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Who is your favorite of the new generation of pianists?

21K views 56 replies 37 participants last post by  flamencosketches 
#1 ·
I suppose I should say 'current' favorite, as all our opinions are likely to change.


In any case, share your favorite pianist aged 18 - 35 (I wanted to include somewhere between Haochen Zhang/Benjamin Grosvenor and Alexander Kobrin - whether this is accurate 'generation' or not I don't care.) and your reason why they are your favorite.
 
#48 ·
Yesterday I listened to a young pianist playing John Field's Nocturnes on a cd from Decca (2016) : Elizabeth Joy Roe is the name - she must be very talented, because hearing her playing made a bigger impression on me than hearing Birgitte Engerer's Chopin Nocturnes on Harmonia Mundi...

If Konstantin Lifschzits isn't too old to be new I've got to say that I really enjoyed the Bach cds he recorded for Orfeo. I have the Art of Fugue and the piano concertos.
 
#49 ·
Trifonov. Was totally blown away by his performance of Rachmaninov 3 at the RFH with Ashkenazy/Philharmonia. Love his Chopin and Liszt DG CDs. :clap::clap::clap:
 
#51 · (Edited)
Here's a list of the pianists of the younger generation that have impressed me, &/or who I'd like to hear more of (placed in the order in which they came into my mind):

1. Hinrich Alpers--his recording of the complete works of Ravel is very fine, with lots of fresh new insights. I've heard his Schumann is excellent too. On You Tube, I like how softly & quietly Alpers plays the Adagio of Beethoven's 5th Piano Concerto--his interpretation is Arrau-like, in that respect:




2. David Fray--I've enjoyed Fray's Bach Concertos CD immensely, & plan to buy more of his recordings in the future, as he appears to be an exceptionally gifted pianist:







3. Yvegeny Sudbin--While I prefer Horowitz & others in Scriabin to Sudbin, I did like Sudbin's Ravel Gaspard de la Nuit, and thought his Scarlatti was good too.



4. Florian Uhlig--a very good set of the complete Ravel piano works. I've yet to hear Uhlig's survey of the complete solo piano works of Robert Schumann on Hänssler, but plan to when it is released in a box set:




5. Martin Stadtfeld--I've enjoyed Stadtfeld's two Bach Concerto discs, and to a degree his Schubert. His highly ornamental Goldberg Variations are worth hearing too, but I wasn't overwhelmed by his Bach WTC, nor Stadtfeld's occasional tendency for quick tempi in music that most other pianists don't play as fast (for example, you might listen to how he plays the opening to Schumann's Kinderscenen in the 3rd link below).





6. Bertrand Chamayou--another fine complete Ravel set. Though I wasn't as keen on Chamayou's Liszt "Years of Pilgrimage", despite the favorable reviews & awards it received from the British rags. Perhaps I need to go back to it.




7. Rafal Blechacz--one of the better new Bach discs I've heard in recent years. His Chopin & Szymanowski have received strong reviews, as well:






8. Romain Descharmes--I was first impressed by Descharmes Beethoven playing via a complete set of the Violin Sonatas 1-10. I've since bought a Ravel recording by him that also impressed me. Descharmes recent survey of Saint-Saens 5 Piano Concertos has received very favorable reviews, but I've not heard it.







9. François Chaplin: I've enjoyed listening to Chaplin's award winning complete survey of Debussy solo piano works (especially the Preludes Book 2 & 12 Etudes), though his interpretations can be slightly different at times from the norm (not necessarily a bad thing, besides, the entire Debussy set can be heard on You Tube, so you can decide for yourself--see link below); as well as a very fine recording of Debussy Four Hand piano music, with pianist Philippe Cassard, which is a stand out among recordings made in recent decades, IMO. His Chopin, Scriabin, and Schubert have received good reviews, too:







https://www.amazon.com/2-Pianos-Mai...42237&sr=1-1&keywords=cassard+chaplin+debussy

10. Igor Levit--I thought his set of Late Beethoven Piano Sonatas was very fine, & particularly liked the clarity & definition that Levit brings to the dense fugal passages of the Hammerklavier, etc. Though I've not heard Levit's Bach 6 Partitas or Goldbergs:



11. Hannes Minnaar--I first heard Minnaar on a Rachmaninov/Ravel disc and was pleasantly surprised. As it turned out, this debut recording later won the prestigious Edison Award in the Netherlands:




12. Lisa de la Salle: another talented French pianist:




13. Boris Giltburg--I've liked his Schumann, but haven't heard anything else:



14. Caspar Frantz--the nephew of pianist Justus Frantz: I've liked his Bach French Suites, Schumann, and Haydn Piano Concertos 1 & 2:




https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL92Cw-rAuc5_Ql7axzZBMorDn-ZfKlFCH

15. Herbert Schuch: Excellent Ravel Miroirs:



16. Javier Perianes: a fine Spanish pianist, a former student of Josep Colom:




17. Luis Fernando Pérez: Pérez is a recent discovery for me, & I think he plays the Spanish composers--Mompou, Albéniz, & Granados--exceptionally well:


https://www.prestoclassical.co.uk/classical/products/8360223--mompou-oeuvres-pour-piano



18. Francesco Tristano (sometimes Schlimé)--Tristano is an eclectic pianist, who plays his own music, & works by various contemporary/modern composers, etc. I've liked some of his Bach recordings, as well as his Ravel & Prokofiev Piano Concertos:




19. Lucas & Arthur Jussen--the brothers are exceptionally gifted, IMO:









20. Anna Vinnitskaya: another gifted young pianist. I've liked her Prokofiev, Shostakovich, & Ravel, but not so much her Beethoven, which wasn't mercurial or witty enough for me:



https://www.amazon.com/Ravel-Miroir...F8&qid=1525034872&sr=1-1&keywords=ravel+naive

21. Most recently, I've liked the playing of pianist Oliver Schnyder from the Oliver Schnyder Piano Trio, especially in their superb set of Beethoven Piano Trios, and see that he's now recording as a soloist (though I've not yet heard any of his solo CDs):

https://www.amazon.com/Ludwig-Van-B...pID=51fG1Ros56L&preST=_SY300_QL70_&dpSrc=srch
https://www.amazon.com/Beethoven-Pr...id=1525035832&sr=8-4&keywords=oliver+schnyder
https://www.amazon.com/Haydn-Three-...id=1525035832&sr=8-1&keywords=oliver+schnyder

I haven't gotten to Danill Trifonov, Vanessa Wagner, David Jalbert, Denis Matsuev, Jan Lisiecki, Vincent Larderet, Olivier Chauzu, Yulianna Avdeeva, Evgeni Bozhanov, Alexander Melnikov, Nelson Goerner, Emmanuel Strosser, Steven Osborne, Benjamin Grosvenor, Claire Désert, Céliméne Daudet, or Cordelia Williams (except for bits & pieces on You Tube). & I'd like to hear Stephane Ginsburgh's recent set of Prokofiev Piano Sonatas 1-9, which has received strong reviews.

Not quite as young as they used to be, but still impressive, among today's pianists:

Fazil Say
Helene Grimaud
Roland Pontinen
Florent Boffard
Ivo Janssen
Philippe Bianconi
Dubravka Tomsic
Nelson Freire
Maria-Joao Pires
Michel Dalberto
etc. etc.

There are also a bunch of young Italian pianists that have impressed me in recent years (so I'll group them together):

Pietro De Maria-a student of Maria Tipo. De Maria's Bach WTC Books 1 & 2 are excellent, but I've not been as keen on his complete solo works of Chopin survey--though I may need to spend more time with it.

Andrea Bacchetti-Bacchetti's early Bach recordings for the Dynamic label (& Decca) were very good, but it wasn't until I heard his Bach French Suites for Sony that I became more of a fan. Indeed, it's probably my favorite recording of the French Suites on piano, alongside Edward Aldwell's recording for Hänssler. I couldn't find Bacchetti's Sony recording on You Tube, but here he is playing a French Suite live:


https://www.amazon.com/J-S-Bach-Fre...qid=1525041250&sr=1-4&keywords=bacchetti+bach

Gianluca Cascioli--Cascioli can be one of the more interesting pianists I've heard today. I've particularly liked him in Beethoven & Debussy, and he plays modern composers too--Boulez, Schoenberg, Webern, etc.:






Francesco Pietmontesi-Swiss, but of Italian heritage:





I've yet to get to Alessio Bax, Carlo Grante, Francesco Libetta, Ludovico Einaudi, and I haven't heard enough of Maurizio Baglini either.

Well, that about covers it, at least, from my perspective, though I'm sure I've forgotten some pianists that deserved to be mentioned on my list. (Edit: such as Leon McCawley, who I've just remembered now.)
 
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