In celebration of Austrian pianist Alfred Brendel's 95th birthday, a unique concert took place at the Barbican, blending classical music with playfulness and wit. The evening was characterized by Brendel's intellectual intensity, but also his playful side.
The orchestra, composed of Brendel's colleagues, proteges, and friends, showcased their technical skill and musical understanding under the baton of Simon Rattle. This included a rendition of Beethoven's Piano Concerto No 3, accompanied by soloist Paul Lewis, who delivered a nuanced performance that commanded attention.
Other notable performances featured collaborations with other renowned musicians, such as pianists Tim Horton and Till Fellner, cellist Adrian Brendel, soprano Lucy Crowe, and violinist Brett Dean. The music was marked by moments of levity, courtesy of the 'six pianists' shtick involving a number of stools.
A sequence of humorous poems by Brendel himself was paired with minuatures by Ligeti and Kurtág, presented by Harriet Walter's delivery and Pierre-Laurent Aimard's controlled silliness at the piano.
The evening also featured performances from other notable musicians such as Imogen Cooper, who joined the orchestra and soprano Lucy Crowe in a Mozart aria, and pianist Brett Dean, who paired up with Brendel's cellist son Adrian for Liszt's Elégie No 2.
To add to the surreal atmosphere was a military band playing two of Mauricio Kagel's Marches to Fall Short of Victory. This marked a poignant transition into Beethoven's Piano Concerto No 3.
The highpoint of the evening, however, came with a rendition by the Takács Quartet and Adrian Brendel of Schubert's C major Quintet. In this beautiful work, absence was eloquently conveyed as well as acceptance and thankfulness.
The orchestra, composed of Brendel's colleagues, proteges, and friends, showcased their technical skill and musical understanding under the baton of Simon Rattle. This included a rendition of Beethoven's Piano Concerto No 3, accompanied by soloist Paul Lewis, who delivered a nuanced performance that commanded attention.
Other notable performances featured collaborations with other renowned musicians, such as pianists Tim Horton and Till Fellner, cellist Adrian Brendel, soprano Lucy Crowe, and violinist Brett Dean. The music was marked by moments of levity, courtesy of the 'six pianists' shtick involving a number of stools.
A sequence of humorous poems by Brendel himself was paired with minuatures by Ligeti and Kurtág, presented by Harriet Walter's delivery and Pierre-Laurent Aimard's controlled silliness at the piano.
The evening also featured performances from other notable musicians such as Imogen Cooper, who joined the orchestra and soprano Lucy Crowe in a Mozart aria, and pianist Brett Dean, who paired up with Brendel's cellist son Adrian for Liszt's Elégie No 2.
To add to the surreal atmosphere was a military band playing two of Mauricio Kagel's Marches to Fall Short of Victory. This marked a poignant transition into Beethoven's Piano Concerto No 3.
The highpoint of the evening, however, came with a rendition by the Takács Quartet and Adrian Brendel of Schubert's C major Quintet. In this beautiful work, absence was eloquently conveyed as well as acceptance and thankfulness.
that concert must've been EPIC!!! i mean, blending classical music with playfulness is a pretty cool combo. and the fact that Brendel himself shared his humorous poems over some quirky ligeti minuatures... genius! 
but seriously, it's awesome to see how different musicians came together to celebrate his 95th birthday in such a unique way 
, but shouldn't we be supporting that freedom? By providing resources and infrastructure for artists to experiment and take risks? That's what I call a symphony of progress! 
The stools thing is pretty funny, but it also works, you know? It's like they're saying 'hey, we're not just serious classical musicians, we've got a sense of humor too'. And I love how Brendel himself did some poems, that's so unique. It's great to see him being playful and light-hearted on his 95th birthday 
. The orchestra sounded amazing, especially with the Takács Quartet joining in for Schubert's Quintet - those strings really made the piece shine 
. And I'm curious, who knew Brendel was such a witty guy? 
I loved the 'six pianists' shtick too 
. Simon Rattle did a great job leading the orchestra, and Paul Lewis's performance in Beethoven's Piano Concerto No 3 was mesmerizing 
. The collaborations with other musicians added so much depth to the evening... it felt like a celebration of music itself 
that concert sounds like an absolute blast! i love how they mixed classical with playfulness, it's so refreshing to hear. the 'six pianists' shtick had me chuckling out loud 
so i'm watching this concert online and it looks like they took classical music to a whole new level 
meanwhile, brendel's poems 
added this extra layer of playfulness to the performance 
and the transitions between pieces were so smooth 
i also love how they incorporated different musicians and instruments 
what really caught my attention though was that rendition of schubert's c major quintet with the takács quartet 
I mean, 95 is no joke but Alfred Brendel still brought it like a boss 
playing all those iconic classical pieces with his colleagues and friends. The 'six pianists' thing was hilarious 
my fave part tho, was when they brought out this military band to play those Mauricio Kagel marches 
it added such an interesting contrast to the rest of the concert. I'm definitely checking out more classical music with a dash of humor from now on