Pierre Boulez was one of the most influential, important and certainly one of the most thoughtful musicians of the past century, both as composer and conductor, even when not everybody may have liked him as either composer and/or conductor. A unique personality in either capacity, he was (with exception of his more youthful years) neither obsessive self-centred nor ‘out of this world’ out of tune nor a theoretical maniac, as some very famous composers or other musicians have been or still are. He was determined to follow his own course in his own way and his own time, which can only be admired.
I must admit not listening to his music very often, which I doubt he would expect even his most adamant admirers to do. But whenever I do listen to his music, I am almost every time amazed at the sheer detail and beauty his music contains. A piece like Pli selon Pli must rank among the greatest big vocal works of the last 100 years, and should feature more often on the stages of the world. Yes, they are hard to play and it needs lots of time to learn how to listen to them, but the rewards keep coming in.
As conductor, he was nothing of the ‘stage animal’ showman, but determined to offer the music as faithfully as he could. Some may find the ‘emotional component’ lacking and his renditions sterile, such as in his Mahler recordings (he was quite the opposite of a Bernstein!), but for those who, again!, are willing to ‘learn to listen’ may find a wealth of detail and love of the music sometimes so very lacking in other, much more revered, conductors. One may only need to listen to his conducting Schönberg’s Gurrelieder to find proof of this.
May his legacy last long and fertile!
All best,
gep
Topic: Pierre Boulez (1925-2016): RIP