Greatest Technique of the 20th Century

[musicsdarkangel]

He usually can´t match the technique Pollini had. Has he performed the modern stuff like the very demanding sonatas by Boulez?

Nope, but his clarity is unmatched, his tempos often ridiculous, and like Pollini, he never makes a mistake.

Just listen to Ashkenazy's Mephisto Waltz, or Rhapsody on a theme by Pagannini

 

He schooled everyone who played both of those.

[musicsdarkangel]

We cannot forget about Vladimir Horowitz and his lightning speed octaves. This is a tough decision to make!

Emil Gilels almost matched that speed on his dvd (actually, he may have).  Watch it, it's INSANE

[sevencircles]

Nope, but his clarity is unmatched, his tempos often ridiculous, and like Pollini, he never makes a mistake.

I don´t think Askenazy could match Pollini in terms of playing clean at high tempos.

Not in the seventies at least.

His repertoire was larger though.

A link to a liveclip wouldn´t be bad.

[gouldfischer]

I have recently seen a wonderful documentary on DVD about him (“Nelson Freire” directed by José Sales) and the impression one gets is of a very modest, painfully shy individual, who refuses to join the media circus and the celebrity/gossip circuit, and who is supremely happy just playing. This may explain to a great extent why he is not better known.

I totally agree. That documentary is a real gem. I had the opportunity to watch it on the big screen two years ago and then I couldn't refrain myself from buying the DVD. I never get tired of watching Argerich and Freire playing together. The DVD also features a hundred minutes of extra musical material, as such as Freire in his early twenties playing with utter maturity.

[musicsdarkangel]

I don´t think Askenazy could match Pollini in terms of playing clean at high tempos.

Not in the seventies at least.

His repertoire was larger though.

A link to a liveclip wouldn´t be bad.

I disagree.  Ashkenazy (to me, and many) is the king of highspeed clarity.  Of course, he was to me, worse, in the 70's than the later periods.

I don't have a live link, I'm sorry.  But I can send you his Rach Rhapsody and Mephisto Waltz through yousendit.com if I have your e-mail.


I follow both of these pianists, and I (honestly) have never really compared the two.  They are both clear as hell, but I do think that Ashkenazy has the speed edge. 

In the cadenza to the rhapsody, he plays 15 notes per second with perfect clarity (and it's not an easy run).  This slaughter's Orozco's time.  And Orozco definitely goes for speed when it comes to the Rach concertos.

I've also heard that Pollini overdubbed his Chopin etudes many times (because of mistakes) which surprised the heck out of me.

Of course both of their Chopin etudes recordings don't touch Ohlsson's.

[sevencircles]

I've also heard that Pollini overdubbed his Chopin etudes many times (because of mistakes) which surprised the heck out of me.

Really! Some pianos can be a nightmare to play and I guess he just entered the studio and thought it would be as easy to play as his piano at home.

Send the Askenazy files to magikern_andy@hotmail.com please

[bernhard]

I totally agree. That documentary is a real gem. I had the opportunity to watch it on the big screen two years ago and then I couldn't refrain myself from buying the DVD. I never get tired of watching Argerich and Freire playing together. The DVD also features a hundred minutes of extra musical material, as such as Freire in his early twenties playing with utter maturity.

So, what is going on between those two?

I love the bit (on the second CD) where he sight reads the Liszt transcription of Widmung and Martha cannot quite believe he has never seen the piece before.

[sevencircles]

So, what is going on between those two? 

I love the bit (on the second CD) where he sight reads the Liszt transcription of Widmung and Martha cannot quite believe he has never seen the piece before.

I would propably go for John Ogdon If you involve sighreading in the best technique award.

John Ogdon was superhuman in the sixties!

Rachmaninov said that he only knew  2 players that could play technically better then him (in terms of speed mostly) and that was Simon Barere and Josef Hoffman.

Godowsky propably had a too limited repertoire to be comsidered.

[gouldfischer]

So, what is going on between those two?

I wish I knew... my fiancée strongly believes Martha has been in love with him all these years (they were teenagers when they first met), but he keeps rejecting her... :-) who knows... I myself have the impression that they already had something else... they seem so intimate, you know... the scene where they listen to that young pianist while just passing the cigarette from one another... so much understanding... well I relly don't know! Perhaps just very close friends with the intimacy and mutual knowledge brought by the years...

[massi]

art tatum, hands down. listen to tea for two

[presto agitato]

I say it again: Vladimir Horowitz and Arthur Rubinstein used to say that Art Tatum possessed the best technique ever.