# Great Living Pianists



## Humidor

Well? Whatchy'all thank? Young, old, new, matured, whatever. Who would you say are, or are going to be the great pianists of our time? Or do you just think everything sucks and classical is dead on the whole. Anyways yea. Anyone that comes to mind, feel free to post away without judgement or scrutiny. Can't wait to see what you all think  :tiphat:

P.S. What do you guys think of Sokolov? I don't know what to make of him


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## opus55

Brendel.. but he retired, right?


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## mensch

I think Leslie Howard qualifies, partly because of his enormous Liszt cycle. Marc-André Hamelin because of his choice in repertoire and his position an old-fashioned virtuoso.

I'm not sure Steven Osborne and Paul Lewis count as great but I love many of their recordings.


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## Rasa

Sokolov blew me off my socks when I heard him.


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## Ravndal

Lupu, Zimmermann, Perreia, Leonskaja, Slåttebrekk, Steen-Nökleberg, Pogorelich, Sokolov, Argerich, Crossley


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## Webernite

I like Perahia and Sokolov, although Perahia's recordings seem to be better than his live performances.


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## Ravndal

i forgot to mention kovacevich and jando


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## Ukko

Sokolov. Hamelin.


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## Mephistopheles

There are a great number of fantastic pianists whose recordings I will cherish for decades, but the title of "Great" tends to be reserved for only a handful each century, as we look back and think who epitomised the art. It's almost impossible to tell who will take that spot, but the safest bet is no doubt Argerich.


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## moody

Mephistopheles said:


> There are a great number of fantastic pianists whose recordings I will cherish for decades, but the title of "Great" tends to be reserved for only a handful each century, as we look back and think who epitomised the art. It's almost impossible to tell who will take that spot, but the safest bet is no doubt Argerich.


You are right on both counts and cetainly I find it bizarre that a pianist becomes great by recording a lot of Liszt---he's got a long way to go.
As for Perahia he's the only artist I ever walked out on.


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## moody

It is not a good idea to bandy the word "great" around too easily. there are not many greats in any sphere of activity.
When it comes to pianists dexterity of fingers does not make a "great" there is more to it than that.
I would think that the followng might be called great:

Rachmaninoff,Busoni,Moritz Rosenthal,Josef Lhevinne,Percy Grainger,Artur Schnabel.Alfred Cortot, Walter Gieseking,William Backhaus, Egon Petri,Horowitz,Claudio Arrau,Edith Farnadi, Lili Kraus, Annie Fischer.Shura Cherkassky, Rudolf Serkin.

No doubt I've missed a few but there are not many.


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## Turangalîla

Webernite said:


> I like Perahia and Sokolov, although Perahia's recordings seem to be better than his live performances.


I heard Perahia in Vancouver last year-the live performance absolutely blew me away! I have never heard Sokolov live, but all of his recordings blow me away too.


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## Klavierspieler

Schiff, Zimerman, Perahia, Sokolov, Pressler, Pollini.


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## Rasa

I think it would be wrong to nominate pianists that you haven't heard live. Can we scrap all those?


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## Webernite

CarterJohnsonPiano said:


> I heard Perahia in Vancouver last year-the live performance absolutely blew me away! I have never heard Sokolov live, but all of his recordings blow me away too.


Well, I've never heard Perahia live. I've just listened to recordings of him playing live.


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## mensch

moody said:


> I find it bizarre that a pianist becomes great by recording a lot of Liszt---he's got a long way to go.


Yes, if it were that simple you would be right. He didn't simply record a lot of Liszt, the quality of Howard's entire cycle is great. Also, he's still alive, people like Busoni or Kraus are a bit challenged in that regard. 

I think being a great pianist goes further then just fantastic playing. People like Hamelin or (the sadly deceased) John Ogdon are/were also actively popularizing forgotten composers, or at least attempting to. Argerich is justly famous for her interpretations.


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## Lisztian

mensch said:


> Yes, if it were that simple you would be right. He didn't simply record a lot of Liszt, the quality of Howard's entire cycle is great.


I disagree with this. I think that the quality of the cycle overall is very average - from bad to good, but very rarely great. I respect the man as much as any pianist and he has done a great service to Liszt, but I don't think he is a great pianist.


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## StlukesguildOhio

I think it would be wrong to nominate pianists that you haven't heard live. Can we scrap all those?

Now that's just dumb. Do I also have to remove Maria Callas, Joan Sutherland, and Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau from my list of "great" singers because I've never heard them perform live?


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## Ukko

Rasa said:


> I think it would be wrong to nominate pianists that you haven't heard live. Can we scrap all those?


No. Rubes get to have their say.


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## Turangalîla

opus55 said:


> Brendel.. but he retired, right?


He has retired for sure; he may have passed away by now.

(Side note: I am studying with a student of Brendel! It is an amazing feeling, to be Brendel's grand-student!)


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## Turangalîla

^ Nevermind, he is still alive. But I think that he has retired.


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## StlukesguildOhio

Among the living pianists that I have the most... and most played recordings I would count:

Alfred Brendel 
Claudio Arrau 
Murray Perahia
Maurizio Pollini
Angela Hewitt
András Schiff
Van Cliburn
Martha Argerich
Stephen Hough
Marc-Andre Hamelin
Krystian Zimmerman
Stephen Kovacevich
Grigori Sokolov
Mitsuko Uchida
Pascal Rogé
Jean-Efflam Bavouzet
Vladimir Ashkenazy
Radu Lupu

It really comes down to the repertoire being performed/recorded. And in many instances, my first choice for a given composer or work is not one of these living pianists but rather one of the "greats" of the past: 

Glenn Gould
Georges Cziffra
Walter Gieseking
Emil Gilels
Vladimir Horowitz
Friedrich Gulda
Wilhelm Kempff
Alicia de Larrocha
Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli
Sviatoslav Richter
Rosalyn Tureck
Earl Wild
Arthur Rubinstein
Artur Schnabel
Rudolf Serkin
Vladimir Sofronitsky
Solomon
Alexis Weissenberg
Dinu Lipatti
Leon Fleisher... etc...


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## Turangalîla

^ That was a very good list.


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## Ukko

CarterJohnsonPiano said:


> ^ That was a very good list.


But not significantly selective.


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## Turangalîla

Hilltroll72 said:


> But not significantly selective.


No, rather, it was fairly exhaustive. But it will be a good reference for others to choose from.


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## joen_cph

Among the deceased, these haven´t been mentioned though:

Maria Yudina
William Kapell
Ernst Levy
Ignaz Friedman
Bruce Hungerford
Jean Doyen
Tatiana Nikoleyeva
Beveridge Webster
Samuil Feinberg

Among the living, thinkers like:
Ivan Moravec
Anton Kuerti


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## moody

Rasa said:


> I think it would be wrong to nominate pianists that you haven't heard live. Can we scrap all those?


I don't know who you are aiming this at,but if it's me these were examples and I never did get to see some of them. but the question is about pianists of today.
I 'm not sure there are any great ones,but as has been said Argerich may well qualify.


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## moody

CarterJohnsonPiano said:


> ^ That was a very good list.


Yes we live on blooming lists here,we have lists for every occasion and some non-occasions.


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## Rasa

StlukesguildOhio said:


> I think it would be wrong to nominate pianists that you haven't heard live. Can we scrap all those?
> 
> Now that's just dumb. Do I also have to remove Maria Callas, Joan Sutherland, and Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau from my list of "great" singers because I've never heard them perform live?


Absolutely. Judging the quality of a preformer you haven't heard life is out of the question.

And for the love of god, learn to use quotes.


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## moody

Rasa said:


> Absolutely. Judging the quality of a preformer you haven't heard life is out of the question.
> 
> And for the love of god, learn to use quotes.


Well,I think you are wrong--it would be preferable but in many cases impossible,ie I think Rachmaninoff was a wonderful pianist but only from recordings and piano rolls.


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## mensch

Rasa said:


> Absolutely. Judging the quality of a preformer you haven't heard life is out of the question.


You've wrote that twice and I'm curious as to why you think that.

Live performances often add that extra sparkle, but when you sit in a concert hall with awful acoustics or have a rather awkward seating position, the live performance might not be the ultimate way to judge the quality of a performance. Which I think is just as much a downside as the possible negative aspects of judging a performer by his or her recordings.


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## Rasa

I feel that though the ability of a preformer to deliver live is essential to him being considered a great pianist.

I don't know what people's "obsession" with recordings is. Music is meant to be played and heard live.


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## Ravndal

Once upon a time it was. Now it's not. 

Things change...


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## StlukesguildOhio

Rasa- I think it would be wrong to nominate pianists that you haven't heard live. Can we scrap all those?

_StlukesguildOhio- Now that's just dumb. Do I also have to remove Maria Callas, Joan Sutherland, and Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau from my list of "great" singers because I've never heard them perform live?_



Rasa said:


> Absolutely. Judging the quality of a preformer you haven't heard life is out of the question.
> 
> And for the love of god, learn to use quotes.


I suppose you can stick with your argument... as ridiculous as it may be. While there is something to the live performance that can never be wholly captured in a recording, most of us are probably not quite ready to ditch all our CDs (LPs, 78s, and digital downloads). What you have ignored is the fact that performing well live isn't the ultimate measure of musical merit. Nor is it possible to even begin to explore the world of music live that we can enjoy in recordings. How many singers and soloists of the distant past are little more than a name... if not wholly forgotten... for the simple reason that there is no record left of their efforts? I greatly enjoy listening to performers and singers who were retired or dead before I was born as a result of this technology. It is these recordings through which we will continue to appreciate the achievements of past musicians and base our judgments on... surely not upon the word of mouth of someone who once saw them live.


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## Rasa

That's the beauty of the thing. The live performance you heard once is a unique experience. It's even unique to every different person that was in the concert room at the time.


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## Vaneyes

Listing dead or has-been pianists doesn't do much for me, or them, or my recording collection...so, here's a (short) list of relative youngsters, which I consider to already be Living Piano Greats and whose new releases (if and when) I'm likely to consider buying.

Anderszewski, Angelich, Bavouzet, Berezovsky, Demidenko, Hamelin, Lewis, Mustonen, Sudbin, Tharaud.


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## moody

Rasa said:


> I feel that though the ability of a preformer to deliver live is essential to him being considered a great pianist.
> 
> I don't know what people's "obsession" with recordings is. Music is meant to be played and heard live.


If you've managed to get around the world and listen to all the best pianists live you must be very wealthy. I can assure you that it would be out of the question for most of the young people here---and most of the older people too probably.


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## moody

Vaneyes said:


> Listing dead or has-been pianists doesn't do much for me, or them, or my recording collection...so, here's a (short) list of relative youngsters, which I consider to already be Living Piano Greats and whose new releases (if and when) I'm likely to consider buying.
> 
> Anderszewski, Angelich, Bavouzet, Berezovsky, Demidenko, Hamelin, Lewis, Mustonen, Sudbin, Tharaud.


Nobody has been printing lists of dead or "has-beens" (what on earth do you mean by that?) in answer to the thread,I gave some examples of the past.
Furthermore if you've managed to print off ten "greats" just like that I am afraid you don't understand the meaning of the word.
I also cannot imagine considering either Hamelin or Lewis as more than "good".


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## Ukko

Rasa said:


> I feel that though the ability of a preformer to deliver live is essential to him being considered a great pianist.
> 
> I don't know what people's "obsession" with recordings is. Music is meant to be played and heard live.


I agree. If I were a millionaire I'd be doing a lot of it. I ain't, so recordings will have to do.


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## Turangalîla

Rasa said:


> Absolutely. Judging the quality of a preformer you haven't heard life is out of the question.
> 
> And for the love of god, learn to use quotes.





Rasa said:


> I feel that though the ability of a preformer to deliver live is essential to him being considered a great pianist.
> 
> I don't know what people's "obsession" with recordings is. Music is meant to be played and heard live.


Indeed, music is meant to be played and heard live. And I do have less respect for pianists that do not perform live or do it very little. But it is silly to say that one cannot judge a pianist's playing if they have not heard them in concert. Recordings are another art form in themself, and a lot about a pianist's playing can be learned from them.


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## Rasa

Your accomplishment in recording may be as great as it wants to be, it's only ever a part of being a great pianist.


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## tdc

I think every classical piano preformer I've ever listened to on my recordings is great, so theer. (except Glenn Gould).


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## Dongiovanni

Rasa said:


> Sokolov blew me off my socks when I heard him.


I heard him half a year ago during a live performance. I had never heard him play before. A.o. he played Mozart sonata in a. He had the same effect on me ! He walks on the stage, and starts playing immediately. Jaw dropping performance. As long as he got applause, he kept giving encores ! We had 6 !!! Never before have I experienced a more remarkable performance by a pianist. So yes, he he should be in this list for sure.


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## Vaneyes

moody said:


> Nobody has been printing lists of dead or "has-beens" (what on earth do you mean by that?) in answer to the thread,I gave some examples of the past.
> Furthermore if you've managed to print off ten "greats" just like that I am afraid you don't understand the meaning of the word.
> I also cannot imagine considering either Hamelin or Lewis as more than "good".


I didn't mean to get under your skin, but now that I've learned I did, I'm glad I did.:tiphat:


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## moody

Vaneyes said:


> I didn't mean to get under your skin, but now that I've learned I did, I'm glad I did.:tiphat:


Don't worry about it, you never have before and I've always rather respected your posts so I was somewhat surprised by that one---any way I'm fairly thick skinned so I suppose I'll recover.


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## Vaneyes

Rasa said:


> I feel that though the ability of a preformer to deliver live is essential to him being considered a great pianist.
> 
> I don't know what people's "obsession" with recordings is. Music is meant to be played and heard live.


As has been demonstrated for a hundred and more years now, live, live-recorded, and studio-recorded are all valid. Music is communicated and listened to in/from all environs. It does what it does. There is no *correct *way. There are preferences, that's all.

In some jest, I might add "live" is certainly good validation for guarding against the Joyce Hatto types, and too creative recording engineers.


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## Crystal

Lang, Perahia, Wang, Schiff, Barenboim, Argerich and Uchida


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## Pugg

Trifonov, Sudbin, Bertrand Chamayou, Alexandre Tharaud, Barenboim, Uchida, Zimerman, Zacharias for starters


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## Sekhar

My piano listening experience is limited, but I've been extremely impressed by Mitsuko Uchida and Maria João Pires, mainly for Mozart pieces.


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## PeterF

Interesting that two of my favorite living pianists have not been mentioned. Both have recorded quite a bit too.

Rudolf Buchbinder
Nelson Freire

Other living favorites include:
Pires
Perahia
Argerich
Ax
Sudbin


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## Pugg

Tonight I am going to see/ hear Daniil Trifonov, can't wait.....:angel:


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## Zeus

Honestly, I think most pianists known nowaday will pass on to be remembered, and many "growing stars" (Trifonov, Eric Lu perhaps, and others) are being recognized much sooner. In general terms, I think in the future there will be a much higher "palette" of artists known, instead of the typical "1st class performers" which dominated the scene during the last centuries (from Mozart to Liszt to Rubinstein)


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## Josquin13

An overview of living pianists:

I tend to associate musicians, including pianists, with specific composers & works: so here's a list of today's pianists that I've liked in specific repertory, & I suppose you could say the more extensive their repertory (that I've enjoyed, at least) maybe the 'greater' the pianist? Note that *=a personal rave:

Dubravka Tomsic--Bach*, Scarlatti*, Mozart*, Chopin*, Beethoven, Brahms,, Liszt, etc.--arguably the finest & perhaps most unjustly ignored pianist today. Artur Rubinstein called Tomsic "a perfect pianist". She was his only protege. Her Bach, Scarlatti, Chopin, and Mozart fully demonstrate why Rubinstein so admired her playing, as they're exceptional. Tomsic's Pilz label recordings are usually dirt cheap (under $1), and come in very good sound (German pressings). That a major label has never signed Tomsic to a contract (except the now defunct Koch label), while hyping lesser pianists, is shameful.

Nelson Freire--Brahms*, Debussy*, Liszt*, Schumann*, Chopin, Beethoven, Villa-Lobos*, etc.
Maria-Joao Pires--Mozart (especially on Denon*), Schubert* (especially in Schubert's 4 hand music & Moments Musicaux), Schumann*, Chopin (especially her Nocturnes*), Bach, Beethoven, etc.
Ivo Pogorelich--Ravel (Gaspard de la Nuit*), Prokofiev (Piano Sonata No. 6*), Scriabin*, Haydn*, Scarlatti*, Schumann (Toccata*), Bach*, Chopin, Mussorgsky, & Beethoven.
Roland Pontinen--Satie*, Chopin*, Schumann (Violin Sonatas 1-3 with violinist Ulf Wallin*), Scriabin, Tubin, Reger, Busoni, Stravinsky, Schnittke, Bäck.
Rafal Blechacz--Bach*, Chopin, Szymanowski, Debussy. I expect great things from Blechacz in the future.
Helene Grimaud--Schumann, Brahms*, Beethoven, Rachmaninov, Ravel, Liszt.
Elisso Wirssaladze--Schumann*, Prokofiev*, Chopin, Schubert.
Igor Levit--Beethoven*, Bach.
Georges Pludermacher (a student of Jacques Fevrier)--Ravel*, Debussy. I haven't heard his complete Schubert or Beethoven sets.
Bruno-Leonardo Gelber (a student of Marguerite Long)--Beethoven*, Brahms*.
Elisabeth Leonskaja--Schubert, Brahms, Chopin. 
Elizabeth Rich--Mozart*, Haydn*, Brahms*. Another unfairly neglected female pianist. Rich doesn't even have a Wiki page!, and yet her Connoisseur Society Mozart Piano Sonata series is among the finest I've heard in recent years.
Krystian Zimerman--Mozart*, Chopin*, Lutoslawski*, Bacewicz*, Schubert, Liszt, Ravel, Debussy. 
Alain Planes (a student of Jacques Fevrier)--Debussy*, Ravel, Haydn. (I've not heard his Schubert & Chopin.)
Andras Schiff--Haydn*, Bartok*, Schumann, Bach, Mozart, Schubert, Beethoven (concertos*), etc.
Klara Würtz--Schumann*, Mozart, Bartok, Schubert.
Deszo Ranki--Haydn*, Schumann* (Humoreske), Bartok*, Ravel, Mozart, etc.
Andre Gavrilov--Bach, Rachmaninov*, Scriabin*, Prokofiev*, Ravel, Mozart.
Cecille Ousset (a student of Marcel Ciampi)--Rachmaninov*, Debussy, Ravel.
Malcolm Bilson--Mozart*, Haydn*, Schubert*, etc..
Virginia Black--Bach 6 Partitas*, Scarlatti*.
Dmitri Alexeev--Brahms*, Scriabin, Shostakovich (Piano Concertos*), Chopin.
Dmitri Bashkirov--Brahms* (on Harmonia Mundi). I'd like to hear his Schumann Fantasy in C.
Piotr Anderszewski--Schumann, Bach, Szymanowski.
Cyprien Katsaris--Bach, Chopin, Schumann, Liszt/Beethoven.
David Fray--Bach (keyboard concertos*, Partitas), Mozart, Schubert, Chopin, Boulez, etc.
Vladimir Feltsman--Bach, Schumann.
Tamas Vasary--Chopin (4 Impromptus*, 2 Piano Concertos*), Rachmaninov*, Mozart, Schumann, Brahms.
François Chaplin--Debussy (his complete solo piano set* & four hands/two pianos with Cassard*). I'd like to hear his Scriabin.
Gianluca Cascioli--Beethoven*, Debussy*, Webern, Boulez, Schoenberg, Ligeti.
Murray Perahia--Schumann*, Bach*, Mozart*, Mendelssohn*, Schubert, Handel.
Michel Dalberto (a student of Vlado Perlemuter)--Debussy*, Schubert*, Liszt.
Matti Raekallio--Prokofiev*.
Ivo Janssen--Bach*, Prokofiev*, Brahms*, Chopin*, Debussy*, Hindemith, Schumann, etc.
Anatol Ugorski--Scriabin, Messiaen, Beethoven, Brahms. Ugorski has the most gorgeous piano sound of any pianist today, but his interpretations can, at times, be a bit eccentric (such as his Schumann Davidsbündlertänze).
Radu Lupu--Schubert*, Debussy*, Enescu*, Brahms*, Beethoven*, Grieg, Schumann, etc.
Ronald Brautigam--Mozart, Beethoven*, Haydn, Schumann.
Jerome Lowenthal--Liszt Annes de Pelerinage*.
Ursula Oppens--Carter*, Rzewski, & an array of contemporary composers.
Paul-Badura Skoda--Beethoven*, Schubert*, Schumann, Mozart, Martin.
Alexei Lubimov--Mozart*, Debussy, Scriabin, Schubert, Beethoven, etc..
Fazil Say--Haydn*, Mozart.
Håkon Austbø--Debussy, Messiaen.
Steven Lubin--Beethoven*, Mozart*.
Philippe Cassard--Debussy (12 Etudes* & four hand/two piano works with Chaplin*).
Christine Schornsheim--Haydn*, Bach.
Christian Zacharias--Schumann*, Mozart (on EMI*), Scarlatti*, Schubert.
Angela Hewitt--Beethoven*, Bach (Toccatas*), Ravel, Schumann, Couperin, etc.
Paul Lewis--Beethoven, Schubert.
Vladimir Ashkenazy--Chopin*, Schubert*, Schumann, Beethoven, Ravel, Scriabin*, Rachmaninov*, Prokofiev.
Jean-Efflam Bavouzet--Debussy, Prokofiev (Piano Concertos*), Bartok, Ravel.
Leif Ove Andsnes--Schumann. I'd like to hear more by this pianist.
Imogen Cooper--Schubert (on Ottavo--"the Last Six Years"*), Schumann, Brahms.
Jean-Philippe Collard--Ravel, Faure, Saint-Saens.
Pasal Roge--Poulenc*, Satie*, Ravel, Debussy, Saint-Saens, Faure.
Jacques Rouvier--Debussy*, Ravel*.
Michel Beroff--Debussy*, Messiaen, Prokofiev, Liszt, Bartok.
Muza Rubackyte--Liszt Annes du Pelerinage*.
Emmanuel Ax--Brahms, Haydn.
Louis Lortie--Schumann, Chopin, Ravel, Liszt*. I haven't heard Lortie's Beethoven or Faure.
Jean-Claude Pennetier--Faure.
Jean-Yves Thibaudet--Ravel*, Debussy, Satie.
Pierre-Laurent Aimard--Messiaen*, Ligeti*, Carter (Night Fantasies*), Ravel, Bach, Debussy. Aimard is at his best in modern & contemporary music, IMO.
Kathryn Stott (a student of Debussy's friend, Marcel Ciampi)--Koechlin*, Ravel*, Debussy*. I'd like to hear her Faure recordings.
Miceal O'Rourke (another student of Marcel Ciampi)--Debussy*, Field*.
Anne Queffélec--Dutilleux*, Satie, Debussy, Ravel*, Scarlatti, Faure.
Michael Korstick--Koechlin*, Debussy, Liszt. I've not heard his Beethoven.
Jos van Immerseel--Mozart*, Debussy.
Arthur Schoonderwoerd--Debussy*, Beethoven, Mozart.
Daniel Isoir--Mozart*.
Valery Afannasiev (a student of Emil Gilels)--Bach (on Denon*), Brahms, Schubert.
Francois-Frederic Guy--Beethoven.
Florent Boffard--Debussy (Etudes*), Schoenberg, Boulez.
Mitsuko Uchida--Mozart, Debussy.
Nicholas Angelich--Brahms.
Bernard Pommier--Beethoven.
Stephen Kovacevich--Beethoven (Diabelli Variations, Bagatelles).
Philippe Bianconi (a student of Gaby Casadesus)--Ravel*, Debussy*.
Martha Argerich--Schumann*, Bach, Ravel, Rachmaninov, Prokofiev, Chopin.
Maurizio Pollini--Beethoven*, Bartok, Prokofiev, Schoenberg, Webern, Nono*, Debussy--I tend to think Pollini is at his best in music of a high intellectual content, as opposed to Romantic music, though of course many love his Chopin, Schubert, and Schumann.
Konstantin Lifschitz--his Denon recordings, especially in Bach.
Eric le Sage--Schumann.
Peter Hill--Messiaen*, Bach*.
Nikolai Demidenko--Schumann (Novelletten), Bach-Busoni, Rachmaninov.
Yvegeny Sudbin--Scarlatti, Ravel, Scriabin.
Josep Colom--Mompou.
Adolf Pla--Mompou.
Jenny Lin--Mompou.
Boris Giltburg--Schumann, Prokofiev, Shostakovich, Rachmaninov.
Anne-Marie McDermott--Prokofiev.
Pavel Egorov--Schumann.
Mikhail Rudy--Rachmaninov, Brahms, Ravel*.
Marita Viitasalo--Sibelius, Debussy.
Olaf Höjer--Satie.
Cynthia Raim (a student of Miecyslaw Horszowski)--Schuman, Brahms*, Ravel.

I don't know the piano playing of the following pianists well, but they are highly regarded:

Rudolf Buchbinder
Christoph Eshenbach
Grigory Sokolov
Lars Vogt
Garrick Ohlsson
Craig Sheppard
Roger Woodward
Mikhail Pletnev
Marc Andre Hamelin
Stephen Hough
Steven Osbourne

There are also a bunch of fine young Italian pianists on the scene today, some of whom I've liked (in addition to Cascioli, who I mentioned above), such as:

Pietro de Maria (a student of Maria Tipo's)--Bach Well-tempered Clavier (Book 2*).
Andrea Bacchetti--Bach (especially his French Suites* on Sony), Mozart, Scarlatti.
Maurizio Baglini--Liszt*, Chopin*, Scarlatti, Schumann.
Enrico Pace--his Bach & Beethoven Violin Sonata recordings with violinists Zimmerman & Kavakos.
Francesco Piemontesi--Debussy, Mozart, Schumann.
Cédric Prescia--Bach, Schumann.
Francesco Libetta--I haven't heard much of Libetta's playing, but what I did hear was excellent.
Alessio Bax--I've yet to hear his playing, but he has a good reputation.

Etc.

In addition, most recently, I've been impressed with recordings by a number young pianists--Heinrich Alpers (Ravel & Schumann), Anna Vinnitskaya, Olga Pashchenko, Hannes Minnaar, Krystian Bezuidenhout (Mozart*, Schubert), Caspar Frantz (Bach & Haydn), Lisa de la Salle, Bertrand Chamayou (Ravel), Romain Descharmes (Saint-Saens), Anna Malikova (Scriabin), Varduhi Yeritsyan (Scriabin), and Julian Gorus (Liszt).

Though I've yet to explore the recordings of Nelson Goerner, Daniil Trifonov, Lucas Debargue, Yury Martynov, David Jalbert, Martin Stadtfeld, Beatrice Rana, Paolo Giacometti, Martin Helmchen, Benjamin Grosvenor, Bernd Glemser, Maria Kodama, Stewart Goodyear, Sira Hernández, Tzimon Barto, Janina Fialkowska, Olli Mustonen, Yuja Wang, & others.

Those are all the current pianists that come to mind at the moment, though I'm sure I've forgotten more than a few pianists.

Sadly, I wish I could add the late Zoltan Kocsis to this list, who up until his recent passing, was certainly among the finest pianists in the world--for his Liszt*, Mozart*, Debussy*, Beethoven*, Bartok*, Haydn*, Rachmaninov, etc..

I also wish I could add Alfred Brendel, who is retired now--for his excellent Haydn*, Mozart*, Beethoven*, Schubert*, Liszt*, and a single exceptional Bach recording*.

I'd like to add Thierry de Brunhoff too, whose Schumann* & Chopin* is first class, but de Brunhoff chose to enter a monastery during the prime of his career, I gather.

Likewise, I wish the American pianist Agustin Anievas had had more of a recording career! His Chopin Etudes* are among my favorite recordings of those works, along with his Brahms*, Liszt*, and Rachmaninov*. I'd like to hear his recent Schumann/Chopin disc.


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## Phil loves classical

Kovacevich, Bronffman. Current performers like Lang Lang, Yuja Wang, Hamelin are all technique and contrast nowadays, and hard to find real musical qualities to me. Balance is gone.


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## BiscuityBoyle

Of the living, I find Pletnev, Koroliov, Aimard and Anderszewski the most interesting


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## Aleksandr Rachkofiev

A few that I like that haven't been mentioned here by many (Aside from our friend Josquin13, who has given us essentially all we could ever need!) are Yefim Bronfman, Arcadi Volodos, Jean-Yves Thibaudet, Bertrand Chamayou, and Garrick Ohlsson. Of these, I'd say I've been most impressed with Bronfman - I adore his Prokofiev (the Concerti are up there with Argerich, and the Sonatas are good too), and his Brahms Piano Concerti are terrific as well.


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## flamencosketches

Some excellent living pianists that come to mind: Martha Argerich, Mitsuko Uchida, Marc-André Hamelin, Idil Biret, András Schiff, Alfred Brendel, Maurizio Pollini, Evgeny Kissin, Jenö Jandó, Murray Perahia, Pascal Rogé, Stephen Hough, Vladimir Ashkenazy (don't know how much piano he plays these days, seems more active as a conductor)... surely blanking on many.


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## Bourdon

flamencosketches said:


> Some excellent living pianists that come to mind: Martha Argerich, Mitsuko Uchida, Marc-André Hamelin, Idil Biret, András Schiff, Alfred Brendel, Maurizio Pollini, Evgeny Kissin, Jenö Jandó, Murray Perahia, Pascal Rogé, Stephen Hough, Vladimir Ashkenazy (don't know how much piano he plays these days, seems more active as a conductor)... surely blanking on many.


Brendel does not play anymore.


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## Rogerx

> *Alexandre Kantorow *wins at the 16th International Tchaikovsky Competition
> by Chris O'Reilly
> 
> Alexandre KantorowThe results of the piano category in the XVI International Tchaikovsky Competition were announced last night, with First Prize and Gold Medal going to the 22-year-old Frenchman Alexandre Kantorow, who opted for Brahms and Tchaikovsky's Second Piano Concertos for his final round with the State Academic Symphony Orchestra and Vasily Petrenko on Wednesday evening (all other finalists chose to perform Tchaikovsky's more popular First Concerto).
> 
> Born into a musical family in Clermont-Ferrand in 1997, Kantorow currently studies at the Conservatoire de Paris, and already has a substantial discography under his belt: he made his debut on BIS in 2015 with a recording of the Liszt Piano Concertos (conducted by his father Jean-Jacques) which prompted Fanfare to describe him as 'Liszt reincarnated', and BBC Music Magazine to note that 'Kantorow's approach rejects bombast in favour of an equable, mellow-toned artistry that's admirable in itself'. An equally impressive solo recital, à la Russe, followed two years later: featuring Rachmaninov's Piano Sonata No. 1, Guido Agosti's solo piano arrangement of Stravinsky's Firebird Suite and Balakirev's notoriously fiendish Islamey, the album was one of our Recordings of the Week, with Katherine observing that 'when bravura calls, Kantorow will leave you agog'. (You can read her full review of the recording here). He's currently partway through a series of the Saint-Saëns piano concertos (again with Jean-Jacques on the rostrum), with another solo album and a new concerto dedicated to him by the composer and conductor José Serebrier also in the pipeline.
> 
> Silver medals went to Japan's Mao Fujita and Russia's Dmitry Shishkin (who recorded a Chopin album on the Frederick Chopin Institute's own label in 2016), with a special award for 'Courage and Restraint' going to Chinese pianist An Tianxu after an administrative error resulted in the orchestra launching into Rachmaninov's Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini rather than the Tchaikovsky concerto he was expecting.
> 
> Established in 1958, the International Tchaikovsky Competition takes place every four years in Moscow (and latterly St Petersburg), with former victors in the piano category including Van Cliburn, Grigory Sokolov, John Ogdon, Mikhail Pletnev, and Daniil Trifonov; the winner of the 1998 Gold Medal, Denis Matsuev, chaired this year's jury, which also included Nelson Freire, Barry Douglas, Menahem Pressler, and Freddy Kempf.
> 
> Thanks to medici.tv, you can watch Kantorow's semi-final recital (which includes the Stravinsky/Agosti transcription mentioned above) here and his performance in the concerto round here - and until Monday we're offering 20% off his three BIS recordings.


Just saying! ..................


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## flamencosketches

Bourdon said:


> Brendel does not play anymore.


He's still alive ¯\_(ツ)_/¯


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## Judith

Do like Stephen Hough. He glides beautifully and not a showman


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## Larkenfield

Josquin13: Likewise, I wish the American pianist Agustin Anievas had had more of a recording career! His Chopin Etudes* are among my favorite recordings of those works, along with his Brahms*, Liszt*, and Rachmaninov*. I'd like to hear his recent Schumann/Chopin disc.
---
Hear hear. He recorded some Schubert Impromptus too that I thought were terrific. I enjoyed everything I heard from him and then he seemed to drop below the radar. He played without ego.

Interview:


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## ahinton

No mention of Powell or Ullén yet, I note...


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