#argerich

Only the greatest artists are able to maintain the freshness of discovery with the depth of thoughtfulness. Martha Argerich is one of them.

- Daniel Barenboim on pianist Martha Argerich

For all her international renown, the Argentine-Swiss classical concert pianist does not appear to be a natural virtuoso: Martha Argerich comes on stage a little shyly, dressed in a simple black top and full patterned skirt, a thick mass of grey hair clouding her face, she bows as if to say “Oh, so you’d like me to play the piano?”, sits at the piano, shakes back her hair… And then she plays…

A formidable, legendary pianist, there is an air of mystery surrounding Martha Argerich, in part due to her reluctance to give interviews and the rarity of her concert appearances (her concert sell out in minutes). She has never sought to cultivate the image of the superstar virtuoso. A prodigious, ferocious talent, Argerich is blessed with a photographic memory, enabling her to reproduce music after a single hearing. Her bravura technique is beyond comparison: she has a “thing for octaves” and can make the rapid octave passages in Tchaikovsky’s first piano concerto or Schumann’s Toccata, one of the most challenging works in the entire repertoire, look like child’s play. Behind that technical assuredness, is an artistry which makes you feel as if you are hearing familiar, well-known repertoire anew. That’s a remarkable skill in any pianist, but for someone in their late-70s who’s been performing for over half a century, it’s extraordinary.

In the 2012 film “Bloody Daughter” made by her youngest daughter, Stéphanie Argerich (Stephen Kovacevich’s daughter), the Argentine-born pianist Martha Argerich’s chaotic home life is revealed with honesty and affection. She likes to sleep beyond midday, spends time watching television or chatting to friends, and might practice the piano late in the evening. One senses a rebellion against the restrictive, highly-organised lifestyle of the international concert artist.

Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina in 1941, she grew up learning the paino alongside another pianist prodigy and future maestro conductor, Daniel Barenboim. Both have maintained a life time friendship and have even played together.

Martha Argerich came to international attention when she won the International Chopin Piano Competition at the age of 24. Prior to that she had received support from Argentina’s President Peron who posted her diplomat father to Vienna so that she could study there. Despite her long and acclaimed career, she is prey to artistic insecurity, but sees this as an asset rather than a handicap, regarding it as a mark of a true artist who has not rested complacently on the laurels of their success. In the 1980s she decided to limit her solo work, stating that she found the on stage loneliness unbearable, and she much prefers to perform with others. Those ‘others’ being the world’s greatest orchestras and musicians, including her long-time friend Daniel Barenboim, cellist Mischa Maisky, Nelson Freire, violinist Gidon Kremer and conductor Claudio Abbado. Her repertoire is broad and varied; her performances and recordings of the concertos of Schumann, Liszt, Tchaikovsky and Prokofiev are especially wondrous.

I love very much to play the piano. But I don’t like to be a pianist.

- Martha Argerich

It is difficult to think of Argerich and not think about virtuosity. From her 1960 debut album (DG, 1/63), made when she was 19, she drew the admiration of Horowitz and alerted everyone to an extraordinary technique and temperament, and her free-spirited Chopin at the 1965 International Chopin Competition in Warsaw, which she won seemingly without breaking sweat despite having only recently returned to the instrument after her New York sojourn and giving birth to her first daughter.

Argerich’s early playing is notable for the creative tension that comes with pushing the music beyond any safety net.

I’ve known Martha Argerich since 1949. There was a house in Buenos Aires, owned by a former violinist and businessman, where chamber music was played every Friday. All the great musicians who came to Argentina – Adolph Busch, Igor Markevitch, Sergiu Celibidache – could be found there. That’s where I first met Martha. I was seven, she was eight. We played together underneath the piano…. There is hardly anyone I have known for so long.

- Daniel Barenboim on Martha Argerich