Alfred Brendel - dignified and revered
Winner of the Siemens Award 2004
Without being guilty of adopting the trivial terminology of the tabloids, the German Siemens Award could be described as the European Oscar of serious and sophisticated musical life. The jury members of this major distinction (which is accompanied by a considerable sum of money) have never left any doubt that they are not concerned with ratings in the sense of media presence of the arts but solely with the independent, courageous life achievement – perhaps even in opposition – of a musician, a composer or someone particularly engaged in the arts and in cultural life in general.
Alfred Brendel
Alfred Brendel is a monument of provocative conservatism, a musician concerned with the absolute present even though he avoids very new music in his concerts. In his early years he used to play Stravinsky and included Schoenberg, Busoni and Bartók in his programmes. Brendel was also committed to playing new compositions by Austrians who are nowadays almost forgotten. It seems to me, however, that a musician’s constant and untiring initiative in reporting to the listening and hearing public about the possible truths of music in general and about his most individual experiences in particular is much more important than the performance statistics of an artist who is committed to what is new.
Recently Alfred Brendel has appeared as a family man on the concert platform together with his son Adrian who plays the cello. There is also a great sense of family among the generous donators of this prestigious award: the heirs of the Siemens Family perpetuate a great tradition.
Peter Cossé
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