Ivo Pogorelich is perhaps the only great pianist who became an instant
celebrity for the prize he didn't win. It was in 1980, when he was
eliminated in the third round of the Warsaw Chopin Competition. An argument
ensued among the jurors, and Martha Argerich, a member of the jury,
resigned in protest, claiming "Pogorelich is a genius!" The scandal
provoked by Argerich's reaction made him famous overnight. The eyes of the
musical world were soon upon young Ivo Pogorelich, and they have yet to be
disappointed.
Ivo Pogorelich was born in Belgrade in 1958 and began playing the piano at
the age of seven. After his classical training at the Moscow Conservatory,
he took master classes from Aliza Kezeradze, who passed on to him the
tradition of the Liszt-Siloti school. In an interview with the German
weekly newspaper "Die Zeit", Pogorelich once listed the four most important
things he learned from Kezeradze: "First, technical perfection as something
natural. Second, an insight into the development of the piano sound, as
perfected by the pianist-composers of the late 19th and early 20th
centuries, composers who understood the piano both as a human voice ... and
as an orchestra with which they could produce a variety of colors. Third,
the need to learn how to use every aspect of our new instruments, which are
richer in sound. Fourth, the importance of differentiation."
Pogorelich won the Casagrande Competition in 1978 and the first prize of
the International Music Competition in Montreal in 1980. Since the Warsaw
scandal, Pogorelich has been pursuing a brilliant international career. His
debuts in London, Paris, New York, Madrid, Brussels, Amsterdam, Rome, Milan
and Tel Aviv were triumphs. He has performed with practically all the major
orchestras in the world, and his recitals are almost always sold out.
Comparing him with Horowitz, the New York Times once wrote: "He was an
entire orchestra." His often controversial and always stunning
interpretations confirm the originality of his talent and intellect.
In 1986 and 1987, when Pogorelich was in his late 20s, Unitel recorded a
series of six recitals with the artist in venues of particularly striking
beauty. The fact that the young pianist chose several pieces that are not
among the most spectacular or frequently performed of the piano repertoire
already hints at the unique and uncompromising character of this young
pianist.
