Stephen Kovacevich

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Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau , Stephen Kovacevich, Gerald Moore , Elly Ameling and Bernard Haitink (1970)

Stephen Kovacevich (born October 17, 1940 in San Pedro (Los Angeles) ; former name Stephen Bishop ) is an American pianist and conductor.

Life

Stephen Kovacevich comes from a Croatian immigrant family. He received his first piano lessons from Lev Schorr. At the age of eleven he made his debut in his hometown. When his mother married the second time, he took her new surname Bishop . He later called himself Bishop-Kovacevich, and in the end just Kovacevich. He went to London in 1959 and studied with Myra Hess . He gave his first major piano recital with the Diabelli Variations in 1961 at Wigmore Hall . This enthusiastically received concert laid the foundation for his further career. In 1962 he was awarded the Mozart Prize in London . In 1964 he played with the cellist Jacqueline du Pré , who married Daniel Barenboim in 1967 . He later entered into a personal relationship with her. In March 1967 he made his debut at the Town Hall in New York City with works by Johann Sebastian Bach , Franz Schubert and Ludwig van Beethoven . In the 1969/70 season he played all of Mozart's piano concertos with the Geraint Jones Orchestra . In 1968 he played the world premiere of Richard Rodney Bennett's Piano Concerto . The recording of the 2nd piano concerto (Bartók) was awarded the Edison Award in 1970.

In 1974 he married the pianist Martha Argerich . The marriage comes from the daughter Stéphanie Argerich (* 1975), who portrayed her parents in the 2012 documentary Argerich - Bloody Daughter . He began a second career as a conductor in 1984 and in 1990 became Artistic Director and Chief Conductor of the Irish Chamber Orchestra .

Repertoire and reception

As an interpreter, Stephen Kovacevich feels particularly close to Ludwig van Beethoven. Recordings of the Diabelli Variations as well as the piano sonatas and concerts led to international recognition. In the 1990s he signed an exclusive contract with EMI Classics , for which he made a complete recording of the Beethoven sonatas, which Warner Classics made available again in 2017. The interpretations are characterized by faithfulness to the text and naturalness, seriousness and depth and forego extravagant liberties. His Beethoven is cantable, powerful and clearly articulated, if not differentiated down to the last detail. A comparison of the earlier with the later recording of the Pathétique does not reveal a fundamentally new view, but changes in many details. The dramatic contrast between the pathetic introduction Grave and the wild Allegro di molte e con brio is leveled out, and the finale no longer seems as lively and natural as it did in 1971. The slightly higher tempo in the cantilever second movement benefits the recording.

In the 1970s, Joachim Kaiser praised the seriousness and the ability to articulate as well as the quiet expressiveness and the great legato, skills that would make Kovacevich a weighty Beethoven interpreter. In special moments, Kovacevich combines Solomon's greatness with Klemperer's enormous naturalness. Kaiser admires the ability to concentrate with which Kovacevich structures and masters the great Diabelli Variations, and considers the resulting television recording to be a visual-acoustic miracle. Sometimes, however, he lacks freedom, and in contrast to Daniel Barenboim , he seems a bit clumsy and melancholy. In the finale of the A major cello sonata op. 69 or in the second movement of the piano sonata op. 101 he ignores the brilliance that Schumann anticipates, even if the glow with which he performs the infinite melody of the first movement makes one sit up and take notice.

Other composers whose works he has recorded are Mozart, Schubert, Schumann, Chopin and Brahms . The recordings of the two Brahms concerts were highly praised and the recording of the 1st Piano Concerto (Brahms) under Wolfgang Sawallisch received the Gramophone Award in 1993. The second recording of the 2nd piano concerto (Brahms) was recorded with a larger proportion of space, which meant that the symphonic dimensions of the enormous work became more apparent and the piano and the orchestra were able to merge acoustically better. Compared to the earlier recording, he played more classy and reserved. The pianistic approach in the first recording seemed more direct.

Kovacevich is also dedicated to chamber music . As early as the 1960s he made music - still under the name Stephen Bishop - with the famous cellist Jacqueline du Pré. With her he recorded Beethoven's cello sonatas No. 3 and 5; later he played four hands with Martha Argerich. Other chamber music partners are the cellists Truls Mørk and Lynn Harrell and the flautist Emmanuel Pahud .

Another focus of Stephen Kovacevich's interests is the new music of Béla Bartók, Alban Berg and Igor Fjodorowitsch Stravinsky . Sir Colin Davis , who promoted the pianist's career, convinced him to study the 2nd piano concerto (Bartók) . Kovacevich described the troubles of studying this concert. He had never before studied anything so difficult, and technically he received the “finishing touches” in the months of studying. Later he also worked on the 1st piano concerto (Bartók) and the 3rd piano concerto (Bartók) . He played the concerts with a blaze of color and rhythmic flexibility. Richard Rodney Bennett's first piano concerto, dedicated to him, was recorded by Kovacevich for the record. He also interpreted Michael Tippett's piano concerto .

Kovacevich is considered a flexible pianist who can shape Chopin's melodies as well as the percussive parts in Stravinski's Concerto for Piano and Woodwind .

documentary

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Biographical information from: Ingo Harden, Gregor Willmes PianistenProfile 600 performers: Their biography, their style, their recordings, Stephen Kovacevich, p. 396, Bärenreiter, Kassel 2008
  2. ↑ Mother Martha and her daughters. In: Neue Zürcher Zeitung , April 4, 2013, accessed on December 20, 2013.
  3. ↑ Kovacevich, Stephen: Beethoven, The 32 Piano Sonatas, Bagatelles. In: Warner Classics. Retrieved March 2, 2019 .
  4. ^ PianistenProfile ibid. P. 397
  5. ↑ Joachim Kaiser, Great Pianists in Our Time , Daniel Barenboim, Stephen Bishop, Alfred Brendel, p. 229. Piper, Munich 2004.
  6. ^ PianistenProfile ibid. P. 397
personal data
SURNAME Kovacevich, Stephen
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Bishop, Stephen
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American pianist and conductor
DATE OF BIRTH October 17, 1940
PLACE OF BIRTH San Pedro (Los Angeles) , California