Remembering Horowitz

About this book

Vladimir Horowitz (1903-1989) was the measure of pianistic prowess for most of the twentieth century. Not since Liszt and Paderewski has any pianist created such a legend. When Horowitz condescended to perform, lines formed days in advance. His recordings, the most listened-to discography in history, are unique documents in the art of piano playing. Horowitz, the incomparable colorist, conjured in the mind's ear the spectrum of an orchestra with the expressive beauty of the greatest singing. Not all music lovers have found Horowitz's interpretations congenial, but every pianist in the world must come to terms with his achievement. Pianist and writer David Dubal has asked 125 of the world's leading concert pianists to put in writing their experience of Horowitz and their feelings about him. The resulting essays reveal the dazzling wealth of emotion Horowitz evoked in several generations of celebrated pianists such as Emanuel Ax, Lazar Berman, Shura Cherkassky, Van Cliburn, Rudolf Firkusny, Gary Graffman, Grant Johannesen, Alicia de Larrocha, Maurizio Pollini, Charles Rosen, Peter Serkin, and Earl Wild. Mr. Dubal has provided biographical material before each of the pianists' essays. And for the music lover intrigued by the Horowitz phenomenon, the book contains an additional treasure: a compact disc of the maestro discussing his views on music. In these talks Horowitz looks back on his unparalleled career and offers unconventional views on Scarlatti, Chopin, Liszt, Rachmaninoff, and Scriabin as well as thoughts on audiences, pianos, recording, and much else. The essays i…