Martha Argerich in 1962

Martha Argerich (born June 5, 1941) is a concert pianist of Argentine origin. Her aversion to the press and publicity has resulted in her remaining out of the limelight for most of her career. She has given relatively few interviews. As a result, she may not be as well known as other pianists of similar calibre. Despite this, she is widely recognized as one of the great piano virtuosos of our time. Image File history File links Size of this preview: 401 × 599 pixel Image in higher resolution (1595 × 2382 pixel, file size: 347 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) High resolution version from http://memory. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 401 × 599 pixel Image in higher resolution (1595 × 2382 pixel, file size: 347 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) High resolution version from http://memory. ... June 5 is the 156th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (157th in leap years), with 209 days remaining. ... For the movie, see 1941 (film). ... Pianist Claudio Arrau, Carnegie Hall, 1954. ... A virtuoso (from Italian virtuoso, late Latin virtuosus, Latin virtus meaning: skill, manliness, excellence) is an individual who possesses outstanding technical ability at singing or playing a musical instrument. ...

Early life

Argerich was born in Buenos Aires and started playing the piano at age three. At age five, she moved to teacher Vincenzo Scaramuzza who stressed to her lyricism and feeling. She gave her debut concert at the age of eight, playing Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 20, Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 1, and Bach's French Suite No. 5. For other uses see Buenos Aires (disambiguation). ... Vincenzo Scaramuzza (19 June 1885 - 1968) was a pianist and music teacher. ... Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (IPA: , baptized Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart) (January 27, 1756 – December 5, 1791) was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical era. ... Wolfgang Amadeus Mozarts Piano Concerto No. ... 1820 portrait by Joseph Karl Stieler Beethoven redirects here. ... Ludwig van Beethovens Piano Concerto No. ... For other people named Bach and other meanings of the word, see Bach (disambiguation). ... French Suites refer to compositions by Johann Sebastian Bach. ...

The family moved to Europe in 1955 where Argerich studied with Friedrich Gulda in Austria. She later studied with Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli and Stefan Askenase. In 1957, at sixteen, she won both the Geneva International Music Competition and the Ferruccio Busoni International Competition within three weeks of each other. At the Ferruccio Busoni International Competition Argerich met Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli whom she would later seek out for lessons at twenty during a personal artistic crisis. Friedrich Gulda (16 May 1930 - 27 January 2000) was an Austrian pianist. ... Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli (January 5, 1920 – June 12, 1995) was an Italian classical pianist. ... The Geneva International Music Competition (or Concours de Genève Music Competition) is an annual music competition held in Geneva founded in 1939 for a wide variety of instruments, voice, conducting, and small ensemble performance. ... Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli (January 5, 1920 – June 12, 1995) was an Italian classical pianist. ...

Argerich won the seventh International Frederick Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw in 1965. One of her performances in that winning campaign was a defiantly confident reading of Chopin's Etude in C major (Op. 10, No. 1). The following year she gave her American debut in the Lincoln Center's Great Performers Series. The International Frederick Chopin Piano Competition is one of the oldest and the most prestigious piano competition in the world, organized in Warsaw since 1927 and held every 5 years since 1955. ... Warsaw (Polish: , , in full The Capital City of Warsaw, Polish: ) is the capital of Poland, its largest city, and a gamma world city. ... The only known photograph of Frédéric Chopin (commonly mistaken for a daguerreotype), believed to have been taken by Louis-Auguste Bisson in 1849 “Chopin” redirects here. ... An etude (from the French word étude meaning study) is a short musical composition designed to provide practice in a particular technical skill in the performance of a solo instrument. ... The Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center. ...

Professional career

Martha Argerich Plays Chopin: The Legendary 1965 Recording (1999)

In the same year, she made her first recording, including works by Chopin, Brahms, Ravel, Prokofiev, and Liszt. A few years later she recorded Chopin's Sonata No. 3, Polonaise, Op. 53, and other short works. Her technique is considered amongst the most formidable of her time, inviting comparison with Vladimir Horowitz. Indeed, her early recordings (made at age 19) of such competition mainstays as Prokofiev's Toccata and Liszt's Sixth Hungarian Rhapsody remain yardsticks for these works. Although some critics say she has exaggerated dynamics and tempi, her playing is characterised by her passionate and unique sound. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... The only known photograph of Frédéric Chopin (commonly mistaken for a daguerreotype), believed to have been taken by Louis-Auguste Bisson in 1849 “Chopin” redirects here. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Maurice Ravel in 1912. ... Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev (Russian: , Sergej Sergejevič Prokof’ev; 15/April 271, 1891–March 5, 1953) was a Russian composer who mastered numerous musical genres and came to be admired as one of the greatest composers of the 20th century. ... Franz Liszt (Hungarian: Liszt Ferenc) (October 22, 1811 – July 31, 1886) was a Hungarian virtuoso pianist and composer of the Romantic period. ... Polonaise in A-flat major, op. ... Portrait of Vladimir Horowitz, captured from the documentary The Last Romantic. ... Sergei Prokofievs Toccata in D Minor Op. ... The Hungarian Rhapsodies, (S/G244, R106) Rapsodies hongroises or Ungarische Rhapsodien) are a set of pieces of music by Franz Liszt, originally for solo piano. ...

Argerich has often remarked in interviews of feeling "lonely" on stage during solo performances. After the 1980s she played few solo concerts, instead focusing on concertos and, in particular, chamber music, and accompanying instrumentalists in sonatas. She is noted especially for her recordings of 20th century works by composers such as Rachmaninov, Messiaen and Prokofiev. One notable record pairs Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto No. 3 with Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1. A piano concerto is a concerto for solo piano and orchestra. ... Chamber music is a form of classical music, written for a small group of instruments which traditionally could be accommodated in a palace chamber. ... Sonata (From Latin and Italian sonare, to sound), in music, literally means a piece played as opposed to cantata (Latin cantare, to sing), a piece sung. ... 20th century classical music, the classical music of the 20th century, was extremely diverse, beginning with the late Romantic style of Sergei Rachmaninoff, Impressionism of Claude Debussy and Maurice Ravel, the Neoclassicism of middle-period Igor Stravinsky, and ranging to such distant sound-worlds as the complete serialism of Pierre... Sergei Vasilievich Rachmaninoff (Russian: , Sergej Vasil’evič Rachmaninov, 1 April 1873 (N.S.) or 20 March 1873 (O.S.) – 28 March 1943) was a Russian composer, pianist, and conductor. ... Olivier Messiaen It has been suggested that List of students of Olivier Messiaen be merged into this article or section. ... Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev (Russian: , Sergej Sergejevič Prokof’ev; 15/April 271, 1891–March 5, 1953) was a Russian composer who mastered numerous musical genres and came to be admired as one of the greatest composers of the 20th century. ... The beginning of the opening theme of the The Piano Concerto No. ... Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky[1] (Russian: Пётр Ильич Чайкoвский, Pëtr Il’ič ÄŒajkovskij;  ) (7 May [O.S. 25 April] 1840 – 6 November [O.S. 25 October] 1893), was a Russian composer of the Romantic era. ... Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovskys Piano Concerto No. ...

Argerich has married three times. Her first marriage was to Robert Chen, with whom she had her daughter Lyda Chen. From 1969 to 1973, Argerich was married to conductor Charles Dutoit, with whom she continues to record and perform. Annie Dutoit is their child. Her third husband was pianist Stephen Kovacevich, with whom she also had a child, Stephanie Argerich. One of Argerich's closest friends is the Brazilian pianist Nelson Freire, with whom she frequently appears in duo-piano recitals. A conductor conducting a band at a ceremony A conductors score and batons Conducting is the act of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. ... Charles Édouard Dutoit (born October 7, 1936) is a Swiss conductor. ... Stephen Kovacevich (born October 17, 1940), who has also been known as Stephen Bishop and Stephen Bishop-Kovacevich is an American classical pianist. ... Born in Brazil in 1944, Nelson Freire began playing the piano when he was three years old, amazing everyone around him by replaying from memory pieces his elder sister had just performed. ...

Argerich has been tireless in promoting younger pianists, through her annual festival, and frequently appears as a member of the jury at important competitions. The Croatian pianist Ivo Pogorelic was thrust into the musical spotlight when, after being eliminated in the third round of the 1980 International Frederick Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw, Argerich proclaimed him a genius and left the jury in protest. Ivo Pogorelić (20 October 1958) is a Croatian pianist. ... The International Frederick Chopin Piano Competition is one of the oldest and the most prestigious piano competition in the world, organized in Warsaw since 1927 and held every 5 years since 1955. ... Warsaw (Polish: , , in full The Capital City of Warsaw, Polish: ) is the capital of Poland, its largest city, and a gamma world city. ...

Awards and recognitions

• Praemium Imperiale 2005 Japan.
• Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Soloist(s) Performance (with orchestra):
  • Claudio Abbado (conductor), Martha Argerich and the Mahler Chamber Orchestra for Beethoven: Piano Concertos Nos. 2 & 3 (2006)
• Grammy Award for Best Chamber Music Performance:
  • Martha Argerich and Mikhail Pletnev for Prokofiev (Arr. Pletnev): Cinderella Suite for Two Pianos/Ravel: Ma Mere L'Oye (2005)
• Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Soloist(s) Performance (with orchestra)
  • Charles Dutoit (conductor), Martha Argerich and the Montreal Symphony Orchestra for Prokofiev: Piano Concertos Nos. 1 and 3/Bartók: Piano Concerto No. 3 (2000)
• International Frederick Chopin Piano Competition: 1st prize (1965)

The Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Soloist(s) Performance (with orchestra) has been awarded since 1959. ... Claudio Abbado (born June 26, 1933) is a noted Italian conductor. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... The Grammy Award for Best Chamber Music Performance has been awarded since 1959. ... Mikhail Vasilievich Pletnev (Михаил Васильевич Плетнев) (born 14 April 1957) is a pianist, conductor, and composer. ... Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev (Russian: , Sergej Sergejevič Prokof’ev; 15/April 271, 1891–March 5, 1953) was a Russian composer who mastered numerous musical genres and came to be admired as one of the greatest composers of the 20th century. ... Maurice Ravel in 1912. ... The 47th Grammy Awards were held on February 13, 2005 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. ... The Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Soloist(s) Performance (with orchestra) has been awarded since 1959. ... Charles Édouard Dutoit (born October 7, 1936) is a Swiss conductor. ... The Montreal Symphony Orchestra (MSO) (in French: Orchestre symphonique de Montréal (OSM)) is a major orchestra based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, with its home venue at Montreals Place des Arts. ... Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev (Russian: , Sergej Sergejevič Prokof’ev; 15/April 271, 1891–March 5, 1953) was a Russian composer who mastered numerous musical genres and came to be admired as one of the greatest composers of the 20th century. ... Béla Viktor János Bartók (March 25, 1881 – September 26, 1945) was a Hungarian composer, pianist and collector of Eastern European and Middle Eastern folk music. ... The 42nd Grammy Awards were held on February 23, 2000. ... The International Frederick Chopin Piano Competition is one of the oldest and the most prestigious piano competition in the world, organized in Warsaw since 1927 and held every 5 years since 1955. ...

External links and references

• The Martha Argerich Project
• Argerich Music news, concert schedule, articles, recordings
• Argerich's repertoire through the years
• Sadie, Stanley (Ed.) (1981). The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians. London: Macmillan. ISBN 0-333-23111-2.
• Martha Argerich biography, CD and concert review by cosmopolis.ch
• Georges Gachot directed a documentary film about Martha Argerich named Martha Argerich, conversation nocturne (2002) (imdb link).