Claudio Arrau
Encyclopedia
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
pianist known for his interpretations of a vast repertoire spanning from the baroque
Baroque music
Baroque music describes a style of Western Classical music approximately extending from 1600 to 1760. This era follows the Renaissance and was followed in turn by the Classical era...
to 20th-century
20th century classical music
20th century classical music was without a dominant style and highly diverse.-Introduction:At the turn of the century, music was characteristically late Romantic in style. Composers such as Gustav Mahler and Jean Sibelius were pushing the bounds of Post-Romantic Symphonic writing...
composers, especially Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven was a German composer and pianist. A crucial figure in the transition between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western art music, he remains one of the most famous and influential composers of all time.Born in Bonn, then the capital of the Electorate of Cologne and part of...
, Schubert
Franz Schubert
Franz Peter Schubert was an Austrian composer.Although he died at an early age, Schubert was tremendously prolific. He wrote some 600 Lieder, nine symphonies , liturgical music, operas, some incidental music, and a large body of chamber and solo piano music...
, Chopin
Frédéric Chopin
Frédéric François Chopin was a Polish composer and virtuoso pianist. He is considered one of the great masters of Romantic music and has been called "the poet of the piano"....
, Schumann
Robert Schumann
Robert Schumann, sometimes known as Robert Alexander Schumann, was a German composer, aesthete and influential music critic. He is regarded as one of the greatest and most representative composers of the Romantic era....
, Liszt
Franz Liszt
Franz Liszt ; ), was a 19th-century Hungarian composer, pianist, conductor, and teacher.Liszt became renowned in Europe during the nineteenth century for his virtuosic skill as a pianist. He was said by his contemporaries to have been the most technically advanced pianist of his age...
, Brahms
Johannes Brahms
Johannes Brahms was a German composer and pianist, and one of the leading musicians of the Romantic period. Born in Hamburg, Brahms spent much of his professional life in Vienna, Austria, where he was a leader of the musical scene...
and Debussy
Claude Debussy
Claude-Achille Debussy was a French composer. Along with Maurice Ravel, he was one of the most prominent figures working within the field of impressionist music, though he himself intensely disliked the term when applied to his compositions...
. He is widely considered one of the greatest pianists of the twentieth century.
Life and early career
Arrau was born in ChillánChillán
Chillán is a city in the Biobío Region of Chile located about south of the country's capital, Santiago, near the geographical center of the country. It is the capital of Ñuble Province and, with a population of approximately 170,000 people , the most populated urban center of this province...
, Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
, the son of Carlos Arrau, an ophthalmologist who died when Claudio was only a year old, and Lucrecia León Bravo de Villalba, a piano teacher. He belonged to an old, prominent family of Southern Chile. His ancestor Lorenzo de Arrau
Lorenzo de Arrau
Lorenzo de Arrau belonged to the family of the famous Arrau painters and artists from Barcelona at the century.He was a Spanish engineer sent to Chile by King Carlos III of Spain....
, a Spanish
Spanish people
The Spanish are citizens of the Kingdom of Spain. Within Spain, there are also a number of vigorous nationalisms and regionalisms, reflecting the country's complex history....
engineer, was sent to Chile by King Carlos III of Spain
Charles III of Spain
Charles III was the King of Spain and the Spanish Indies from 1759 to 1788. He was the eldest son of Philip V of Spain and his second wife, the Princess Elisabeth Farnese...
. Through his great-grandmother, María del Carmen Daroch del Solar, Arrau was a descendant of the Campbells of Glenorchy, a Scottish noble family.
Arrau was a child prodigy
Child prodigy
A child prodigy is someone who, at an early age, masters one or more skills far beyond his or her level of maturity. One criterion for classifying prodigies is: a prodigy is a child, typically younger than 18 years old, who is performing at the level of a highly trained adult in a very demanding...
, giving his first concert at age five. When he was 6 he auditioned in front of several congressmen and President Pedro Montt
Pedro Montt
Pedro Elías Pablo Montt Montt was a Chilean political figure. He served as the president of Chile from 1906 to his death from a probable stroke in 1910...
, who became so impressed as to start arrangements for his future education. At age 8 he was sent on a 10-year long grant from the Chilean government to study in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, travelling in the company of his mother and sister Lucrecia. He was admitted at the Stern Conservatory of Berlin
Stern conservatory
The Stern Conservatory was a private music school in Berlin with many notable tutors and alumni.-History:It was originally founded in 1850 as the Berliner Musikschule by Julius Stern, Theodor Kullak and Adolf Bernhard Marx. Kullak withdrew from the conservatory in 1855 in order to create a new...
where he eventually became a pupil of Martin Krause
Martin Krause
Martin Krause was a German concert pianist, piano teacher, music critic, and writer.- Career :Martin Krause was born in Lobstädt, Saxony as the youngest son of the choirmaster and church schoolmaster Johann Carl Friedrich Krause in Lobstädt...
, who had studied under Franz Liszt
Franz Liszt
Franz Liszt ; ), was a 19th-century Hungarian composer, pianist, conductor, and teacher.Liszt became renowned in Europe during the nineteenth century for his virtuosic skill as a pianist. He was said by his contemporaries to have been the most technically advanced pianist of his age...
. At the age of 11 he could play Liszt's Transcendental Etudes
Transcendental Etudes
The Transcendental Etudes , S.139, are a series of twelve compositions for solo piano by Franz Liszt. They were published in 1852 as a revision of a more technically difficult 1837 series, which in turn were the elaboration of a set of studies written in 1826:...
, considered to be one of the most difficult sets of works ever written for the piano, and also Brahms
Johannes Brahms
Johannes Brahms was a German composer and pianist, and one of the leading musicians of the Romantic period. Born in Hamburg, Brahms spent much of his professional life in Vienna, Austria, where he was a leader of the musical scene...
's Paganini Variations. Arrau's first recordings were made on Aeolian Duo-Art player piano
Player piano
A player piano is a self-playing piano, containing a pneumatic or electro-mechanical mechanism that operates the piano action via pre-programmed music perforated paper, or in rare instances, metallic rolls. The rise of the player piano grew with the rise of the mass-produced piano for the home in...
music rolls. Krause died after 5 years of teaching Arrau, who at 15 was desolate at the loss of his mentor.
In 1937, Arrau married the mezzo-soprano
Mezzo-soprano
A mezzo-soprano is a type of classical female singing voice whose range lies between the soprano and the contralto singing voices, usually extending from the A below middle C to the A two octaves above...
Ruth Schneider, a German national, and they had three children: Carmen (1938–2006), Mario (1940–1988) and Christopher (1959). In 1941 the Arrau family left Germany and migrated to the United States, where they spent their remaining years. He settled in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and adopted dual U.S./Chilean citizenship later on, in 1979.
Arrau was born and raised as a Roman Catholic. By his own admission, he was especially devout in his teenage years, having been encouraged by a French Catholic priest that he liked. He later became an agnostic, having become disgusted with the idea of transubstantiation
Transubstantiation
In Roman Catholic theology, transubstantiation means the change, in the Eucharist, of the substance of wheat bread and grape wine into the substance of the Body and Blood, respectively, of Jesus, while all that is accessible to the senses remains as before.The Eastern Orthodox...
, which he compared to cannibalism
Cannibalism
Cannibalism is the act or practice of humans eating the flesh of other human beings. It is also called anthropophagy...
.
Tone and approach to music
Many claim that his rich, weighty tone lent his interpretations an authoritative, distinctive voice, some saying it sounded thick and muddy and others praising its rounded tone, saying it sounded as though Arrau were almost playing the organ or "plowing" his "paws" into the "flexible" keyboard. According to American critic Harold C. SchonbergHarold C. Schonberg
Harold Charles Schonberg was an American music critic and journalist, most notably for The New York Times. He was the first music critic to win the Pulitzer Prize for Criticism...
, Arrau always put "a decidedly romantic piano tone in his interpretations".
Arrau was an intellectual and a deeply reflective interpreter. He read widely while travelling, and despite the lack of any formal education outside of his musical training, he learned English, Italian, German, and French in addition to his native Spanish. He became familiar with Jung
Carl Jung
Carl Gustav Jung was a Swiss psychiatrist and the founder of Analytical Psychology. Jung is considered the first modern psychiatrist to view the human psyche as "by nature religious" and make it the focus of exploration. Jung is one of the best known researchers in the field of dream analysis and...
's psychology in his twenties.
Arrau's attitude toward music was very serious. He preached fidelity to the score. Although he often played with slower and more deliberate tempi from his middle age, Arrau had a reputation for being a fabulous virtuoso
Virtuoso
A virtuoso is an individual who possesses outstanding technical ability in the fine arts, at singing or playing a musical instrument. The plural form is either virtuosi or the Anglicisation, virtuosos, and the feminine form sometimes used is virtuosa...
early in his career. According to Joseph Horowitz in his book Conversations With Arrau (1982), many critics felt that his overall approach became less spontaneous and more reserved and introspective after the death of his mother, whom he was extremely close to. Arrau had isolated himself for two weeks after his mother's death, refusing to perform or to receive comfort from friends.
Contributions
Numerous pianists studied with Arrau, including Karlrobert KreitenKarlrobert Kreiten
Karlrobert Kreiten was a German pianist, though holding Dutch citizenship his entire life due to his Dutch father....
, Garrick Ohlsson
Garrick Ohlsson
Garrick Ohlsson is an American classical pianist.Ohlsson was the first American to win first prize in the International Frédéric Chopin Piano Competition, in 1970. He also won first prize at the Busoni Competition in Italy and the Montreal Piano Competition in Canada...
, William Melton
William Melton
-Life:Melton was the son of Henry of Melton, and the brother of Henry de Melton. He was born in Melton in the parish of Welton, about nine miles from Kingston upon Hull. He was a contemporary of John Hotham, Chancellor of England and Bishop of Ely...
, Roberto Bravo
Roberto Bravo
Roberto Bravo is a novelist and a short story writer.-Bibliography:*Al sur de la frontera *No es como usted dice *Vida del Orate...
,and Roberto Eyzaguirre
Roberto Eyzaguirre
Roberto Eyzaguirre is a Peruvian-American classical pianist and famed piano pedagogue. He was a longtime friend and pupil of the legendary 20th century virtuoso pianist Claudio Arrau, who had studied under a pupil of Franz Liszt. He is notable for his colorful playing and "big tone".With Arrau's...
among others.
Arrau recorded the comprehensive piano music of Schumann
Robert Schumann
Robert Schumann, sometimes known as Robert Alexander Schumann, was a German composer, aesthete and influential music critic. He is regarded as one of the greatest and most representative composers of the Romantic era....
. He edited Beethoven's
Ludwig van Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven was a German composer and pianist. A crucial figure in the transition between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western art music, he remains one of the most famous and influential composers of all time.Born in Bonn, then the capital of the Electorate of Cologne and part of...
piano sonatas for the Peters
Edition Peters
Edition Peters, also known as C.F.Peters Musikverlag, is a German music publishing house, founded in Leipzig in 1800.From the 1860s it was largely run by members the Hinrichsen family, who were Jewish. The company was confiscated by the Nazis and administered by the "Trustee of Jewish Property"....
Urtext edition
Urtext edition
An urtext edition of a work of classical music is a printed version intended to reproduce the original intention of the composer as exactly as possible, without any added or changed material...
and recorded all of them on the Philips
Philips Classics Records
Philips Classics Records was started in the 1980s as the new classics record label for Philips Records. It was successful with artists including Alfred Brendel, Sir John Eliot Gardiner, Sir Neville Marriner and the Academy of St...
label in 1962-1966. He recorded almost all of them once again after 1984. He is also famous for his recordings of Schubert
Franz Schubert
Franz Peter Schubert was an Austrian composer.Although he died at an early age, Schubert was tremendously prolific. He wrote some 600 Lieder, nine symphonies , liturgical music, operas, some incidental music, and a large body of chamber and solo piano music...
, Chopin
Frédéric Chopin
Frédéric François Chopin was a Polish composer and virtuoso pianist. He is considered one of the great masters of Romantic music and has been called "the poet of the piano"....
, Liszt
Franz Liszt
Franz Liszt ; ), was a 19th-century Hungarian composer, pianist, conductor, and teacher.Liszt became renowned in Europe during the nineteenth century for his virtuosic skill as a pianist. He was said by his contemporaries to have been the most technically advanced pianist of his age...
, Brahms
Johannes Brahms
Johannes Brahms was a German composer and pianist, and one of the leading musicians of the Romantic period. Born in Hamburg, Brahms spent much of his professional life in Vienna, Austria, where he was a leader of the musical scene...
and Debussy
Claude Debussy
Claude-Achille Debussy was a French composer. Along with Maurice Ravel, he was one of the most prominent figures working within the field of impressionist music, though he himself intensely disliked the term when applied to his compositions...
, among others.
Notable recordings:
- Beethoven: Piano Concertos (he recorded them three times) & Piano Sonatas
- Weber: Piano Sonata No. 1 & Konzertstück, Op. 79
- Schubert: Piano Sonata, D. 958 & Klavierstücke, D. 946
- Chopin: Nocturnes
- Schumann: Carnaval & Fantasia in C
- Liszt: Sonata in B minor & Transcendental Études
- Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto (he recorded them twice)
- Brahms: Piano Concertos (he recorded them twice) & Piano Sonata No. 3
- Debussy: Preludes
- Schoenberg: Piano Pieces, Op. 11.
At the time of his death at age 88 in Mürzzuschlag, Austria
Mürzzuschlag
Mürzzuschlag is a town in northeastern Styria, Austria, the capital of the Mürzzuschlag District. It is located on the Mürz river near the Semmering Pass, the border with the state of Lower Austria, about southwest of Vienna. The population is 8,745...
in the midst of a European concert tour, Arrau was working on a recording of the complete works of Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach was a German composer, organist, harpsichordist, violist, and violinist whose sacred and secular works for choir, orchestra, and solo instruments drew together the strands of the Baroque period and brought it to its ultimate maturity...
for keyboard
Keyboard instrument
A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
, and had Haydn, Mendelssohn, Reger, Busoni and Boulez's 3rd Sonata in preparation. His remains were interred in his native city of Chillán, Chile
Chillán
Chillán is a city in the Biobío Region of Chile located about south of the country's capital, Santiago, near the geographical center of the country. It is the capital of Ñuble Province and, with a population of approximately 170,000 people , the most populated urban center of this province...
.
The Robert Schumann Society established the Arrau Medal
Arrau Medal
The Arrau Medal was established by the Robert Schumann Society to memorialize its first honorary member, Claudio Arrau, who died in 1991. The medal is awarded to a pianist who is especially committed to the spirit and tradition of Claudio Arrau's keyboard artistry.The first recipient to be so...
in 1991. It has been awarded to András Schiff
András Schiff
András Schiff is a Hungarian-born British classical pianist, who has won a number of awards including the Grammy and made numerous recordings.- Biography :...
, Martha Argerich
Martha Argerich
Martha Argerich is an Argentine pianist.-Early life:Argerich was born in Buenos Aires and started playing the piano at age three...
and Murray Perahia
Murray Perahia
Murray Perahia KBE is an American concert pianist and conductor.-Early life:Murray Perahia was born in the Bronx borough of New York City to a family of Sephardi Jewish origin. According to the biography on his Mozart piano sonatas CD, his first language was Judaeo-Spanish or, Ladino. The family...
.
Awards and recognitions
- National Patron, Delta OmicronDelta OmicronDelta Omicron is a co-ed international professional music honors fraternity whose mission is to promote and support excellence in music and musicianship.-History:...
International Professional Music Fraternity - 1990: Gold Medal. The Royal Philharmonic SocietyRoyal Philharmonic SocietyThe Royal Philharmonic Society is a British music society, formed in 1813. It was originally formed in London to promote performances of instrumental music there. Many distinguished composers and performers have taken part in its concerts...
- 1988: La Medalla Teresa Carreño. VenezuelaVenezuelaVenezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
- Honorary Member. The Royal Philharmonic Society
- 1984: The Highest Distinction Award from the Inter-American Music Council and the Organization of American States.
- Doctor Honoris Causa. Universidad de ConcepciónUniversidad de ConcepciónThe University of Concepción , also known for its acronym UdeC, is one of the most prestigious universities in Chile. It is the third oldest university in the country, and it is part of the Council of Rectors. It was the first University founded in the South of Chile, and the first to become a...
- Professor Honoris Causa. Universidad de Bío-Bío
- 1983: The International UNESCO Music Prize
- National de la Légion d'honneurLégion d'honneurThe Legion of Honour, or in full the National Order of the Legion of Honour is a French order established by Napoleon Bonaparte, First Consul of the Consulat which succeeded to the First Republic, on 19 May 1802...
of FranceFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France... - National Prize of Art of ChileNational Prize of Art of ChileThe National Prize of Art of Chile, was created on November 9, 1942. It was awarded yearly since 1944 and alternated the mention among Painting or Sculpture, Music and Theatre...
- First Honorary Member. The Robert Schumann Society
- Beethoven Medal of New YorkNew YorkNew York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
- Doctor Honoris Causa. University of OxfordUniversity of OxfordThe University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
- Commandatore. Accademia Nazionale di Santa CeciliaAccademia Nazionale di Santa CeciliaThe Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia is one of the oldest musical institutions in the world, based in Italy.It is based at the Auditorium Parco della Musica in Rome, and was founded by the papal bull, Ratione congruit, issued by Sixtus V in 1585, which invoked two saints prominent in Western...
- Knighthood from the Order of Malta.
- 1982: La Orden del Águila AztecaOrder of the Aztec EagleThe Order of the Aztec Eagle is a Mexican order and is the highest decoration awarded to foreigners in the country.It was created by decree on December 29, 1933 by President Abelardo L. Rodríguez as a reward to services given to Mexico or humankind by foreigners...
. MexicoMexicoThe United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of... - 1980: Hans von Bülow MedalHans von Bülow MedalThe Hans von Bülow Medal is awarded by the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra to outstanding musicians close to the orchestra. The medal is named after its first Chief Conductor, Hans von Bülow.* Mariss Jansons, conductor. 2003...
of the Berlin Philharmonic OrchestraBerlin Philharmonic OrchestraThe Berlin Philharmonic, German: , formerly Berliner Philharmonisches Orchester , is an orchestra based in Berlin, Germany. In 2006, a group of ten European media outlets voted the Berlin Philharmonic number three on a list of "top ten European Orchestras", after the Vienna Philharmonic and the...
. - 1970: Großes BundesverdienstkreuzBundesverdienstkreuzThe Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany is the only general state decoration of the Federal Republic of Germany. It has existed since 7 September 1951, and between 3,000 and 5,200 awards are given every year across all classes...
of the Federal Republic of GermanyGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. - 1968: Homage from the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra. Kurt Westphal, on behalf of the orchestra, called him "heir to the throne of Gieseking and Busoni".
- 1965: Chevalier of Ordre des Arts et des LettresOrdre des Arts et des LettresThe Ordre des Arts et des Lettres is an Order of France, established on 2 May 1957 by the Minister of Culture, and confirmed as part of the Ordre national du Mérite by President Charles de Gaulle in 1963...
of France. - 1959: Santiago's Honorary Citizen.
- Concepción's Honorary Citizen and City Gold Medal.
- Hijo Benemérito de Chillán. Chillán's hitherto Lumaco Street was named after Claudio Arrau.
- 1949: Hijo Predilecto de México.
- Doctor Honoris Causa. University of Chile
- 1941: Hijo Ilustre de Chillán. Chilean GovernmentChileChile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
- 1927: Winner of the Grand Prix of the Concours International des Pianistes GenevaGenevaGeneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
. The jury was composed by Arthur RubinsteinArthur RubinsteinArthur Rubinstein KBE was a Polish-American pianist. He received international acclaim for his performances of the music of a variety of composers...
, Joseph Pembauer, Ernest SchellingErnest SchellingErnest Henry Schelling was an American pianist, composer, and conductor.Born in Belvidere, New Jersey, Schelling was a child prodigy. His first teacher was his father. He entered the Academy of Music in Philadelphia at age 4. At age 7, Schelling traveled to Europe to study. He was admitted to the...
, Alfred CortotAlfred CortotAlfred Denis Cortot was a Franco-Swiss pianist and conductor. He is one of the most renowned 20th-century classical musicians, especially valued for his poetic insight in Romantic period piano works, particularly those of Chopin and Schumann.-Early life and education:Born in Nyon, Vaud, in the...
and José Vianna da MottaJosé Vianna da MottaJosé Vianna da Motta was a distinguished Portuguese pianist, teacher, and composer. He was one of the last pupils of Franz Liszt...
. Cortot exclaimed: "Cela c'est un pianiste. C'est merveilleux". - 1925: Honour Prize of the Stern Conservatory (German), becoming Professor.
- 1919 & 1920: Liszt Prize (after 45 years without a first place winner). Berlin
- 1918: Schulhoff Prize. Berlin
- 1918: End of studies at the Stern Conservatory, receiving an "Exceptional Diploma". Berlin
- 1916: Grant of the Stern Conservatory. Berlin
- 1915: First Prize in the Rudolph Ibach Competition (he was the only participating boy). Berlin
- 1915: Gustav Holländer Medal for young artists. Berlin
- 1911: Grant of the Chilean Congress for musical studies in Berlin.
Album Prizes
- 1963: Deutscher Schallplattenpreis
Brahms 2 Piano Concertos with Carlo Maria Giulini and Philharmonia Orchestra
[EMI Recorded in 1960 & 1962]
- 1965: Deutscher Schallplattenpreis
Beethoven 5 Piano Concertos with Bernard Haitink and Concertgebouw Orchestra
[Philips Recorded in 1964]
- 1969: Deutscher Schallplattenpreis
Schumann Sonate Op.11, Fantasiestücke Op.111
[Philips Recorded in 1967 & 1968]
- 1970: Deutscher Schallplattenpreis
Brahms 2 Piano Concertos with Bernard Haitink and Concertgebouw Orchestra
[Philips Recorded in 1969]
- 1971: Edison Award
Liszt Solo Piano Works: Ballade No.2, Jeux d'eaux à la villa d'Este, Vallée d'Obermann……
[Philips Recorded in 1969]
- 1975: Liszt Record Grand Prix
Liszt Complete Concert Paraphrases on Operas by Verdi
[Philips Recorded in 1971]
- 1979: Diapason d'Or
Chopin Complete Nocturnes
[Philips Recorded in 1977 & 1978]
- 1979: Caecilia Award, Belgium
Schumann Comprehensive Solo Piano Works
[Philips Recorded from 1966 to 1976]
- 1979: Liszt Record Grand Prix
Liszt 12 Etudes d'exécution Transcendante
[Philips Recorded in 1974 & 1976]
- 1982: Liszt Record Grand Prix
Liszt 2 Piano Concertos with Sir Colin Davis and London Symphony Orchestra
[Philips Recorded in 1979]
- 1989: Japan Record Academy Award
Beethoven 5 Piano Concertos with Sir Colin Davis and Staatskapelle Dresden
[Philips Recorded in 1984 & 1987]
- 1990: FFFF de Télérama, Diapason d'Or, Grand Prix du Disque, Warsaw Chopin Society's Grand Prix du Disque Frédéric Chopin
Chopin Complete Etudes
[EMI Recorded in 1956, Remastered in 1987]
- 2003: Grand Prix du Disque
Schumann Piano Concerto, Carnaval & Beethoven Sonata Op.111
[EMI Filmed in 1963, 1961 & 1970]
Quotes
- An interpreter must give his blood to the work interpreted. — Claudio Arrau
- Since in music we deal with notes, not words, with chords, with transitions, with color and expression, the musical meaning always based on those notes as written and nothing else - has to be divined. Therefore any musician, no matter how great an instrumentalist, who is not also an interpreter of a divinatory order, the way Furtwängler was, or Fischer-Dieskau is, is somehow one-sided, somehow without spiritual grandeur. — Claudio Arrau
External links
- ArrauHouse. Comprehensive website on Claudio Arrau
- Biographical sketch for Claudio Arrau
- Discographie, repertoire et informations
- Remembering Claudio Arrau on the tenth anniversary of his passing from Unitel
- Decca & Philips' Biography and Discography of Claudio Arrau
- Marston Records' Biography of Claudio Arrau
- Biography of Claudio Arrau from Answers.comAnswers.comAnswers.com is an Internet-based knowledge exchange, which includes WikiAnswers, ReferenceAnswers, VideoAnswers, and five international language Q&A communities. The Answers.com domain name was purchased by Bill Gross and Henrik Jones at idealab in 1996. The domain name was acquired by NetShepard...
- A comprehensive discography
- Biography of Claudio Arrau
- Pianist Claudio.com
- Biography of Claudio Arrau
- Article of Claudio Arrau from Encyclopædia BritannicaEncyclopædia BritannicaThe Encyclopædia Britannica , published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., is a general knowledge English-language encyclopaedia that is available in print, as a DVD, and on the Internet. It is written and continuously updated by about 100 full-time editors and more than 4,000 expert...
Online - Article of Claudio Arrau from BBC Radio 3BBC Radio 3BBC Radio 3 is a national radio station operated by the BBC within the United Kingdom. Its output centres on classical music and opera, but jazz, world music, drama, culture and the arts also feature. The station is the world’s most significant commissioner of new music, and its New Generation...
- Profile for Claudio Arrau León on Find-A-Grave
- Arrau's Museum