Customer Reviews

Me of All People: Alfred Brendel in Conversation with Martin Meyer

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Numerous books are in print about Horowitz and the like. But there has never been much, aside from recordings, about my favorite pianist, Alfred Brendel. Recently, a two-DVD set was released entitled Alfred Brendel -- in Portrait. It was great, with one DVD dedicated to performance, the other, a biographical special. But the Brendel fan can delve a bit deeper with this book. Brendel speaks of a wide variety of topics, from his views on Balakirev's Islamey and Rachmaninoff to his views on politics and religion. There are some really interesting ideas and quotes interspersed that can be inspirational not only to the player, but also to the individual encountering life experiences each day. I highly recommend.

It must be said up front that this is not a book for the casual classical music lover. If you are not familiar with the classical piano literature or Mr. Brendel's recordings, this is not the book for you.
But for the advanced classical piano student or knowledgeable listener, this book sheds much light on Mr. Brendel's opinions and thoughts about the great composers and how he feels they should be played. He is not just a virtuoso pianist, but a world-class musician. His comments on interpretation of the classics and about other famous pianists, past and present, are quite interesting.