Artur Schnabel

Artur Schnabel (1882 - 1951) is one of large the Pianiste S of legend of the XXe century. Its historical role in the music and its incomparable play made it join the very restricted circle of the memorable interpreters.

Biography

Born in 1882 with Lipnik, at the time located in Poland, then become Austrian before being attached to the Czech Republic, Artur Schnabel - of its true Aaron first name - is quickly pointed out by its predispositions for the music and leaves to study with Vienna as of the seven years age the musical theory with Mandyczewski and the piano with famous the Leschetizky. It then becomes acquainted with Brahms, which it accompanies during its Sunday walks.

In 1900, the young pianist settles with Berlin where its fame will not cease growing. He meets the contralto Therese Behr, his future wife, whom he accompanies in particular in the Lied er by Schubert.

Not being man of half-measure, Artur Schnabel flees the Germany as of the arrival of the Nazisme to the capacity in 1933 for London, then Tremezzo (on the lake of Like) and finally for the the United States, when the war bursts in 1939. It turns then more particularly to the composition and teaching.

After the war, Schnabel refuses to forgive the Germany and does not agree to go back there, in spite of the invitation of Furtwängler. But taken all the same by the “evil of the Germanic country”, it spends the last years of its life in Suisse, with Morschach, where it dies in 1951.

The Pianist

Artur Schnabel resulted from the pianistic line of Beethoven, and it is not for only, when one hears his recordings of the sonatas of the type-setter, one feels of it the spirit as in null another interpretation. Indeed, the Master of the pianist, Leschetizky, was the pupil of Czerny, which even had been to him that of Beethoven.

Its large Masters, Schubert, Schumann, Mozart and Beethoven at the head, Schnabel will not cease looking further into the study throughout its life of it. Its historical role proves to be major: it is the first to play the entirety of the 32 Sonate S for piano of Beethoven - of which much then was considered little - in cycles in concerts, in 1927 and 1933 in Berlin, in 1934 in London and 1936 in New York. From 1932 to 1937, it carries out the first integral recording of the 32 sonatas, absolute reference, one of best - can be the best - still today.

What it did for the work of Schubert is almost even more remarkable. Forsaken by the interpreters, only a few series of dances émergaient some whose editors made potpourris; and the important corpus of the sonatas for piano, a true monument of the history of the music, had fallen into the most total lapse of memory. According to the councils of its Leschetizky Master, it imposed them in its concerts and thus managed to make some discover the interest with the public.

The play of Artur Schnabel still belonged to the romantic period, in the sense that he was a pianist at the risks: quality took precedence at his place over safety, and it rejected the principle of a play which, to avoid the least wrong note at all costs, put the heart at the second plan. Its touch was of an amazing subtlety and its pallet of nuances seemed infinite. Its use of the pedal, extremely proportioned, concerned an extraordinary science. In addition to its many recordings, the technico-interpretative editions carried out by Schnabel - in particular of the Sonatas of Beethoven - us make it possible to analyze all the facets of its play pianistic, meeting of extremes, reconciling wisdom and promptness, rigor and poetry, of a universality only equalized by its genius. Large interpreter of Chamber music, Schnabel could be surrounded of largest of his time: the Violoncellist S Casals, Baker and Feuermann, or the Violonist Szigeti, with which it carried out historical recordings.

The Type-setter

Schnabel leaves also a consequent musical work. Atonal, it proves very influenced by Schönberg, shown very thorough harmonic research, and an important aspect of the personality of the musician delivers to us. One thus finds in this very varied production a Symphonie, a Concerto for piano, of the string quartets, works for piano or of the parts of Chamber music.

Quotations

“the sonatas for piano of Mozart are too easy for the children and too difficult for the adults. ”
“the disadvantage of the piano, it is that each high note is located between two bad. ”
“I know the records days, but not bank holidays.”

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