Brendel on Mozart
Jan. 25th, 2008 04:54 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
khiemtranI happened to be listening to Alfred Brendel playing K.456 (the Piano Concerto No. 18 in Eb Major) today, when I started wondering if Clara Haskil had ever recorded it. It's one of my favourite concertos, especially as played by Brendel and the ASMF, and I was wondering to myself why it wasn't more popular.
So, I google on "Clara Haskil 456 Mozart" and up comes this article on nybooks.com. And there's Brendel himself talking about why K.456 isn't more popular.
It's quite a fascinating article actually, and helps to explain why I like Brendel's interpretations so much.
An exerpt:
AB: Of course. The sonata [K.310] is a very clear example of my conviction that most piano works should not be interpreted merely in keyboard terms. The first movement is a symphonic piece—just observe the audience's consternation if you play it as such. The second is a soprano aria with a dramatic middle section. I can even imagine the text. Think of the large-scale dynamics of the movement and the recurring six-four chords which stand there like pillars. We can see a proud woman standing there, saying: even if you tear me apart, I love you and shall remain true, and would rather die than deny you. This middle movement is then followed by the finale, a spooky piece for wind divertimento. It is precisely this that is very often to be found in Mozart's sonatas: namely the sound of wind instruments, more often than that of strings....
A good article to read with Mozart on in the background.
So, I google on "Clara Haskil 456 Mozart" and up comes this article on nybooks.com. And there's Brendel himself talking about why K.456 isn't more popular.
It's quite a fascinating article actually, and helps to explain why I like Brendel's interpretations so much.
An exerpt:
AB: Of course. The sonata [K.310] is a very clear example of my conviction that most piano works should not be interpreted merely in keyboard terms. The first movement is a symphonic piece—just observe the audience's consternation if you play it as such. The second is a soprano aria with a dramatic middle section. I can even imagine the text. Think of the large-scale dynamics of the movement and the recurring six-four chords which stand there like pillars. We can see a proud woman standing there, saying: even if you tear me apart, I love you and shall remain true, and would rather die than deny you. This middle movement is then followed by the finale, a spooky piece for wind divertimento. It is precisely this that is very often to be found in Mozart's sonatas: namely the sound of wind instruments, more often than that of strings....
A good article to read with Mozart on in the background.
