From: dbarker@spang.Camosun.BC.CA (Deryk Barker)
Subject: Re: Reply to Greatest Living Pianist
Organization: Camosun College, Victoria B.C, Canada
X-Newsreader: Tin 1.1 PL4
Date: Fri, 11 Dec 1992 17:47:29 GMT

vnguyen@husc10.harvard.edu (Vinh Nguyen) writes:
: In article <1g5nehINN43d@roundup.crhc.uiuc.edu>,
:  korkosz@uicsl.csl.uiuc.edu (Richard Korkosz) writes:
: 
: > What follows is MY opinion only; no offense is meant to those with 
: > different opinions.
: > 
: > 
: > 
: > I agree with Deryk Barker, and second the nomination for 
: > Sviatoslav Richter as the greatest living pianist.  Richter's technique, 
: > interpretations, and general musicianship are of the HIGHEST calibre.  
: > When I listen to Richter's playing, I feel true conviction and 
: > inspiration.  I don't just hear notes being hit, but rather 
: > wonderful colors, tone, and artistry.  Often my experiences 
: > listening to Richter are overwhelming, just pure MUSIC!
:  
: I'll throw my vote in for the one and only Richter as well,
: with perhaps a close second vote (if not a tie -- nah!) for
: Emil Gilels (but alas, Gilels has been long dead!)! 
:  
: > I strongly disagree with Daniel Gottlieb's nomination for Vladimir 
: > Ashkenazy, and really wonder if his appending "end of discussion" 
: > was meant as a joke.  I WOULD agree if the question was not for the 
: > greatest living pianist, but rather for the pianist who made the largest 
: > number of mediocre recordings, and I would include the appendage here.  
: > I used to own lots of Ashkenazy recordings, but I found that nearly all 
: > were outdone (by significant margins) by other pianists, so I've gotten 
: > rid of most of them.  Granted, he has made a few halfway decent recordings, 
: > and he can hit notes, but many of his recordings are just plain BAD.  I 
: > really hate categorizing, but summing up my opinion in general terms, my 
: > impression is that Ashkenazy is an INSTRUMENTALIST, and Richter is an 
: > ARTIST (borrowing terms from a previous poster).
: > 
: > I even think Ashkenazy pales in the face of Martha Argerich, Murray 
: > Perahia, and many others...
:  
: Yes, boos for Ashkenazy whose music making is as faceless and bland
: as cream puffs.  One has to give it to him for versatility without
: personality though!  :-)  
: 
: Ashkenazy would mak the third tier of my great pianists lists.
: Off the top of my head (living ones with an *):
: 
: Top tier: *Sviatoslav Richter, Emil Gilels, Rudolf Serkin, Artur
: Rubinstein, Walter Gieseking, Dinu Lipatti, Wilhemn Kempff, 

And Solomon, Lhevinne, Hofmann, Godowsky, Schnabel.
: 
: Second tier: *Maurizio Pollini, *Murray Perahia, *Krystian Zimmerman,
: *Martha Argerich, *Ivan Moravec, *Daniel Barenboim, *Radu Lupu, 
: Vladimir Horowitz, *Mikhail Pletnev, William Kapell, Clifford
Curzon,

I think I'd put Curzon up in the top tier myself.

: 
: Third tier: *Vladimir Ashkenazy, *Andrei Gavrilov, *Evgeny Kissin,
: *Alfred Brendel, *Stephen Bishop-Kovacevich, *Lazar Berman, 
: Claudio Arrau, Garry Graffman, *Leon Fleisher, *Van Cliburn,
: *Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli, *Gyorg Cziffra, *Stephen Hough,
: *(I have a mental block here: A Japanese female pianist, 2nd prize
: in the 1975 Chopin competition, has recorded a wonderful set of
: Mozart Sonatas, a strong set of Mozart concerti, the Chopin Sonatas,
: the Debussy Etudes ...)

Mitsuko Uchida..
 
: Fourth tier: *Alicia de Laroccha, *Bella Davidovich, *Andras Schiff,
: Leonard Penario, Jorge Bolet, *Michael Ponti, *Tamas Vasary,
: *Minoru Nojima, *Earl Wild, *Shura Cherkassky, 
: 
: Fifth tier: *Vladimir Feltsman, *Barry Douglas, *Zoltan Kocsis,
: *Cecile Ousset, *Ivo Pogorelich, *Peter Serkin, *Emanuel Ax,
: *Phillipe Entremont, *Garick Ohlsson, *John Ogdon, *Bernard Roberts,
: *John O'Connor, *Ronald Smith, 

Cannot agree about Ogdon. He must be on the second tier.

: Well, that's it for now ....  I'll think about it some more ..... :-)
: 
: 
: > Just my opinion.  Think I'll put some Sviatoslav on and float to heaven...
:  
: Put on his Schubert D960!  

Damned right!

--
Real:  Deryk Barker, Computer Science Dept., Camosun College, Victoria B.C.
Email: (dbarker@spang.camosun.bc.ca)
Phone: +1 604 370 4452
Newsgroups: rec.music.classical