# Musician(s) was born to play this piece



## Pyotr (Feb 26, 2013)

Did you ever hear a musician (or orchestra or group) play a piece so stunningly, stirringly, so perfectly (in your opinion, of course) that you throw up your hands and say : “They/he/she was born to play it?” And yet in other works, maybe they don’t play so well. I’m thinking of Alexandre Dubach and his renditions of Paganini’s violin concerti. He plays the third like he was born to play it and yet his performances in the other five range from below mediocre to god-awful. But I don’t want this to be a negative thread. I’m interested in your list of musicians who play certain works like they were matched in heaven.


----------



## Strange Magic (Sep 14, 2015)

Heifetz and the Sibelius violin concerto. But what did Heifetz play badly?


----------



## Haydn man (Jan 25, 2014)

Jacqueline du Pre was most definitely born to play Elgar's Cello Concerto


----------



## ArtMusic (Jan 5, 2013)

All of Mozart's piano pieces and Bach's keyboard pieces despite their technical virtuosity.


----------



## CypressWillow (Apr 2, 2013)

I think Arthur Rubinstein was born to play: Chopin.


----------



## Pyotr (Feb 26, 2013)

Strange Magic said:


> Heifetz and the Sibelius violin concerto. But what did Heifetz play badly?


Since you asked, I don't like his Brahms but some blame it on the conductor. His Mozart, Tchaikovsky, Sibelius, and Bruch are as good as anyone's IMO.


----------



## Pyotr (Feb 26, 2013)

ArtMusic said:


> All of Mozart's piano pieces and Bach's keyboard pieces despite their technical virtuosity.


yea, but what musician(s) do you feel play them perfectly? Lang Lang?


----------



## DavidA (Dec 14, 2012)

Pyotr said:


> Since you asked, I don't like his Brahms but some blame it on the conductor. His Mozart, Tchaikovsky, Sibelius, and Bruch are as good as anyone's IMO.


Heifetz's Brahms with Reiner is tremendous with speeds the composer probably intended. There is possibly an even finer performance with Koussevitsky. However, a certain Julia Fischer gives what I consider perhaps the greatest ever recorded Brahms. She was born to play it no doubt!


----------



## Pyotr (Feb 26, 2013)

DavidA said:


> Heifetz's Brahms with Reiner is tremendous with speeds the composer probably intended. There is possibly an even finer performance with Koussevitsky. However, a certain Julia Fischer gives what I consider perhaps the greatest ever recorded Brahms. She was born to play it no doubt!


Don't like his with Reiner, plays the first movement too fast for my tastes. Prefer Perlman's or Oistrakh's. I will give Ms. Fischer 's a try though, thanks.


----------



## Orfeo (Nov 14, 2013)

Too bad conductors are not included, because I'm thinking of Leonard Bernstein who was born to conduct (play) Mahler. Other than that, I would say:


Vladimir Ashkenazy and Rachmaninoff (his Preludes)
Stephen Coombs (and perhaps Duane Hulbert) and Glazunov (Sonatas, Theme et Variations, Three Etudes)
Hamish Milne and Medtner (Sonata Reminiscenza)
Maria Lettberg and Scriabin (arguably the late Sonatas)
The Vienna Philharmonic and Bruckner (like Symphonies VII-IX).
The Russian Federation Symphony (formerly the USSR Symphony) and Tchaikovsky (esp. Manfred)
The Borodin Quartet and Shostakovich (all of his Quartets, esp. the Third)
Philip Martin and Gottschalk (everything, no quibbles I could come up with)
The Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra and the New York Phil. and Mahler (Symphony no. IX with Bernstein in the former, Symphony no. III again with Bernstein in the latter)
Eric Parkin and John Ireland and Bax (all of their piano works, all perfectly played).


----------



## Pyotr (Feb 26, 2013)

Conductors are certainly in the mix, I believe they are technically musicians, no?


----------



## Blancrocher (Jul 6, 2013)

I think Sviatoslav Richter was born to be the great interpreter of Shostakovich's Preludes and Fugues (and he didn't play the entire set, d**n him).


----------



## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Geoffrey Burleson was born to play the 12 Persichetti Piano Sonatas.


----------



## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Easley Blackwood was born to play the Ives' Concord Piano Sonata.


----------



## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Yehudi Menuhin was born to play the Elgar Violin Concerto and the Bartók Violin Concerto Number Two.


----------



## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Jascha Heifetz was born to play the Bruch Scottish Fantasy.


----------



## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Leonard Bernstein was born to conduct Copland's Appalachian Spring. He played the orchestra as a masterful unified instrument.


----------



## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Sviatoslav Richter was born to play Debussy's L'isle joyeuse.


----------



## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Nathan Milstein was born to play Bach's Sonatas and Partitas for Unaccompanied Violin.


----------



## Gouldanian (Nov 19, 2015)

Glenn Gould was born to play Bach.


----------



## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Leon Fleisher was born to play the 5 Beethoven Piano Concertos.


----------



## DiesIraeCX (Jul 21, 2014)

Maurizio Pollini was born to play the piano. 

:tiphat:


----------



## brotagonist (Jul 11, 2013)

^ That's the only one I can fully agree with! h/t

There are so many great recordings: why limit oneself to just one?


----------



## LHB (Nov 1, 2015)

Rostropovich and Dutilleux/Shostakovich/Prokofiev Cello Concertos.


----------



## Gouldanian (Nov 19, 2015)

brotagonist said:


> ^ That's the only one I can fully agree with! h/t
> 
> There are so many great recordings: why limit oneself to just one?


Really? You can agree on M. Pollini's lifeless interpretations but you can't agree on Gould being born to play Bach?


----------



## Weston (Jul 11, 2008)

LHB said:


> Rostropovich and Dutilleux/Shostakovich/Prokofiev Cello Concertos.


Or sometimes it works the other way around. The Shostakovich 1st Cello Concerto was born to be played by Rostropovich.


----------



## brotagonist (Jul 11, 2013)

I like Pollini. I have never experienced his playing as lifeless. I admit I haven't been a huge Gould fan, but I bought my first Gould disc this summer (Schoenberg solo piano).

I did once have Gould's Goldberg Variations—the earlier one—and it seemed too rushed for me. Also, I heard some of his playing with a lot of groaning and grunting that I didn't like, so I have never heard much of his music.


----------



## Richannes Wrahms (Jan 6, 2014)

Janet Baker was born to sing Mahler.


----------



## KenOC (Mar 7, 2011)

Spike Jones was born to keep a pistol on the podium. Toscanini admired that but never had quite the same courage.


----------



## Gouldanian (Nov 19, 2015)

brotagonist said:


> I like Pollini. I have never experienced his playing as lifeless. I admit I haven't been a huge Gould fan, but I bought my first Gould disc this summer (Schoenberg solo piano).
> 
> I did once have Gould's Goldberg Variations-the earlier one-and it seemed too rushed for me. Also, I heard some of his playing with a lot of groaning and grunting that I didn't like, so I have never heard much of his music.


Let me save your soul by converting you... look how he owns the dynamics here (even Lenny is mesmerized):






And you can drop the 55 GV's recording and listen to the 81 one (fast forward to 2:58)






Awaiting your comments.


----------



## Heliogabo (Dec 29, 2014)

Giuliano Carmignola to play Vivaldi's violin concertos.


----------



## CypressWillow (Apr 2, 2013)

"Che Faro Senza Euridice" was born to be sung by:

Janet Baker





And by:
Kathleen Ferrier





Such beauty. I couldn't choose between them, always have to hear both.


----------



## Lukecash12 (Sep 21, 2009)

Strange Magic said:


> Heifetz and the Sibelius violin concerto. But what did Heifetz play badly?


Funny, because I'd say that Oistrakh was born to play that piece. And if it's any indication of my tastes, I also think Oistrakh was born to play Tchaikovsky's violin concerto. But most importantly, I think Solomon Cutner was born to play Beethoven's Hammerklavier.

His adagio sostenuto is in a whole other world for me, separate from other performances. Schnabel, Serkin (especially Serkin), and Barenboim, all gave amazing performances of the Hammerklavier, and Serkin even managed to give a truly convincing performance of the adagio. To put it bluntly, there are only two performances of the adagio that really convince me. Cutner's bel canto is so striking, key phrases are drawn out like taffy, and I'm amazed that he's able to bring out a sound with continuity to it at such a slow tempo.


----------



## KenOC (Mar 7, 2011)

Gouldanian said:


> Awaiting your comments.


I'll comment. Fantastic! Many thanks for Glenn Gould.


----------



## DavidA (Dec 14, 2012)

Richannes Wrahms said:


> Janet Baker was born to sing Mahler.


So was Kathleen Ferrier and Christa Ludwig!


----------



## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Van Cliburn was born to play the Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 1 and Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No. 3.


----------



## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Gustav Leonhardt was born to play Bach's Wohltemperierte Klavier as well as the rest of keyboard Bach as it was intended to be played, on harpsichord.


----------



## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Janet Baker was born to sing "Parto...parto" from Mozart's La Clemenza di Tito.


----------



## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

David Oistrakh was born to play the Shostakovich Violin Concerto No. 1.

I have his American premiere performance of it with the NY Philharmonic. Devastating!


----------



## shadowdancer (Mar 31, 2014)

Georges Cziffra was born to play Liszt.


----------



## Orfeo (Nov 14, 2013)

Pyotr said:


> Conductors are certainly in the mix, I believe they are technically musicians, no?


Of course. My initial impression when reading the body of the introduction was musicians as if soloists who were born to play a certain piece (plus groups/ensembles). I interpreted it pretty strictly.

Well, another new day (and a beautiful one despite the chill).


----------



## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Berj Zamkochian was born to play the important organ part in Saint-Saëns Symphony No. 3.


----------



## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Heinz Holliger was born to play the autumnal Richard Strauss' Oboe Concerto.


----------



## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Dennis Brain was born to play the Mozart Horn Concertos.


----------



## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Artur Rubinstein was born to give us the unsurpassed version of Mozart's Keyboard Concerto No. 23.


----------



## Blancrocher (Jul 6, 2013)

hpowders said:


> Dennis Brain was born to play the Mozart Horn Concertos.


Alas, however, the sound engineers weren't yet born to record him!


----------



## brotagonist (Jul 11, 2013)

Gouldanian said:


> Let me save your soul by converting you... look how he owns the dynamics here (even Lenny is mesmerized):
> 
> 
> 
> ...


The first piece was absolutely gorgeous. You are correct that he "owns" the performance. The second one bugs me because of the sing-humming, but he is clearly the master of the music. I find Gould rather discomfiting to watch: he is somewhat like a savant hunchback


----------



## Strange Magic (Sep 14, 2015)

Besides being born to play the Tchaikovsky and Rach 3 concertos, Van Cliburn was obviously born to play the Prokofiev Third.


----------



## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

Strange Magic said:


> Besides being born to play the Tchaikovsky and Rach 3 concertos, Van Cliburn was obviously born to play the Prokofiev Third.


This seems even more true in that once he had done those things he began to fade away.


----------



## Ilarion (May 22, 2015)

Woodduck said:


> This seems even more true in that once he had done those things he began to fade away.


Thank you Woodduck - A most prescient statement emanating from your keyboard.

I would like to add something: When I heard Arkady Volodos playing Rachs 3rd, I said to myself - Here is the *Rachmaninovian Sweep* incarnated...A Grand Canvas painting done in one fell swoop - Rachmaninov knew perfectly well how to best describe the vast and mind-boggling landscape and geography and topography of Russia using music composition and performing.


----------



## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Nabuko Imai was born to play the crucial viola part in Berlioz' Harold in Italy.


----------



## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Arthur Grumiaux was born to play the Alban Berg Violin Concerto. Unforgettable!


----------



## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

Ilarion said:


> Thank you Woodduck - A most prescient statement emanating from your keyboard


Actually it's postscient - but thanks.


----------



## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Annie Fischer was born to play the 32 Beethoven Keyboard Sonatas.


----------



## shadowdancer (Mar 31, 2014)

Salvatore Accardo was born to play Paganini.


----------



## DiesIraeCX (Jul 21, 2014)

Ignaz Schuppanzigh was born to play Beethoven's string quartets.


----------



## Gouldanian (Nov 19, 2015)

brotagonist said:


> The first piece was absolutely gorgeous. You are correct that he "owns" the performance. The second one bugs me because of the sing-humming, but he is clearly the master of the music. I find Gould rather discomfiting to watch: he is somewhat like a savant hunchback


Like DavidA said it once, GG without the humming is like an egg without salt... At least this is the view of Gould's enthusiasts.


----------



## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Blancrocher said:


> Alas, however, the sound engineers weren't yet born to record him!


Yes. This woulda been killa in stereo sound.


----------



## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Gregor Piatigorsky was born to play the Dvorak Cello Concerto.


----------



## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Ruggiero Ricci was born to play the 24 Paganini Caprices.


----------



## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Gary Graffman was born to play the Prokofiev Third Piano Concerto.


----------



## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Rudolf Serkin was born to play Prokofiev's Fourth Piano Concerto (left hand) and Max Reger's Piano Concerto.


----------



## Mahlerian (Nov 27, 2012)

Gustav Mahler and Anton Webern were, reportedly, the best conductors of Mahler's symphonies. Unfortunately, neither of them were ever recorded.


----------



## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Frank Peter Zimmermann was born to play the Mozart Violin Concertos.


----------



## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Harold Gomberg, late great former principal oboist of the New York Philharmonic, was born to play the charming oboe solos in the second movement (Tempo di Menuetto) of the great Mahler Third Symphony recording under Leonard Bernstein. Never bettered.


----------



## Gouldanian (Nov 19, 2015)

Can't believe I forgot about this one: Marc-André Hamelin was born to play Liszt's Hungarian Rhapsody no. 2!

Fast forward to 6:30...


----------



## Guest (Dec 3, 2015)

Gustav Leonhardt was born to play the cembalo.His playing opens my heart and my whole being is singing and part of the music.I have looked for a beautiful piece and I choose a piece by William Byrd .Just to confuse you,he is not playing the cembalo but the claviorganum.


----------



## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Nobody beats Herman Krebbers, former concertmaster of the Concertgebouw Orchestra of Amsterdam, in the magnificent violin solos of the Benedictus from Beethoven's Missa Solemnis conducted by Leonard Bernstein with that orchestra.


----------



## jdec (Mar 23, 2013)

Gouldanian said:


> Like DavidA said it once, GG without the humming is like an egg without salt... At least this is the view of Gould's enthusiasts.


Then they love Gould for the wrong reasons.


----------



## Gouldanian (Nov 19, 2015)

jdec said:


> Then they love Gould for the wrong reasons.


It's the whole package (best piano technique of the 20th century, original and genius interpretations (despite whether we all agree with him or not) and an unmatched passion and dedication for his art.)

Good enough reasons for me.


----------



## jdec (Mar 23, 2013)

Gouldanian said:


> It's the whole package (best piano technique of the 20th century, original and genius interpretations (despite whether we all agree with him or not) and an unmatched passion and dedication for his art.)
> 
> Good enough reasons for me.


Good enough reasons for me too. (Humming not included)


----------



## Pugg (Aug 8, 2014)

Dimitris Sgouros was born to play Rachmaninov :tiphat:


----------



## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

Wilhelm Furtwangler was born to conduct Wagner and Bruckner.


----------



## Lukecash12 (Sep 21, 2009)

Woodduck said:


> Wilhelm Furtwangler was born to conduct Wagner and Bruckner.


Furtwangler's funeral march for Sigfried is still ringing in my ears.


----------



## Pugg (Aug 8, 2014)

Solti was born to conduct (special Wagner):tiphat:


----------



## Heliogabo (Dec 29, 2014)

Eduardo Mata was born to conduct the music of Silvestre Revueltas.


----------

