András Schiff
András Schiff is among the most prominent members of a generation of Hungarian pianists born in the years following World War II, along with such artists as Zoltán Kocsis, Dezso Ránki, and Jenö Jandó. Of this remarkable group, Schiff has achieved the strongest international reputation, due not only to his decision to pursue his career outside of Hungary but also to his finely shaded sense of touch and his energetic yet clear treatment of contrapuntal textures.
Schiff was born in Budapest on December 21, 1953. He studied with composers Pál Kadosa and Ferenc Rados (saying of the latter that he had benefited from his overwhelmingly critical attitude), as well as harpsichordist George Malcolm. Schiff made his debut in Budapest at age 19 and was soon making concert appearances throughout Europe and the U.S., despite Iron Curtain-era restrictions. He took the top prize at the 1974 Moscow competition and the 1975 Leeds Festival. A major early mentor was violinist and conductor Sándor Végh, with whom Schiff recorded the complete piano concertos of Mozart and much violin-and-piano chamber music. In 1989, he founded his own Mondsee Musiktage festival near Salzburg (where he had first encountered Végh). Schiff also formed his own ensemble, Cappella Andrea Barca, in 1999, and with it, recorded a complete cycle of Mozart's piano concertos.
Schiff's energy and clarity in contrapuntal music has made him a top Bach interpreter; he has recorded Bach's complete keyboard music. Later, he recorded a complete Beethoven sonata cycle on the boutique label ECM, completing it in 2009. He has also recorded a large amount of music by Schubert and Schumann, receiving a prize in 2011 from the city of Zwickau, Germany, for his interpretations of the latter. Eastern European music by the likes of Béla Bartók and Leos Janácek have also appeared prominently in his repertory. He left Hungary in 1979 and spoke out forcefully against developments there, stating that he would never again set foot in his homeland, alluding to physical dangers he would face if he did. He renounced his Austrian citizenship, which he had taken in 1987, also for political reasons, and is now a British citizen.
In the 2000s, he often revisited Bach repertory that he had previously recorded. Schiff has held several prestigious residencies: from 2004 to 2007, he was Artist-in-Residence of the Kunstfest Weimar; in the 2007-2008 season, he was Pianist-in-Residence of the Berlin Philharmonic; and in 2011-2012, he was a Perspectives Artist of Carnegie Hall in New York. Schiff is married to violinist Yuuko Shiokawa, with whom he has recorded violin-and-piano repertory for ECM. In addition to ECM, Schiff's large discography includes albums on the Decca, London, and Teldec labels as well as others. In the 2010s, despite earlier skepticism about the trend, he began to perform and record on the fortepiano, often using a Viennese instrument of 1820 built by the lesser-known maker Franz Brodmann. On that instrument, he released an album of Schubert Impromptus and the Piano Sonata in C minor, D. 958, in 2019. He returned on ECM with an album of Brahms piano concertos in 2021 and with J.S. Bach: Clavichord in 2023. By that time, Schiff's recording catalog comprised well over 150 items.
© James Manheim /TiVo
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Schumann : Kreisleriana, Gesänge der Frühe, Variations & Nachtstücke
Classical - Released by Warner Classics International on 24 Feb 1998
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Cecilia Bartoli - Italian Songs
Cecilia Bartoli, András Schiff
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 21 Sep 1993
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Franz Schubert: Sonatas & Impromptus
Classical - Released by ECM New Series on 12 Apr 2019
Gramophone Editor's Choice16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Brahms, Handel & Reger : Piano Works (- Elatus)
Classical - Released by Warner Classics International on 1 Nov 1994
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart: Piano Sonatas K.331, 332 & 333
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 1 Jan 1981
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Ludwig van Beethoven: Diabelli-Variationen
Classical - Released by ECM New Series on 24 Sep 2013
Gramophone Editor's Choice24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
András Schiff plays Beethoven
Classical - Released by UME - Global Clearing House on 21 Dec 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Schubert: Impromptus; Moments Musicaux; 6 German Dances
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 1 Jan 1992
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Dohnányi: Piano Quintet/Piano Sextet
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 1 Jan 1988
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Songs Of Debussy And Mozart
Classical - Released by ECM New Series on 31 Mar 2003
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: The Piano Sonatas, Volume IV (Live)
Classical - Released by ECM New Series on 11 May 2007
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: The Piano Sonatas, Volume VI (Live)
Classical - Released by ECM New Series on 25 Apr 2008
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart: Piano Concertos Nos. 22 & 23
András Schiff, Sándor Végh, Camerata Salzburg
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 1 Jan 1990
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Ludwig van Beethoven - The Piano Sonatas (Live)
Classical - Released by ECM New Series on 25 Nov 2016
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Brahms: Piano Quintet; String Quartet No. 3
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 1 Sep 1991
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: The Piano Sonatas, Volume VIII (Live)
Classical - Released by ECM New Series on 26 Sep 2008
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Schubert: Fantasien D. 760, D. 934
Classical - Released by ECM New Series on 27 Mar 2000
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Schumann: In Concert
Classical - Released by ECM New Series on 22 Feb 2002
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Bach, J.S.: Partita No. 5 / English Suite No. 4 / Chromatic Fantasia and Fugue in D Minor
Classical - Released by Hungaroton on 1 Sep 2007
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Brahms: Piano Concerto No. 1; Variations on a Theme by Schumann
András Schiff, Wiener Philharmonic Orchestra, Sir Georg Solti
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 23 Aug 1989
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Brahms: Clarinet Trio; Horn Trio
András Schiff, Peter Schmidl, Günter Högner
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 1 Jan 1984
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo