Best memorisers?

[ajlongspiano]

Hey there everyone! I was just wondering what your opinions are on who was/is the best memoriser of piano. I have heard that Richer was pretty incredible. He reportedly learned the whole Prokofiev 8th Sonata in 3 days. Looking forward to your responses.

[dima_76557]

Best memorisers?

Franz Liszt, Camille Saint-Saëns and Josef Hofmann could play the most complicated compositions perfectly after hearing them only once and without seeing the printed notes.

[j_menz]

And Mozart's little Papal theft job no doubt qualifies him for contention.

[gapoc459]

I am currently reading Daniel Barenboim's memoir. Here is an anecdote about Dmitri Mitropoulos, who in his opinion had "the most phenomenal memory of anyone I have ever met."

"The story is told that when he was Music Director in Minneapolis and was supposed to conduct the world premiere of a new American piece, the orchestral parts did not arrive until the day before the first rehearsal, and the conductor's score never arrived at all. So he took the orchestra parts home and spread them out on the floor the way an orchestra sits. He then memorized the piece overnight and the next morning rehearsed it from memory."


'Nuff said?

[coda_colossale]

Everybody knows the story of Lugansky learning Rach 3 in three days right?
Rachmaninoff too is said to have a phenomenal memory.
I'd say İdil Biret, too. She has the largest repertoire I know and she's still learning and recording new repertoire at 72.

[stevensk]

Hj Lim played Rachmaninoffs first and second pianoconcert without sheet at a concert in Barcelona earlier this year, and Rach 3 the next day. -She holds all of the Beethoven sonatas in her head  + Chopin ballades and lots of encores as well. Incredible!

[coda_colossale]

Hj Lim played Rachmaninoffs first and second pianoconcert without sheet at a concert in Barcelona earlier this year, and Rach 3 the next day. -She holds all of the Beethoven sonatas in her head  + Chopin ballades and lots of encores as well. Incredible!

Yeah, you've pretty much summed up the perfect mediocre pianist.

[visitor]

A good number of the composer geniuses were phenomenal memorizers, I have read crazy anecdotes  of incredible music memory from a number of the giants. Ie Shostakovich , Kosenko, etc

[stevensk]

Yeah, you've pretty much summed up the perfect mediocre pianist.

And you seems to be this forums perfect hater.