# Best pianist for each great composer?



## Guest (Jul 19, 2013)

For instance, 
Chopin - Rubinstein
Rachmaninoff - Ashkenazy
Debussy - Michelangeli
etc.

I'm particularly interested to hear people's opinions on Schubert and Schumann performers.


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## StlukesguildOhio (Dec 25, 2006)

Rachmaninoff (Concertos)- Earl Wild
Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto no. 1- Van Cliburn
Debussy- Jean-Efflam Bavouzet, Walter Gieseking, Pascal Rogé
J.S. Bach- Glenn Gould, Andras Schiff, Angela Hewitt, Rosalyn Turreck, Murray Perahia
Haydn- Alfred Brendel, Marc-André Hamelin, Emanuel Ax, Jean-Efflam Bavouzet, Leif Ove Andsnes
Schubert- Wilhelm Kempff, Alfred Brendel


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## Air (Jul 19, 2008)

I'm going to have fun with this. I can only speak from my own experience, but I tried to include a wide variety of great pianists. A few - Hofmann, Lhevinne, Rosenthal, Friedman, Backhaus - I am nowhere near familiar enough with to include.

Scarlatti - Michelangeli, Horowitz
Bach - Gould, Fischer, Tureck
Rameau - Sokolov
Haydn - Brendel
Mozart - hard to say
Beethoven - Schnabel, Serkin, Gilels, Arrau
Weber - Arrau
Schubert - Richter, Schnabel, Brendel
Mendelssohn - Perahia
Chopin - Cortot, Rubinstein
Liszt - Cziffra, Arrau
Alkan - Hamelin
Schumann - Rachmaninoff, Cortot, Richter
Brahms - Katchen, Gilels
Grieg - Gilels
Mussorgsky - Richter, Kapell
Tchaikovsky - Gilels
Rachmaninoff - Rachmaninoff, Horowitz, Moiseiwitsch
Medtner - Moiseiwitsch, Hamelin
Albeniz - de Larrocha
Granados - de Larrocha
de Falla - Rubinstein
Debussy - Michelangeli, Gieseking
Ravel - Michelangeli, Perlemuter
Delius - Moiseiwitsch
Scriabin - Sofronitsky
Ives - Aimard
Stravinsky - Pollini
Prokofiev - Richter, Argerich
Bartok - Sandor
Messiaen - Aimard
Ligeti - Aimard


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## Blancrocher (Jul 6, 2013)

Some others: 

Franck - Moravec
Shostakovich - Nikolaeva (on Melodiya); and Richter in the half dozen or so he recorded. 
Messiaen - Aimard

When it comes to Schubert and Schumann, I find that variety is the spice of life. In addition to the names mentioned, I'd seek out Radu Lupu's Schubert and Michelangeli's live and studio recordings of Schumann.


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## ptr (Jan 22, 2013)

^^ Ain't variety always the spice of life, I'd probably hurt myself seriously if I had to pour ketchup on everything I eat, same goes for music and interpretation! Someone once said (cant remember who, but it stuck with me); Having something/someone that is "the best" trivialises the object of desire! Pluralism is what makes anything great!

/ptr


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## TrevBus (Jun 6, 2013)

I am only going to list 1 pianist and 2 composers. Aldo Ciccolini and Saint-Saens/Satie. Ciccolini is a pianist rarely talked about but I feel should. Those 2 composers(as far as GREAT, that is for others to decided. Me, I love them)and there piano music is some of the best and Ciccolini, IMO, one of their greatest interpreters.


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## Blancrocher (Jul 6, 2013)

I agree, ptr--but I did my best!


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## HaydnBearstheClock (Jul 6, 2013)

StlukesguildOhio said:


> Rachmaninoff (Concertos)- Earl Wild
> Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto no. 1- Van Cliburn
> Debussy- Jean-Efflam Bavouzet, Walter Gieseking, Pascal Rogé
> J.S. Bach- Glenn Gould, Andras Schiff, Angela Hewitt, Rosalyn Turreck, Murray Perahia
> ...


cool that you mention Ax and Andsnes for Haydn - I was thinking of buying the Andsnes CD but it's more expensive and offers less sonatas than the Ax set (Sony Classics).


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## Op.123 (Mar 25, 2013)

This is impossible as I like different pianists for every composers different pieces.


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## Klavierspieler (Jul 16, 2011)

Schumann - Wilhelm Kempff, Sviatoslav Richter
Beethoven - Andras Schiff, Wilhelm Kempff
Chopin - Artur Rubinstein, Krystian Zimerman
Medtner - Hamish Milne
Shostakovich - Tatiana Nikolayeva
Bartok - Andras Schiff, Bela Bartok


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## Op.123 (Mar 25, 2013)

Here are a few of my general opinions but I cannot list them all because of the same reason I have posted before. 

Beethoven – Piano and Orchestra: Serkin (Concertos 2 & 4), Arrau (Concertos 1, 3 & 5). Solo Piano: Arrau (Piano sonatas).
Brahms – Piano and Orchestra: Serkin (Concerto 2), Arrau (Concerto 1). 
Chopin – Piano and Orchestra: Zimerman (Piano concertos), Arrau (Other works for Piano and Orchestra). Solo Piano: Zimerman (Ballades & Fantaisie), Pollini (etudes & Scherzos), Blechacz (Preludes). Pires (Nocturnes), Ashkenazy (Mazurkas).
Grieg – Piano and Orchestra: Entremont. 
Liszt – Piano and Orchestra: Richter (Concertos), Solomon (Hungarian Fantasy)
Mendelssohn – Piano and Orchestra: Serkin (Concerto 2), Shelley (Concerto 1).
Mozart – Piano and Orchestra: Serkin (Concerto 20), Richter (Concerto 22), Brendel (Various Concertos), Galling (Various Concertos), Frankl (Various concertos), Klien (Various Concertos), Haebler (Concerto 13).
Rachmaninoff – Piano and Orchestra: Shelley. Solo Piano: Richter (Various Preludes).
Schumann – Piano and Orchestra: Serkin (Piano concerto & Introduction and Allegro Appassionato Op. 92). Solo Piano: Richter (Fantaisie, Toccata, Waldszenen & Humoreske), Arrau (Carnaval). Chamber – Piano: Serkin (Quintet & Violin sonata Op. 105).
Schubert – Solo Piano: Richter (Wanderer fantasy), Arrau (Moments Musicaux). Chamber – Piano: Richter (Trout Quintet).


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## Weston (Jul 11, 2008)

Schiff for Schubert surely.


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## Sudonim (Feb 28, 2013)

Weston said:


> Schiff for Schubert surely.


If you shay sho, Weston.


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## schuberkovich (Apr 7, 2013)

Weston said:


> Schiff for Schubert surely.


I find it very bland


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## ShropshireMoose (Sep 2, 2013)

Scarlatti- Horowitz, Yevgeny Sudbin.
Haydn- Yevgeny Sudbin, Wilhelm Backhaus, Paderewski (for a beautiful performance of the F Minor Variations)
Mozart- Vlado Perlemuter (complete Sonatas, not well known enough this recording), Kempff (various concerti), Schnabel.
Beethoven- Solomon, Schnabel, Gilels (Piano Concerto No.4 w. Philharmonia/Ludwig), Backhaus, Cherkassky (Sonata Op.27 No.1), Horowitz (32 Vars. in C Minor), Moiseiwitsch (who should have recorded much more).
Schubert- Schnabel, Kempff, Rudolf Firkusny, Clifford Curzon. 
Chopin- Cortot, Moiseiwitsch, Pouishnoff, Vlado Perlemuter, Percy Grainger (Sonata No.3, a more spontaneous and bracing performance has never been committed to disc).
Liszt- Horowitz, Louis Kentner, Georges Cziffra, Cherkassky, Emil Von Sauer, Arrau, Egon Petri.
Schumann- Cortot (esp. the 1934 Concerto w. LPO/Ronald), Moiseiwitsch (oh that there were more from him, but the Fantasie is one of the greatest of all piano recordings), Horowitz (Kreisleriana), Cherkassky.
Brahms- Solomon, Moiseiwitsch (Handel Variations), Backhaus, Clifford Curzon.
Debussy- Moiseiwitsch, Horowitz, Gieseking.
Ravel- Arthur Rubinstein, Vlado Perlemuter, Dinu Lipatti (Alborada del Grazioso).
Delius- Moiseiwitsch (Piano Concerto w. BBCSO/Sargent- no better performance exists!).
Rachmaninoff- Moura Lympany (1st Concerto w. Philharmonia/Malko), Moiseiwitsch (2nd Concerto and Paganini Rhapsody w. Philharmonia/Rignold plus any of M's other Rachmaninoff recordings), Martha Argerich (3rd Concerto w.BerlinRSO/ Chailly), Michelangeli (4th Concerto w. Philharmonia/Gracis) and of course, the composer's own recordings. Horowitz (3rd Concerto- any of 'em! and 2nd Sonata).
Well that's a rough guide- and just done quickly off the top of my head- no doubt 3 million others I should have mentioned will occur to me the minute I post this. Ne'er mind, eh??


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## StlukesguildOhio (Dec 25, 2006)

Schiff for Schubert surely.

That would be Kempff, Uchida, Brendel, and Solomon.


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## Vaneyes (May 11, 2010)

ShropshireMoose said:


> Scarlatti- Horowitz, Yevgeny Sudbin.
> Haydn- Yevgeny Sudbin, Wilhelm Backhaus, Paderewski (for a beautiful performance of the F Minor Variations)
> Mozart- Vlado Perlemuter (complete Sonatas, not well known enough this recording), Kempff (various concerti), Schnabel.
> Beethoven- Solomon, Schnabel, Gilels (Piano Concerto No.4 w. Philharmonia/Ludwig), Backhaus, Cherkassky (Sonata Op.27 No.1), Horowitz (32 Vars. in C Minor), Moiseiwitsch (who should have recorded much more).
> ...


Lots of spiderwebs amongst, but I do like the mention of two newcomers...Argerich and Sudbin. :tiphat:


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## Vaneyes (May 11, 2010)

arcaneholocaust said:


> For instance,
> Chopin - Rubinstein
> Rachmaninoff - Ashkenazy
> Debussy - Michelangeli
> ...


Chopin - Argerich, Pogorelich, Demidenko, ABM, Gavrilov, Ts'ong, Tharaud, Barenboim
Rachmaninov - ABM, Rodriguez, Ashkenazy, Richter, Sofronitsky, Sokolov, Demidenko, Alexeev, Angelich
Debussy - ABM, Jacobs, Weissenberg, Crossley, Boffard, Bavouzet
Schubert - Lupu, Sokolov, Lewis, Brendel, Uchida, Pires
Schumann - Lupu, Gavrilov, Demidenko, Berezovsky, Richter, Argerich, Dalberto


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## joen_cph (Jan 17, 2010)

Also this thread
http://www.talkclassical.com/11311-match-composer-best-pianist.html


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## Musician (Jul 25, 2013)

Chopin-Chopin
Liszt-Liszt
Mendelssohn-Mendelssohn
you get the point...

But Rachmaninov once said that Horowitz plays his third concerto better then himself, so we have to take him at his word so:

Rachmaninov-Horowitz


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## krystian (Nov 10, 2013)

my favourite pianist are ARTURO BENEDETTI MICHELANGELI, KRYSTIAN ZIMERMAN, IVO POGORELICH


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## Crassus (Nov 4, 2013)

I think Arrau in the overall is the best Beethoven performer.

He doesn't commit the mistake of trying to amplify Beethoven's music for "letting himself go" and he doesn't sound bland and polished as the performers who share this same sense of self-control when dealing with something intense as Beethoven's music.


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## Orfeo (Nov 14, 2013)

Glazunov: Leslie Howard, Stephen Coombs, Duane Hulbert
Anton Rubinstein: Leslie Howard
Arnold Bax: Eric Parkin
Cyril Scott: Leslie De'Ath
John Ireland: Eric Parkin
Chopin: Arthur Rubinstein, Cyprien Katsaris
Tchaikovsky: Victoria Postnikova 
Myaskovsky: Murray McLachlan
Schumann: Claudio Arrau
Melartin: Maria Lettberg
Felix Blumenfeld: Philip Thomson
Lyadov: Marco Rapetti
Bortkiewicz: Stephen Coombs
Rachmaninoff (concerti): Tamas Vasary
Faure: Paul Crossley
Debussy: Peter Frankl, Pascal Roge
Weinberg: Murray McLachlan


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## StevenOBrien (Jun 27, 2011)

Bach: Glenn Gould
Mozart: Christoph Eschenbach
Beethoven: Wilhelm Kempff
Schubert: Sviatoslav Richter
Chopin: Maruzio Pollini


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## Blake (Nov 6, 2013)

The best? Couldn't say. Great? Absolutely: 

Debussy: Jean-Efflam Bavouzet
Ravel: Jean-Efflam Bavouzet
Chopin: Abbey Simon
Rachminov: Vladimir Ashkenazy 
Medtner: Geoffrey Tozer


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## mstar (Aug 14, 2013)

*Berezovsky for Rachmaninov's piano concertos! *Not even a recording of Rach himself playing my favorite one (No. 2) pleases me in comparison. Berezovsky is not too fast, and yet not too slow. If Argerich was slower, perhaps then she would be alright as well.... She's fine for Rach's Third at her speed, though.

*Argerich for the Tchaikovsky piano concertos, Schumann and Chopin piano concertos, both No. 1. *She is a wonderful pianist!

*Rubenstein's interpretations of the Chopin Nocturnes* are uniquely wonderful, though I think Op. 55 No. 1, which I have played, is too contrasting in tempo. Still, I love how he plays slme of my favorites, such as Op. 9 No. 2 and Op. 32 No. 1.


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## SarahO (Nov 16, 2013)

Chopin - Rubinstein
Mozart - Horowitz
Beethoven - Serkin
Bach - Gould and Wendy Carlos
Lizst - Horowitz, Mrvica
Rachmaninoff -- Rachmaninoff

I have to add Wendy Carlos and Switched on Bach. (assuming that someone who plays Moog may be called a pianist.)

Listen to Sinfonia to Cantata No. 29 by Carlos.
Sheer Genius.

http://www.classitronic.net/2009/07/31/bach-to-the-future-where-it-all-started/


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## Op.123 (Mar 25, 2013)

Brahms - Arrau
Beethoven - Arrau, Fleisher
Chopin - Arrau, Zimerman
Liszt - Arrau
Mozart - Brendel, Gulda
Schubert - Arrau, Fleisher
Schumann - Arrau, Richter


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## Muse Wanderer (Feb 16, 2014)

Mozart - Ingrid Haebler (sonatas), Murray Perahia (concertos)
Beethoven - Claudio Arrau (sonatas), Leon Fleisher (concertos)
Bach - Glenn Gould (honourable mention: Tureck, Richter, Koroliov, Perahia, Schiff)
Brahms - Emils Gilels
Schumann - Sviatoslav Richter
Schubert - Alfred Brendel
Chopin - Arthur Rubinstein
Schoenberg - Maurizio Pollini


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## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Beethoven, Annie Fischer
Mozart, Jos van Immerseel.
Bach, Nobody on piano.
Rachmaninoff, Van Cliburn, Artur Rubinstein.
Scarlatti, Nobody on piano.


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## mmcin (Jan 30, 2019)

Great list!! I like de Larrocha for Mozart.


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## Phil loves classical (Feb 8, 2017)

These are the ones I feel can't be substituted by another other.

Debussy: Samson Francois
Chopin, Rachmaninov: William Kapell
Prokofiev: Richter


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## Sparbet (Apr 28, 2019)

Two quick replies: Yefim Bronfman for Rachmaninoff and Tatiana Nicolayeva for Tchaikovsky.


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## flamencosketches (Jan 4, 2019)

Havent heard her Tchaikovsky, but Ms. Nikolayeva is really good ¡n Shostakovich. 

The definitive Scriabin is probably always going to be Vladimir Sofronitsky for me. 

Probably Alfred Cortot for Chopin.

Guiomar Novaes is incredible with Mendelssohn's Songs without Words. Can't say I'm too familiar with the competition, but I imagine she'd be hard to top. 

The definitive Beethoven pianist is definitely Artur Schnabel.


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## Rubens (Nov 5, 2017)

Scarlatti: Horowitz
Bach: Gould, Richter
Haydn: Pogorelich
Mozart: Eschenbach
Beethoven: Arrau, Brendel
Schubert: Curzon
Schumann: Richter, Lupu, Volodos
Brahms: Katchen
Chopin: Rubinstein, Lipatti
Liszt: Horowitz, Trifonov
Debussy: Richter
Ravel: Richter
Rachmaninoff: Rachmaninoff, Trifonov
Prokofieff: Richter
Scriabin: Sofronitsky


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## flamencosketches (Jan 4, 2019)

Richter is pretty definitive in Bach. As much as I love Gould, Richter's WTC made me never want to hear his again. He's also killer in Debussy, but I have hardly heard any of it.

Your list has given me a lot of interesting things to look into. Katchen's Brahms, Curzon's Schubert (I'm not familiar with this pianist at all), Trifonov's Liszt (I agree that Horowitz is definitive in this composer too).

I won't say he's definitive in all of Bach, but I don't want to hear ANYONE else play this particular piece:






This 3 minute clip is one of the great achievements of 20th century pianism. Immaculate.


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## BenG (Aug 28, 2018)

Bach: Schiff. (Goldberg Variations, WTC, English + French suites, Partitas)
Handel: Richter. (Keyboard suites)
Scarlatti: Horowitz (Keyboard Sonatas)
Rameau: Grigory Sokolov (Les sauvages, Les Cyclopes, Suite in D, ect.)
Haydn: Brendel (Piano sonatas)
Mozart: Uchida (Sonatas and piano concertos)
Beethoven: 20th century - Gilels. 21st century - Levit. (32 Sonatas)
Schubert: Richter. (Piano sonatas).
Chopin: Rubenstein (Nocturnes, Piano Concertos, Etudes)
Mendelssohn: Barenboim (Songs without words).
Brahms: Hough (Sonatas, piano concertos)
Schumman: Argerich (Piano concerto, Kinderszenen)
Grieg: Andsnes (Piano concerto)
Liszt: Cziffra (Everything)
Alkan: Laurence Martin. 
Rachmaninoff: Volodos (Piano concerto no. 3)
Scriabin: Ashkenazy (10 Sonatas, Ballades)
Schoenberg: Gould (Klavierstuck)
Debussy: Michelangeli (Preludes, Images, Childen's corner, ect.)
Prokofiev: Richter (Sonata no. 7)


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## Holden4th (Jul 14, 2017)

Chopin - Rubinstein
Rachmaninov - Richter
Beethoven - Kempff, Gilels, Annie Fischer
Schubert - Schnabel, Richter
Schumann - Horowitz, Richter 
Debussy - Michelangeli, Gieseking
Brahms - Gilels, Katchen
Scarlatti - Meyer, Horowitz
Mozart - Kraus
Bach - Feinberg, Gould
Liszt - Cziffra
Janacek - Firkusny
Tchaikovsky - Pletnev
Haydn - Brendel


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## Allegro Con Brio (Jan 3, 2020)

Bach - Schiff, Tureck
Haydn - Derzhavina, Brendel
Mozart - Uchida, Pires
Beethoven - Gilels, Schnabel, Annie Fischer
Schubert - Kempff, Uchida
Schumann - Horowitz, Cortot
Chopin - Cortot, Moravec, Arrau
Liszt - Arrau, Cziffra, Bolet
Brahms - Lupu, Gilels, Gould
Debussy - Gieseking, Zimerman
Ravel - Francois, Bavouzet
Rachmaninoff - Richter, Horowitz
Prokofiev - Richter, Raekallio


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## Open Lane (Nov 11, 2015)

Liszt - Cziffra


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## Rogerx (Apr 27, 2018)

mmcin said:


> Great list!! I like de Larrocha for Mozart.


That's all, no more good pianists?


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