Customer Reviews

Arrau on Music and Performance (Dover Books on Music)

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Claudio Arrau was a great child prodigy, and later had a long career as a performing pianist. This book deals in a sensitive way with both the man and his music. I found Arrau, the person, a compelling individual whose virtuosity was both a gift and a challenge. Joseph Horowitz does a superb job of blending narrative with question and answer sessions with Arrau himself. I EXPECTED a nice biography, and I got that. Beyond that, I got numerous invaluable tips as a pianist about playing individual composers and technique.

This is a great book. (Note: It was previously available under the title "Conversations With Arrau.") It does not shoot over the heads of the average reader, but it doesn't dumb down its subject either. Horowitz spoke for hours upon hours with the great Claudio Arrau. What emerges is the portrait of a man devoid of irony or pretense. The biographical part is fascinating--we learn what living in Berlin during the 1920s was like, for example, and while it was harsh, it was also deeply spiritual and enriching for artistic types. The sections on interpretation are interesting conversations that I wish more authors would have with more artists. Next comes a chapter where Arrau speaks openly about psychoanalysis. Then there are sections where colleagues and friends talk about Arrau, revealing their insights of his character. (Colin Davis is particularly devoted.) Finally the author gives us a complete discography and discussion of selected recordings. A must-own for piano or Arrau fans, although I understand this latest version of the book inexplicably skips the discography. Look for a used copy under the previous title instead.

This book is amazing. Arrau is my favorite pianist, but even for those who aren't yet converts this book is still fascinating for allowing us glimpses into a towering, fantastic musical mind, and his deep and well thought-out ideas on musical interpretation and piano technique. Indispensible.

This book should be owned by all pianophiles. Claudio Arrau was one of the great recorded pianists of all time, even though you may not always agree with his interpretations. It's the same here: Even though you probably won't agree with everything he says about music and other pianists (I personally don't), these are great insights from a pianist whose brilliant career spanned over eight decades and who had personal contact with many musical giants at the turn of the last century. Joseph Horowitz has also done a superb job discussing most of Arrau's recordings and writing biographical notes about several phases of Arrau's life. My only complaint is that the discography that used to be in the first edition (entitled "Conversations with Arrau") is not included in this new edition.

If you like Beethoven, Liszt and play piano, reading this book will be a extremely enjoyable. Arrau words represent years and centuries of accumulated wisdom from Beethoven to the late romantics, with a spirit not so prevalent today.

Joseph Horowitz does a great job of collecting these interviews in order to preserve the ideas and feelings of the last great link we had to the high period of 19th century pianism. You get a good look at Arrau's unusual and rather sheltered life. Horowitz reveals both the simple and the complex in Arrau's nature. A natural born aristocrat, despite facing hard times in his early years, Arrau is quite simple as a man, but as a musician he is even more complex.

A very good and accessible read. I particularly enjoyed the interviews with artists such as Garrick Ohlsson and Daniel Barenboim, among others, at the end of the book.