After recording all Beethoven’s piano works over the past two decades, the Turkish pianist discusses the challenges posed by his music
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Interview 20 Int Piano
August 2003
Idil Biret
Marguerite Long called her ‘La petite muse’. Wilhelm Kempff called her ‘my dearest pupil’ and ‘my little colleague’. More recently, Gramophone has hailed her as ‘one of the finest exponents of Chopin’s concertos in the world today’ while the Boston Globe declared, ‘She is a decisive and unequivocal pianist with a huge, ringing, deep-belled tone’. She has a massive repertoire including everything from Beethoven and Chopin to Ligeti and Boulez and her acclaimed recordings number more than 70. A former child prodigy, her talent has remained prodigious all her life.
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July 2004
Q. You started playing the piano at three years old and studied in Paris as a child with some of the world’s great pianists. How did this happen? In what ways did your mentors A. Cortot, W. Kempff and N. Boulanger inspire you? How were they different from one another?
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Classic CD
July 1993
THE BEST CHOPIN EVER?
Idil Biret isn’t a household name. That could soon change. Her complete set of Chopin’s piano music on Naxos isn’t just an amazing bargain at £5 a disc – it’s also world-class. Any complete set of Chopin’s works on CD is important. With world-class playing it’s remarkable. And at £5 per disc it’s astonishing. Who’s inspiring the superlatives – Ashkenazy, Pogorelich, Pollini? No: Idil Biret. Jeremy Nicholas met her in Paris…
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PIANO Magazine UK (Cover Feature)
March 1998
IDIL BIRET THE COMPLEAT BRAHMSIAN
From Paris with Love
The Turkish virtuoso Idil Biret, long resident in France, has recently recorded the complete piano works of Brahms for Naxos. A labour of love, certainly, but as Jeremy Siepmann discovered, it’s only one of many.
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Classics UK
June 1992
ARTIST PROFILE
Thinking through the keys
Turkish pianist Idil Biret is one of the most respected artists on the super-budget Naxos label. Bill Newman talks to her about her early recollections, her training, her recordings and her aspirations.
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HI-FI NEWS & RECORD REVIEW
UK / July 1998
Precocity and musical talent are not without cost. How often we read about musically gifted children sent to study and then give concerts across the world. So it was with Idil Biret. Her outstanding gifts earned her a scholarship from the Turkish government to study in Paris, where she was duly accompanied by her parents. But for her father this meant a period of no work. “My father resigned from his work, which was very courageous. He didn’t want me to be without a father in Paris. But it was also a risk because you never know with a child prodigy if the development will be harmonious.
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