On Episode 292 of the ASCAP Deems Taylor/Virgil Thomson Award winning program Between the Keys, The Classical Network’s Artist-in-Residence Jed Distler pays tribute to pianist Alfred Brendel, who celebrated his 90th birthday on January 5th. Although Brendel retired from concertizing in 2008, his recorded legacy remains a vast and wide-ranging musical testament.
“Brendel’s seriousness, unflappable integrity and commitment continues to have an impact on younger generations of pianists, many of whom never got to hear him in concert,” says Distler. “Brendel always surprised me , because I never knew what to expect from his concerts. Sometimes he’d leave me cold, yet on more than one occasion Brendel’s power and projection pinned me to the wall, as if I was watching Clark Kent transform into Superman!”
Brendel will be featured in works by Beethoven, Haydn, Busoni, Dvorak and Liszt.
Tune in this Tuesday January 26th at 10 PM for Between the Keys, with a rebroadcast Wednesday January 27th at noon, exclusively on The Classical Network and WWFM.org.