels and Michelangeli.

As of fifth vote, I'd go with the hope for a future star equivalent to the named above.

[mwarner1]

Casadesus, Kempff, Pollini, Richter, Solomon

[stormcrow]

How about Howard Shelly? His complete Rachmaninov is really good, Imho. 

[scrafiev]

Haebler and Shelly added. You can change your votes now if you want.

[piazzo23]

Thist list will grow quickly 

[pseudopianist]

Habermann, Ogdon, Hamelin, Hewitt, Ritcher

[piazzo23]

Habermann, Ogdon, Hamelin, Hewitt, Ritcher

Habermann added 

[brahmsian]

Arrau, Cziffra, Gould, Horowitz, Ogdon

[piazzo23]

I greatly enjoy Ingrid Haebler's playing of Mozart; I'd like to see her added so I can vote properly.

Haebler added

[piazzo23]

How about Howard Shelly? His complete Rachmaninov is really good, Imho. 

Shelly added

[piazzo23]

Chiu, Mclachlan, Szidon, Laredo, Pires, Friedman added.

[chopiabin]

Add Phillipe Entremont (the best and most original recording of the ballades imo)

[piazzo23]

Add Phillipe Entremont (the best and most original recording of the ballades imo)

Yeap. Entremont added

[rob47]

Vadim Rudenko

I voted:

Rach, Rubnstein, Horowitz, Cziffra, and LL cool J

[mrchops10]

I'm sorry, can't vote because you're missing the greatest pianist...mrchops10.  What were you thinking?

[pianobil]

Dear Mr. Piazzo,

Quite an extensive list!  A couple of additions, though, if I may... I am missing the Lhevinnes and, to my extreme horror, shock and pain, there was no mention of Busoni.


Please...?

Best,
Bill

[piazzo23]

Vadim Rudenko

I voted:

Rach, Rubnstein, Horowitz, Cziffra, and LL cool J

Rudenko added

[piazzo23]

Dear Mr. Piazzo,

Quite an extensive list!  A couple of additions, though, if I may... I am missing the Lhevinnes and, to my extreme horror, shock and pain, there was no mention of Busoni.


Please...?

Best,
Bill

Lhévinnes added.
But Busoni, I think there´re not recordings of him. I could have put Liszt or Chopin too.

Prokofiev has oustanding recordings of his works mostly, but I didn´t put it.

Should I add Prokofiev at least?
His own 3rd concerto is amazing. The tempi used today differ very much of that who he used to played it.

And the same goes with Bartók. He was an incredible pianist, but I only listened to his works played by him, so I don´t know if there are any recordings of other authors played by Bartók.

And shostakovich plays shotakovich is in Amazon.
There´s one by Ravel too, but it doesn´t list the tracks. That would be fabulous!
And one Debussy as a pianist CD.

[perfect_pitch]

What about Daniel Barrenboim.... He's starting to become a pretty darn good pianist. His recordings of the Complete Mozart Piano Concertos were damn good.

[piazzo23]

What about Daniel Barrenboim.... He's starting to become a pretty darn good pianist. His recordings of the Complete Mozart Piano Concertos were *** good.

Yes, he is in the beginning of the list

[stevie]

pavel raikerus

hirofumi uematsu

2 of my favourite piansits, add them or LIVE IN FEAR OF YOU AND YOUR FAMILY DYING, randomly

hahaha,r andom death threat

[da jake]

Cziffra, Gould, Horowitz, Hofmann.

Stuck between Gilels and Moiseisisisiiweiwewwich, but settled on the latter.

[brewtality]

If you're going to add Habermann, Shelley and Rudenko then you must include Fiorentino. No offence to my sdc brethren, but if Rudenko is in and the Hog is out, then the list is a joke.
My top five: Horowitz, Hofmann, Cziffra, Cortot and Fiorentino.

[pianobil]

Lhévinnes added.
But Busoni, I think there´re not recordings of him. I could have put Liszt or Chopin too.

My Dear Mr. Piazzo,

     Homework you must do!  There are three CDs of piano roll recordings of Busoni, as well as a brilliant wax recording.  That last one has been transfered to a CD, and is rounded out with Petri playing Alkan and Grainger playing the third Chopin Sonata.  All of the performances on the disc are not to be missed, but Busoni in particular interests me only more each time I hear it.  The piano roll recording of his own Bach-Chaconne transcription is definitive, and his Chopin Preludes (of which, most unfortunately, only 17 of the 24 were recorded) are some of the most fascinating performances you will ever hear.  Some will recoil in horror, but others will fall under his spell.  In any case, he is definitely worth a listen, and at least a vote.

Best,
Bill

[piazzo23]

Ok, Busoni added.

But i don´t care much about piano rolls, I don´t know how accurate they are played in any piano.

[piazzo23]

pavel raikerus

hirofumi uematsu

2 of my favourite piansits, add them or LIVE IN FEAR OF YOU AND YOUR FAMILY DYING, randomly

hahaha,r andom death threat

have they made any recordings?

[dreamplaying]

You Forgot Samson François what a pity to forget such pianist in your list

[piazzo23]

If you're going to add Habermann, Shelley and Rudenko then you must include Fiorentino. No offence to my sdc brethren, but if Rudenko is in and the Hog is out, then the list is a joke.
My top five: Horowitz, Hofmann, Cziffra, Cortot and Fiorentino.

Added Sergio Fiorentino

[piazzo23]

You Forgot Samson François what a pity to forget such pianist in your list

Yes, added Samson François

[mrchops10]

And the same goes with Bartók. He was an incredible pianist, but I only listened to his works played by him, so I don´t know if there are any recordings of other authors played by Bartók.
And shostakovich plays shotakovich is in Amazon.
There´s one by Ravel too, but it doesn´t list the tracks. That would be fabulous!
And one Debussy as a pianist CD.

Bartok (sry, spelling freaks, no accents) has a wonderful recording of Beethoven's Kreutzer sonata with the classic violinist Joseph Szigeti, very old-fashioned to our ears, but wonderfully effective. I doubt he could hold his own against Richter or Bronfman, but maybe he has some fierce partisans? Shostakovich actually considered a career in piano before deciding on composition, and he made a recording of the first piano concerto and one of the trios (forget which) that I listened to. It is very interesting, extremely pared-down classicist playing, and very effective performances. Once again, I don't think he could really be a "great pianist," per se, but he was certainly a magnificent musician and it shines through in his playing. Debussy, also, was a highly regarded pianist in his youth, but I didn't know he made any recordings (!)

Ravel, bless him, was not a very good pianist.

[piazzo23]

Debussy, also, was a highly regarded pianist in his youth, but I didn't know he made any recordings (!)

Me neither. Here
https://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B00005IC03/qid=1127361084/sr=8-3/ref=sr_8_xs_ap_i3_xgl15/002-1313655-0969654?v=glance&s=classical&n=507846

[mrchops10]

These are piano rolls (ugh!). Maybe worth listening to, though...

[iumonito]

I like your system for adding names.

Here are mine:

Jorge Bolet,
Edwin Fischer (I assume that's the Fischer in the list)
Vladimir Sofronitsky
and then two that I think are missing:
Judit Jaimes
Garrick Ohlsson

If you give me four more names, I have Gilels (already in the list), Horacio Gutierrez (missing), youngster Elizabeth Joy Roe (not surprisingly missing but what an imagination!) and Christina Ortiz (somewhat more surprisingly missing, I like her better than Ashkenazy, which would be my next pick).

[thracozaag]

Names to add:

Ignace Tiegerman
Samuel Feinberg
Witold Malcuzyinski
Misha Levitsky
Miczyslaw Horszowski
Nikolai Petrov
Raymond Lewenthal
Joseph Villa
Ernst Levy
Cyprien Katsaris
Erwin Nyiregyhazi
Annie Fischer
Terrence Judd
Noel Mewton-Wood
Dino Ciani
Dmitri Bashkirov
Emil Von Sauer
Julius Katchen
Eugene Istomin
Yves Nat
Byron Janis
Seymour Lipkin
Claude Frank
Leon Fleisher
Haaken Austbo
Alexander Paley
Jose Iturbi
Adam Harasiewicz
John Browning
Vladimir DePachmann
David Saperton
Richard Goode
Russell Sherman


koji

[dinosaurtales]

Hey!  MY name isn't on the list!  What the.......?   

[Bouter Boogie]

I voted for Hamelin, Horowitz, Kissin, Richter and Zimerman.

You really need to add Géza Anda to your list!

- BB

[dinosaurtales]

Names to add:

Ignace Tiegerman
Samuel Feinberg
Witold Malcuzyinski
Misha Levitsky
Miczyslaw Horszowski
Nikolai Petrov
Raymond Lewenthal
Joseph Villa
Ernst Levy
Cyprien Katsaris
Erwin Nyiregyhazi
Annie Fischer
Terrence Judd
Noel Mewton-Wood
Dino Ciani
Dmitri Bashkirov
Emil Von Sauer
Julius Katchen
Eugene Istomin
Yves Nat
Byron Janis
Seymour Lipkin
Claude Frank
Leon Fleisher
Haaken Austbo
Alexander Paley
Jose Iturbi
Adam Harasiewicz
John Browning
Vladimir DePachmann
David Saperton
Richard Goode
Russell Sherman


koji

Alexander Paley!  YESSSSS!

[dinosaurtales]

Also add Louie Lortie

[Souza]

Guiomar Novaes (not added)
Clara Haskil (not added)
Alexander Brailowsky (not added)
Nelson Freire
Nikolai Demidenko
 

[gaer]

I'd like to see Edward Kilenyi added. Few people realize that his career was cut short by WWII, and his recordings after that are not representative of his pre-war playing.

You have to deal with the old mono sound in the Pathé Recordings (1937-39), and he used to talk about how difficult it was to record then, one shot, worrying about fitting things in.
 
I had the chance to hear him play in public in Tallahassse, at FSU, but nothing I ever heard in public came close to his playing in repertoire class, where he was totally relaxed and sometimes playing so well, I wanted to quit. He had the most unusual way of playing I've ever seen, and anyone who has studied Dohnányi would have been fascinated to see Kilenyi play his music. I learned more about hand movement and relaxed playing from watching him than from everything I've ever read or been told. He was amazing.

[piazzo23]

Names to add:

Ignace Tiegerman
Samuel Feinberg
Witold Malcuzyinski
Misha Levitsky
Miczyslaw Horszowski
Nikolai Petrov
Raymond Lewenthal
Joseph Villa
Ernst Levy
Cyprien Katsaris
Erwin Nyiregyhazi
Annie Fischer
Terrence Judd
Noel Mewton-Wood
Dino Ciani
Dmitri Bashkirov
Emil Von Sauer
Julius Katchen
Eugene Istomin
Yves Nat
Byron Janis
Seymour Lipkin
Claude Frank
Leon Fleisher
Haaken Austbo
Alexander Paley
Jose Iturbi
Adam Harasiewicz
John Browning
Vladimir DePachmann
David Saperton
Richard Goode
Russell Sherman


koji

I trust you.
I only know a couple. And De Pachmann was always on the list.

Added!

[piazzo23]

I like your system for adding names.

Here are mine:

Jorge Bolet,
Edwin Fischer (I assume that's the Fischer in the list)
Vladimir Sofronitsky
and then two that I think are missing:
Judit Jaimes
Garrick Ohlsson

If you give me four more names, I have Gilels (already in the list), Horacio Gutierrez (missing), youngster Elizabeth Joy Roe (not surprisingly missing but what an imagination!) and Christina Ortiz (somewhat more surprisingly missing, I like her better than Ashkenazy, which would be my next pick).

Added Jaimes, Ohlsson, Joy Roe, Cristina Ortíz y Horacio Gutiérrez

[piazzo23]

I voted for Hamelin, Horowitz, Kissin, Richter and Zimerman.

You really need to add Géza Anda to your list!

- BB

Totally!!!!!! Sorry I forgot!

Added Anda

[piazzo23]

Also add Louie Lortie

Added Lortie

[piazzo23]

Guiomar Novaes (not added)
Clara Haskil (not added)
Alexander Brailowsky (not added)
Nelson Freire
Nikolai Demidenko
 

Yes, added Novaes, Haskil and Brailowsky

[piazzo23]

I'd like to see Edward Kilenyi added. Few people realize that his career was cut short by WWII, and his recordings after that are not representative of his pre-war playing.

You have to deal with the old mono sound in the Pathé Recordings (1937-39), and he used to talk about how difficult it was to record then, one shot, worrying about fitting things in.
 
I had the chance to hear him play in public in Tallahassse, at FSU, but nothing I ever heard in public came close to his playing in repertoire class, where he was totally relaxed and sometimes playing so well, I wanted to quit. He had the most unusual way of playing I've ever seen, and anyone who has studied Dohnányi would have been fascinated to see Kilenyi play his music. I learned more about hand movement and relaxed playing from watching him than from everything I've ever read or been told. He was amazing.

Added professional Kilenyi.

[tolkien]

Medtner should be listed as well.

[thracozaag]

Couple more to add:

Conrad Hansen (was Edwin Fischer's teaching assistant)
Elly Ney
Marie-Thérèse Lefebvre (Cortot's teaching assistant)
Carlo Grante
Kemal Gekic
Carl Friedberg
Walter Goldsand
Percy Grainger
Carlo Zecchi
Vassily Sapellnikov
Moritz Rosenthal
Stefan Askenase
Gilbert Kalish

koji