Friedrich Gulda

Friedrich Gulda won the International Geneva Music Competition in 1946 at the age of 16 and from then on was undisputedly one of the leading pianists of his generation. But, while he was one of the most serious and conscientious interpreters of Viennese classics, he was simultaneously one of the most eccentric personalities in the music world. He expressed his fundamental reservations about the classical music business through his biting mockery of "music officials" and extravagant performances as a disturber of the peace. Like his colleague Glenn Gould, who was two years younger, Gulda kept his distance from almost all Romantic composers. Unlike Gould, however, he loved Mozart above all else, describing him as "one of the greatest benefactors of mankind". His performances and recordings of Beethoven's complete piano sonatas, meanwhile, are highlights in the documented history of the composer's reception. He also devoted himself intensively to compositions by Debussy and in later years also returned to the music of Chopin, with which he had celebrated success at the beginning of his career. The music critic Wolfgang Sandner once wrote of the "genius who would so gladly have been a talent", alluding to Gulda's often criticised turn to jazz. But Gulda had been fascinated with jazz since as early as the 1950s, when he made a triumphant debut at Carnegie Hall and visited the legendary Birdland club, where he would perform a few years later. Gulda played together with scene greats such as Chick Corea and Joe Zawinul, mixed ever more iconoclastic improvisations into his programmes and increased his rebelliousness in later years with techno performances and music parties in Ibiza. His fame as a classical music interpreter remained unaffected by this. The venerable German critic Joachim Kaiser, never doubted his status as an unrivalled Beethoven player. In 1999, the seriously ill pianist himself circulated the news of his death, only to perform in public once again at a "resurrection concert". The legend of Friedrich Gulda has lost none of its allure to this day, thanks in part to his extensive recorded legacy.