András Schiff plays Haydn: Brothers in Spirit

When András Schiff recognizes “the juxtaposition of expectations and surprises, of the conventional and the unconventional” in Joseph Haydn’s music, this also applies to himself: the master from Hungary celebrates piano playing in the most traditional way imaginable, but also always surprises unusual concert formats.

Not only interpreting the pieces, but also presenting and explaining them, he has been doing that for a long time. On Thursday in the Boulez Saal, he demands a new level of openness and open-mindedness from his audience: the program is not known, only “Haydn” is on the list – and the hall is full.

To start with, a youthful work: Capriccio in G major from 1765, composed to the rough folk song “Acht Sauschneider muss sein”. For the uninitiated, it’s about castrating a boar. What Haydn makes of it in the seclusion of Esterházy Palace is astounding: Schiff demonstrates a passage with a total of 24 modulations until C major is reached – and immediately plays the piece again.

Classical Zen Masters

Time and attention, as is well known, the greatest luxury in the era of Snapchat and Instagram: Schiff takes one and demands the other, which is also characteristic of his concerts. With clasped hands he thanks every applause, a Zen master of the classical period, whose dark, rough voice streaked with dry humor is easy to confide in: “Of the great composers, Haydn is the most underestimated,” he says, “for Mozart and Beethoven you have to.” not fight. You can only break them.” He also explains the pieces in English, and if you don’t listen now, you’ll miss a lot, because he provides different information than in German.

Schiff’s programs are at their strongest when he explains and repeats details. That is not always the case on this evening, at times he stacks a little too much sonata after sonata (G minor from 1768 and C minor from 1770). But his commitment to Haydn’s piano literature, who surprisingly was not a virtuoso on the instrument himself, is genuine and honest: “I think Mozart’s music is cantabile, conceived from the point of view of singing. Haydn writes music that speaks, it is declamatory.”

Speaking also means silence, again and again Haydn uses silence, as in the Fantasia in C major from the revolutionary year 1789: a sudden pause which, according to Haydn’s instructions, “tenuto infanto finché non si sente più il suono” should be held until the sound has completely faded away. Schiff doesn’t wait completely: “It was composed for harpsichord,” he explains, “if we really wanted to let the sound fade away completely with this modern Bösendorfer, we would have to sit here for a long time.” In terms of humor, too, he is Haydn’s brother in spirit.

To home page