Spontaneity, immediacy, freshness—they can be as important in classical music as they are in jazz. What I love about this performance, for instance, is that he never stops searching. It’s as if he’s encountering this piece for the first time and unable to conceal his astonishment.
Beethoven, Piano Sonata No. 31, Op. 110/Rudolf Serkin, piano, live, 1987
1st Movement
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2nd Movement
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3rd Movement
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More Beethoven piano sonatas?
Here (No. 14, “Moonlight,” Artur Schnabel).
And here (No. 21, “Waldstein,” Emil Gilels).
And here (No. 23, “Appassionata,” Solomon).
And here. (No. 32, Claudio Arrau).
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lagniappe
reading table
The Busy Road
I am so used to it by now
that when the traffic falls silent,
I think a storm is coming.
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Lonely
No one is calling me. I can’t check the answering machine because I have been here all this time. If I go out, someone may call while I’m out. Then I can check the answering machine when I come back in.
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Nietszche
Oh, poor Dad. I’m sorry I made fun of you.
Now I’m spelling Nietszche wrong, too.
—The Collected Stories of Lydia Davis (2009)
music clip of the day 