마르타 아르헤리치
피아노
Argentinian-born pianist Martha Argerich has been an unrivalled presence in the classical music world for many years. Her technique, which combines effortless power and rapid articulation, has often been compared to that of her role model Vladimir Horowitz. She is part of and often the centre of a circle of outstanding musicians she regularly performs with – including the conductors Claudio Abbado and Charles Dutoit, the pianists Nelson Freire and Stephen Kovacevich, the violinists Gidon Kremer and Renaud Capuçon, and the cellist Mischa Maisky. She has had a particularly close artistic partnership and friendship with Daniel Barenboim since their childhood days in Buenos Aires, and he regularly performs with her as both pianist and conductor.
Argerich was hailed a child prodigy and, as recordings prove, mastered Robert Schumann’s Piano Concerto effortlessly at the age of eleven. Her initial successes and prize wins at competitions in Geneva and Bolzano were followed by an artistic crisis. This ended in 1964 when she became the first woman ever to take first place at the International Chopin Piano Competition. Since then, her concerts have been considered legendary events and her recordings have set new standards. With very few exceptions, Argerich has refrained from performing solo works in public for many years. Instead, she devotes herself to the performance of piano concertos and chamber music. Festivals in Lugano, Japan and Hamburg were or are named after the pianist. The focus of her repertoire is on the First Viennese School, Romanticism and early Modernism. Schumann’s Piano Concerto, Prokofiev’s Third and Ravel’s Concerto in G major are pieces that are associated with “La Martha” more than almost anyone else. Argerich has performed regularly with the Berliner Philharmoniker since 1968, particularly under the direction of Claudio Abbado.
