The Italian Maurizio Pollini, considered one of the greatest pianists of the 20th century, who died at the age of 82 after a long illness which forced him to cancel his last concerts, this was announced on Saturday by the Teatro alla Scala, the Milanese temple of opera to which he was very bound .
Admired for his prodigious virtuosity, for the breadth of his repertoire and for the originality of his interpretations, with his death “one of great musicians of our time and a fundamental reference in the artistic life of the theater for more than fifty years”, writes La Scala on its website.
“The superintendent Dominique Meyer, the musical director Riccardo Chailly, the orchestra masters and the workers of La Scala are alongside his wife Marilisa, his son Daniele and the entire family”, he added.
The Fire Chapel of the maestro born in Milan in 1942, “absolute protagonist of the international concert scene since his victory at the age of eighteen in the Chopin competition in Warsaw in 1960”, will open in the next few hours at La Scala, as already happened when the famous Italian classical dancer Carla Fracci.
Pollini was a capable interpreter revolutionize the perception of authors such as Chopin, Debussy and Beethoven himself and promotes with tireless dedication the listening of historical avant-gardes, in particular Schönberg, and current music, while remembering what was his home for five decades.
Alongside his greatness as a pianist, “his testimony to the role of music itself remains fundamental, understood as an essential component of culture and civil life and as a tool for the transformation of society”, he adds.
“From his debut on 11 October 1958 until his last recital on 13 February 2023, Pollini played at La Scala 168 times”, explains the theater speaking of his long career, in which he collaborated with great artists of his time such as Claudio Abbado , Paolo Grassi, Riccardo Muti, Daniel Barenboim and Riccardo Chailly, without forgetting his concerts with Carlo Maria Giulini, Pierre Boulez and Zubin Mehta.
In addition to the musicians of La Scala, Pollini has performed his music with important orchestras such as the Wiener Philharmoniker (with Abbado) and the Gewandhausorchester of Leipzig (with Chailly) and numerous companies dedicated to today’s music, such as the Ensemble Intercontemporain, the Klangforum Wien, Musikfabrik K The SWR experimental study.
Pollini also distinguished himself in chamber music, but at the center of his long career «are above all recitals: from the historic cycle with Beethoven’s 32 sonatas in 1995 to the long-awaited annual concert in which the fixed stars of his musical universe participate: also Bach, Beethoven, Brahms, Chopin, Debussy, Schönberg and Nona”.
“We were still waiting for you on October 20th”reveals La Scala.
Source: EFE
Source: Clarin
