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
Klassik - Erschienen bei Warner Classics International am 24.02.1998
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Cecilia Bartoli - Italian Songs
Cecilia Bartoli, András Schiff
Klassik - Erschienen bei Decca Music Group Ltd. am 21.09.1993
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Franz Schubert: Sonatas & Impromptus
Klassik - Erschienen bei ECM New Series am 12.04.2019
Gramophone Editor's Choice5 Sterne Fono Forum Klassik16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Brahms, Handel & Reger : Piano Works (- Elatus)
Klassik - Erschienen bei Warner Classics International am 01.11.1994
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart: Piano Sonatas K.331, 332 & 333
Klassik - Erschienen bei Decca Music Group Ltd. am 01.01.1981
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Ludwig van Beethoven: Diabelli-Variationen
Klassik - Erschienen bei ECM New Series am 24.09.2013
Gramophone Editor's Choice24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
András Schiff plays Beethoven
Klassik - Erschienen bei UME - Global Clearing House am 21.12.2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Schubert: Impromptus; Moments Musicaux; 6 German Dances
Klassik - Erschienen bei Decca Music Group Ltd. am 01.01.1992
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Dohnányi: Piano Quintet/Piano Sextet
Klassik - Erschienen bei Decca Music Group Ltd. am 01.01.1988
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Songs Of Debussy And Mozart
Klassik - Erschienen bei ECM New Series am 31.03.2003
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: The Piano Sonatas, Volume IV (Live)
Klassik - Erschienen bei ECM New Series am 11.05.2007
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart: Piano Concertos Nos. 22 & 23
András Schiff, Sándor Végh, Camerata Salzburg
Klassik - Erschienen bei Decca Music Group Ltd. am 01.01.1990
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Ludwig van Beethoven - The Piano Sonatas (Live)
Klassik - Erschienen bei ECM New Series am 25.11.2016
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: The Piano Sonatas, Volume VI (Live)
Klassik - Erschienen bei ECM New Series am 25.04.2008
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: The Piano Sonatas, Volume VIII (Live)
Klassik - Erschienen bei ECM New Series am 26.09.2008
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Brahms: Piano Quintet; String Quartet No. 3
Klassik - Erschienen bei Decca Music Group Ltd. am 01.09.1991
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Schumann: In Concert
Klassik - Erschienen bei ECM New Series am 22.02.2002
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
Klassik - Erschienen bei Hungaroton am 01.09.2007
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
Klassik - Erschienen bei Decca Music Group Ltd. am 23.08.1989
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Schubert: Fantasien D. 760, D. 934
Klassik - Erschienen bei ECM New Series am 27.03.2000
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Brahms: Clarinet Trio; Horn Trio
András Schiff, Peter Schmidl, Günter Högner
Klassik - Erschienen bei Decca Music Group Ltd. am 01.01.1984
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo