Sir András Schiff (; born 21 December 1953) is a Hungarian-born British classical pianist and conductor, who has received numerous major awards and honours, including the
Grammy Award
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pr ...
,
Gramophone Award
The Gramophone Classical Music Awards, launched in 1977, are one of the most significant honours bestowed on recordings in the classical record industry. They are often viewed as equivalent to or surpassing the American Grammy award, and refe ...
,
Mozart Medal, and
Royal Academy of Music Bach Prize, and was appointed
Knight Bachelor
The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised orders of chivalry; it is a part of the British honours system. Knights Bachelor are ...
in the 2014 Queen's
Birthday Honours
The Birthday Honours, in some Commonwealth realms, mark the reigning British monarch's official birthday by granting various individuals appointment into national or dynastic orders or the award of decorations and medals. The honours are prese ...
for services to music. He is also known for his public criticism of political movements in Hungary and Austria.
Schiff is distinguished visiting professor of piano at the
Barenboim–Said Akademie in Berlin, and the first
artist-in-residence
Artist-in-residence, or artist residencies, encompass a wide spectrum of artistic programs which involve a collaboration between artists and hosting organisations, institutions, or communities. They are programs which provide artists with space a ...
of the
Israel Philharmonic Orchestra
The Israel Philharmonic Orchestra (abbreviation IPO; Hebrew: התזמורת הפילהרמונית הישראלית, ''ha-Tizmoret ha-Filharmonit ha-Yisra'elit'') is an Israeli symphony orchestra based in Tel Aviv. Its principal concert venue ...
.
Biography
Schiff was born in
Budapest
Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population o ...
to a
Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
family, the only child of two Holocaust survivors.
He began piano lessons at age five, studying at the
Franz Liszt Academy of Music in Budapest with Elisabeth Vadász, then with
Pál Kadosa and
Ferenc Rados
Ferenc Rados (born 26 October 1934, in Budapest) is a Hungarian pianist and professor of piano and chamber music. Until 1996, he taught at the Franz Liszt Academy of Music in Budapest, Hungary. After retiring, he gave master classes in Europe an ...
. Of Rados, Schiff said, "There was never a positive word from him. Everything was bad, horrible. But it instilled a healthy attitude, an element of doubt."
[James R. Oestreich, "András Schiff Holds Forceful Convictions in a Velvet Glove," New York Times, 22 October 2015, ] He also said that from Rados he learned "the main elements of piano playing, tone production, and self-control; how to listen to
neselfand how to practise well, without wasting time, always musically, never mechanically."
Among his classmates were renowned concert pianists
Zoltán Kocsis and
Dezső Ránki
Dezső Ránki (born 8 September 1951) is a Hungarian virtuoso concert pianist with a broad repertoire and a significant discography of solo, duo and concerto works.
Life and career
Born in Budapest, he began taking piano lessons at the Budapes ...
. Concurrently with his studies in Budapest, he also studied with
Tatiana Nikolayeva
Tatiana Petrovna Nikolayeva (russian: Татья́на Петро́вна Никола́ева, ''Tat'jana Petrovna Nikolajeva''; May 4, 1924November 22, 1993) was a pianist, composer, and teacher from the Soviet Union.
Life
Nikolayeva was born ...
and
Bella Davidovich
Bella Mikhaylovna Davidovich (Бэлла Миха́йловна Давидо́вич; born July 16, 1928) is a Soviet-born American pianist.
Biography
Davidovich was born in Baku, Azerbaijan SSR, into a Jewish family of musicians and began studyi ...
in summer courses at the
Hochschule für Musik Franz Liszt, Weimar
The University of Music Franz Liszt Weimar (in German: Hochschule für Musik Franz Liszt Weimar) is an institution of music in Weimar, Germany.
The Hochschule
Franz Liszt, who spent a great deal of his life in Weimar, encouraged the founding ...
. He then studied in London with
George Malcolm, a pioneer in the use of period keyboard instruments; Schiff made a recording with Malcolm of four-hand music by Mozart using a
fortepiano
A fortepiano , sometimes referred to as a pianoforte, is an early piano. In principle, the word "fortepiano" can designate any piano dating from the invention of the instrument by Bartolomeo Cristofori in 1698 up to the early 19th century. M ...
that had once belonged to the composer. He also studied piano and chamber music with
György Kurtág.
Schiff was fourth prize winner of the
Tchaikovsky International Piano Competition in 1974 and tied with
Pascal Devoyon for third prize in the
Leeds International Pianoforte Competition
The Leeds International Piano Competition, informally known as The Leeds and formerly the Leeds International Pianoforte Competition, takes place every three years in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It was founded in 1961 by Marion, Countess ...
in 1975. He emigrated from Hungary in 1979. He was unable to meet residency requirements for US citizenship due to his long absences for touring and accepted Austrian citizenship in 1987 and established homes in London and Salzburg.
From 1989 until 1998, Schiff was artistic director of the "Musiktage Mondsee" chamber music festival near
Salzburg
Salzburg (, ; literally "Salt-Castle"; bar, Soizbuag, label=Austro-Bavarian) is the fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020, it had a population of 156,872.
The town is on the site of the Roman settlement of ''Iuvavum''. Salzburg was founded ...
. In 1995, he co-founded the "Ittinger Pfingstkonzerte" in Kartause Ittingen, Switzerland, together with the famed oboist
Heinz Holliger. From 2004 to 2007 he was artist in residence of the Kunstfest Weimar. In the 2007–08 season he was pianist in residence of the
Berlin Philharmonic
The Berlin Philharmonic (german: Berliner Philharmoniker, links=no, italic=no) is a German orchestra based in Berlin. It is one of the most popular, acclaimed and well-respected orchestras in the world.
History
The Berlin Philharmonic was fo ...
. In 2011–12 he was one of the "Perspectives Artists" of
Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between West 56th and 57th Streets. Designed by architect William Burnet Tuthill and built ...
.
In 1999, he formed an occasional chamber orchestra, which he named the ''Cappella Andrea Barca'', with the name coming from an Italian translation of his last name (Barca and Schiff both mean "boat", Barca in Italian and Schiff in German), although he has provided a humorous pseudo-biography of the fictional Barca. He has appeared as a conductor with several major orchestras, including regular appearances with
Philharmonia Orchestra
The Philharmonia Orchestra is a British orchestra based in London. It was founded in 1945 by Walter Legge, a classical music record producer for EMI. Among the conductors who worked with the orchestra in its early years were Richard Strauss, ...
in London and the
Chamber Orchestra of Europe
The Chamber Orchestra of Europe (COE), established in 1981, is an orchestra based in London. The orchestra comprises about 60 members from across Europe. The players pursue parallel careers as international soloists, members of chamber groups a ...
, and recent ones with the
San Francisco Symphony
The San Francisco Symphony (SFS), founded in 1911, is an American orchestra based in San Francisco, California. Since 1980 the orchestra has been resident at the Louise M. Davies Symphony Hall in the city's Hayes Valley neighborhood. The San F ...
and
Los Angeles Philharmonic
The Los Angeles Philharmonic, commonly referred to as the LA Phil, is an American orchestra based in Los Angeles, California. It has a regular season of concerts from October through June at the Walt Disney Concert Hall, and a summer season at th ...
.
Schiff is one of the most renowned interpreters of
Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the ''Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard wor ...
,
Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition r ...
,
Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classic ...
,
Schubert
Franz Peter Schubert (; 31 January 179719 November 1828) was an Austrian composer of the late Classical and early Romantic eras. Despite his short lifetime, Schubert left behind a vast ''oeuvre'', including more than 600 secular vocal wor ...
and
Schumann
Robert Schumann (; 8 June 181029 July 1856) was a German composer, pianist, and influential music critic. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest composers of the Romantic era. Schumann left the study of law, intending to pursue a career a ...
. His many recordings for the
Decca label include much of the keyboard music of Bach, music of
Domenico Scarlatti
Giuseppe Domenico Scarlatti, also known as Domingo or Doménico Scarlatti (26 October 1685-23 July 1757), was an Italian composer. He is classified primarily as a Baroque composer chronologically, although his music was influential in the devel ...
,
Ernst von Dohnányi
Ernst von Dohnányi (Hungarian: ''Dohnányi Ernő'', ; 27 July 1877 – 9 February 1960) was a Hungarian composer, pianist and conductor. He used a German form of his name on most published compositions.
Biography
Dohnányi was born in Pozsony ...
,
Johannes Brahms
Johannes Brahms (; 7 May 1833 – 3 April 1897) was a German composer, pianist, and conductor of the mid-Romantic period. Born in Hamburg into a Lutheran family, he spent much of his professional life in Vienna. He is sometimes grouped wit ...
, and
Piotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, the complete piano sonatas of Mozart and Schubert, and the complete piano concertos of
Felix Mendelssohn
Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), born and widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions include sym ...
with
Charles Dutoit
Charles Édouard Dutoit (born 7 October 1936) is a Swiss conductor. He is currently the principal guest conductor for the Saint Petersburg Philharmonia and co-director of thMISA Festival in Shanghai In 2017, he became the 103rd recipient of thR ...
and of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart with the
Camerata Academica Salzburg
The Camerata Salzburg is an Austrian chamber orchestra based in Salzburg, Austria. The Camerata's principal concert venue is the Mozarteum University.
History
Bernhard Paumgartner founded the ensemble in 1952 as the ''Camerata Academica des Moza ...
led by
Sándor Végh Sándor Végh (17 May 19126 January 1997) was a Hungarian, later French, violinist and conductor. He was best known as one of the great chamber music violinists of the twentieth century.
Education
Sándor Végh was born in 1912 in Kolozsvár, T ...
. His recordings for the
Teldec
Teldec (Telefunken-Decca Schallplatten GmbH) is a German record label in Hamburg, Germany. Today the label is a property of Warner Music Group.
History
Teldec was a producer of (first) shellac and (later) vinyl records. The Teldec manufacturing ...
label include the complete Beethoven piano concertos with the
Staatskapelle Dresden
The Staatskapelle Dresden (known formally as the Sächsische Staatskapelle Dresden) is a German orchestra based in Dresden, the capital of Saxony. Founded in 1548 by Maurice, Elector of Saxony, it is one of the world's oldest and most highly r ...
led by
Bernard Haitink
Bernard Johan Herman Haitink (; 4 March 1929 – 21 October 2021) was a Dutch conductor and violinist. He was the principal conductor of several international orchestras, beginning with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra in 1961. He moved to Lon ...
and the complete piano concertos of
Béla Bartók
Béla Viktor János Bartók (; ; 25 March 1881 – 26 September 1945) was a Hungarian composer, pianist, and ethnomusicologist. He is considered one of the most important composers of the 20th century; he and Franz Liszt are regarded as Hu ...
with the
Budapest Festival Orchestra
The Budapest Festival Orchestra ( Hungarian: ''Budapesti Fesztiválzenekar'') was formed in 1983 by Iván Fischer and Zoltán Kocsis, with musicians "drawn from the cream of Hungary's younger players", as ''The Times'' put it. Its aim was to mak ...
led by
Iván Fischer
Iván Fischer (born 20 January 1951) is a Hungarian conductor and composer.
Born in Budapest into a musical family of Jewish heritage, Fischer initially studied piano, violin, cello and composition in Budapest. His older brother, Ádám Fisc ...
, as well as solo works by Haydn, Brahms, and others. Notable recordings for the
ECM
ECM may refer to:
Economics and commerce
* Engineering change management
* Equity capital markets
* Error correction model, an econometric model
* European Common Market
Mathematics
* Elliptic curve method
* European Congress of Mathemat ...
label include music of
Janáček and
Sándor Veress, major works of Schubert and Beethoven using a period
fortepiano
A fortepiano , sometimes referred to as a pianoforte, is an early piano. In principle, the word "fortepiano" can designate any piano dating from the invention of the instrument by Bartolomeo Cristofori in 1698 up to the early 19th century. M ...
, and live recordings of all of
Beethoven's piano sonatas, made in Zurich.
Between 2004 and 2006 he gave a series of lecture-recitals on the complete Beethoven sonatas in London's
Wigmore Hall
Wigmore Hall is a concert hall located at 36 Wigmore Street, London. Originally called Bechstein Hall, it specialises in performances of chamber music, early music, vocal music and song recitals. It is widely regarded as one of the world's leadi ...
. His live concert recordings for ECM also include his second traversals of the Bach Partitas and ''
Goldberg Variations
The ''Goldberg Variations'', BWV 988, is a musical composition for keyboard by Johann Sebastian Bach, consisting of an aria and a set of 30 variations. First published in 1741, it is named after Johann Gottlieb Goldberg, who may also hav ...
''.
For
G. Henle, he provided fingerings for new editions of Bach's ''
The Well-Tempered Clavier
''The Well-Tempered Clavier'', BWV 846–893, consists of two sets of preludes and fugues in all 24 major and minor keys for keyboard by Johann Sebastian Bach. In the composer's time, ''clavier'', meaning keyboard, referred to a variety of i ...
'' (published in 2006) and fingerings and missing cadenzas for a new edition of the Mozart piano concertos (begun in 2007).
Schiff is married to the violinist
Yūko Shiokawa
is a Japanese violinist, born June 1, 1946.
Biography
Shiokawa was born in Tokyo and started studying violin when she was 5. In 1957, her family emigrated to Peru, where she studied with Eugen Cremer and started to give concerts. In 1963, she ...
. The couple have residences in London,
Florence
Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico ...
, Italy,
and
Kamakura
is a city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan.
Kamakura has an estimated population of 172,929 (1 September 2020) and a population density of 4,359 persons per km² over the total area of . Kamakura was designated as a city on 3 November 1939.
Kamak ...
, Japan.
Schiff has said he admires many pianists, including
Artur Schnabel
Artur Schnabel (17 April 1882 – 15 August 1951) was an Austrian-American classical pianist, composer and pedagogue. Schnabel was known for his intellectual seriousness as a musician, avoiding pure technical bravura. Among the 20th centur ...
,
Edwin Fischer,
Alfred Cortot
Alfred Denis Cortot (; 26 September 187715 June 1962) was a French pianist, conductor, and teacher who was one of the most renowned classical musicians of the 20th century. A pianist of massive repertory, he was especially valued for his poetic ...
,
Sergei Rachmaninoff
Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninoff; in Russian pre-revolutionary script. (28 March 1943) was a Russian composer, virtuoso pianist, and conductor. Rachmaninoff is widely considered one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a composer, one o ...
,
Ignaz Friedman
Ignaz Friedman (also spelled ''Ignace'' or ''Ignacy''; full name ''Solomon (Salomon) Isaac Freudman(n)'', yi, שְׁלֹמֹה יִצְחָק פֿרײדמאַן; February 13, 1882January 26, 1948) was a Polish pianist and composer. Critics (e.g ...
,
Josef Hofmann
Josef Casimir Hofmann (originally Józef Kazimierz Hofmann; January 20, 1876February 16, 1957) was a Polish-American pianist, composer, music teacher, and inventor.
Biography
Josef Hofmann was born in Podgórze (a district of Kraków), in Au ...
,
Annie Fischer
Annie Fischer (July 5, 1914April 10, 1995) was a Hungarian
classical pianist.
Biography
Fischer was born into a Jewish family in Budapest and studied at the Franz Liszt Academy of Music with Ernő Dohnányi and Arnold Szekely. She began he ...
,
Rudolf Serkin
Rudolf Serkin (28 March 1903 – 8 May 1991) was a Bohemian-born Austrian-American pianist. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest Beethoven interpreters of the 20th century.
Early life, childhood debut, and education
Serkin was born in t ...
,
Mieczysław Horszowski
Mieczysław Horszowski (June 23, 1892May 22, 1993) was a Polish-American pianist who had one of the longest careers in the history of the performing arts.
Life
Early life
Horszowski was born in Lwów (Lemberg), Austria-Hungary (now Ukraine). H ...
,
Radu Lupu
Radu Lupu (30 November 1945 – 17 April 2022) was a Romanian pianist. He was widely recognized as one of the greatest pianists of his time.
Born in Galați, Romania, Lupu began studying piano at the age of six. Two of his major piano teach ...
,
Murray Perahia
Murray David Perahia () (born April 19, 1947) is an American pianist and conductor. He is widely considered one of the greatest living pianists. He was the first North American pianist to win the Leeds International Piano Competition, in 1972. Kn ...
,
Richard Goode
Richard Goode (born June 1, 1943) is an American classical pianist who is especially known for his interpretations of Mozart and Beethoven.
Early life
Goode was born in the East Bronx, New York. He studied piano with Elvira Szigeti, Claude Fra ...
and
Peter Serkin.
[
]
Teaching
Schiff, known for his video broadcast masterclasses, is currently on the faculty of the Barenboim–Said Akademie in Berlin, Germany, serving as distinguished visiting professor of piano. He has given masterclasses at such prestigious schools as Juilliard School
The Juilliard School ( ) is a Private university, private performing arts music school, conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely ...
, Oberlin College
Oberlin College is a private liberal arts college and conservatory of music in Oberlin, Ohio. It is the oldest coeducational liberal arts college in the United States and the second oldest continuously operating coeducational institute of highe ...
, and the Royal Academy of Music
The Royal Academy of Music (RAM) in London, England, is the oldest conservatoire in the UK, founded in 1822 by John Fane and Nicolas-Charles Bochsa. It received its royal charter in 1830 from King George IV with the support of the first Duke ...
. He also held a series of masterclasses in 2019 at the Gstaad
Gstaad ( ; ) is a town in the German-speaking section of the Canton of Bern in southwestern Switzerland. It is part of the municipality of Saanen and is known as a major ski resort and a popular destination amongst high society and the internati ...
Menuhin Piano Festival for just seven selected students: Florian Caroubi, Pallavi Mahidhara, Nuron Mukumi, Nicolas Namoradze, Elena Nefedova, Chiara Opalio, and Shir Semmel.
Awards and honours
The awards that Schiff has won include a 1990 Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Soloist Performance (without orchestra) – English Suites by Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the ''Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard wor ...
; a 1990 Gramophone Award
The Gramophone Classical Music Awards, launched in 1977, are one of the most significant honours bestowed on recordings in the classical record industry. They are often viewed as equivalent to or surpassing the American Grammy award, and refe ...
for a Schubert recital with Peter Schreier; the Bartók Prize in 1991; the Claudio Arrau Memorial Medal in 1994; the Kossuth Prize
The Kossuth Prize ( hu, Kossuth-díj) is a state-sponsored award in Hungary, named after the Hungarian politician and revolutionist Lajos Kossuth. The Prize was established in 1948 (on occasion of the centenary of the March 15th revolution, the ...
in 1996; the Léonie Sonning Music Prize in 1997; honorary membership in the Beethoven House
The Beethoven House ( German: ''Beethoven-Haus'') in Bonn, Germany, is a memorial site, museum and cultural institution serving various purposes. Founded in 1889 by the Beethoven-Haus association, it studies the life and work of composer Ludwig va ...
in Bonn
The federal city of Bonn ( lat, Bonna) is a city on the banks of the Rhine in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, with a population of over 300,000. About south-southeast of Cologne, Bonn is in the southernmost part of the Rhine-Ru ...
, awarded in 2006 for his complete recording of Beethoven's piano sonatas; the Italian prize, Premio della critica musicale Franco Abbiati, also for his Beethoven cycle in 2007; also in 2007, the Royal Academy of Music Bach Prize, sponsored by the Kohn Foundation, awarded to "an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to the performance and/or scholarly study of Johann Sebastian Bach"; the Wigmore Hall
Wigmore Hall is a concert hall located at 36 Wigmore Street, London. Originally called Bechstein Hall, it specialises in performances of chamber music, early music, vocal music and song recitals. It is widely regarded as one of the world's leadi ...
Medal in 2008; also in 2008, the Klavier-Festival Ruhr Prize, for outstanding pianistic achievement; the Robert Schumann Prize of the City of Zwickau in 2011; Germany’s Orden Pour le mérite für Wissenschaften und Künste (2011) and in January 2012, the Golden Mozart Medal of the International Mozarteum Foundation.
He has been made an honorary professor by music academies in Budapest, Detmold and Munich and is a Special Supernumerary Fellow of Balliol College
Balliol College () is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. One of Oxford's oldest colleges, it was founded around 1263 by John I de Balliol, a landowner from Barnard Castle in County Durham, who provided the ...
, Oxford University
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
. He is a Fellow of the Royal Northern College of Music
The Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM) is a conservatoire located in Manchester, England. It is one of four conservatoires associated with the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music. In addition to being a centre of music education ...
. In December 2013, the Royal Philharmonic Society
The Royal Philharmonic Society (RPS) is a British music society, formed in 1813. Its original purpose was to promote performances of instrumental music in London. Many composers and performers have taken part in its concerts. It is now a memb ...
awarded him its gold medal.
He was created a Knight Bachelor
The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised orders of chivalry; it is a part of the British honours system. Knights Bachelor are ...
in the Queen's Birthday Honours list of 2014, for services to music.
In 2018, Schiff received Honorary Doctorate from HRH The Prince of Wales, President of the Royal College of Music (RCM). Schiff was awarded the 2022 Bach Medal by the City of Leipzig.
Political views
Schiff has made public statements about politics in Austria and Hungary. He has also become an outspoken critic of the Hungarian government of Viktor Orbán
Viktor Mihály Orbán (; born 31 May 1963) is a Hungarian politician who has served as prime minister of Hungary since 2010, previously holding the office from 1998 to 2002. He has presided over Fidesz since 1993, with a brief break between ...
, whom he has publicly accused of racism, anti-Semitism, and neo-fascism, stating in January 2012 that he would never again set foot in his native country.
Austria
In 2000, he commented on the rise of the far-right in Austria. He subsequently gave up his Austrian citizenship and took British citizenship in 2001.
Hungary
On 1 January 2011, Schiff published a letter in ''The Washington Post
''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large n ...
'' questioning whether "Hungary is ready and worthy to take on" the rotating presidency of the council of the European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are located primarily in Europe, Europe. The union has a total area of ...
, as it did that day, because of "racism, discrimination against the Roma
Roma or ROMA may refer to:
Places Australia
* Roma, Queensland, a town
** Roma Airport
** Roma Courthouse
** Electoral district of Roma, defunct
** Town of Roma, defunct town, now part of the Maranoa Regional Council
* Roma Street, Brisbane, a ...
, anti-Semitism, xenophobia, chauvinism and reactionary nationalism," and "the latest media laws" (referring to new media laws passed at the end of December 2010 by the government of Viktor Orbán
Viktor Mihály Orbán (; born 31 May 1963) is a Hungarian politician who has served as prime minister of Hungary since 2010, previously holding the office from 1998 to 2002. He has presided over Fidesz since 1993, with a brief break between ...
).
On 16 January 2011, Schiff told the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung
The ''Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung'' (; ''FAZ''; "''Frankfurt General Newspaper''") is a centre-right conservative-liberal and liberal-conservativeHans Magnus Enzensberger: Alter Wein in neuen Schläuchen' (in German). ''Deutschland Radio'', ...
that he had become "persona non grata" in Hungary and would probably never perform there again "or even visit." On 17 January he joined Hungarian conductor Ádám Fischer
Ádám Fischer (born 9 September 1949 in Budapest) is a Hungarian conductor. He is the general music director of the Austro-Hungarian Haydn Orchestra, chief conductor of the Danish Chamber Orchestra, and chief conductor of the Düsseldorfer Sy ...
and six other Hungarian intellectuals and artists in publishing an open letter "To the artists of Europe and the World" protesting against "racism against Roma, with homophobia and with antisemitism" and saying that "the freedom of the media, of the arts and artists, and of those who could most effectively act against such tendencies is more and more curtailed." The letter appeared in German and in English, with a note of support from Daniel Barenboim
Daniel Barenboim (; in he, דניאל בארנבוים, born 15 November 1942) is an Argentine-born classical pianist and conductor based in Berlin. He has been since 1992 General Music Director of the Berlin State Opera and "Staatskapellmeist ...
appended. As a result of his statements, he came under attack from Hungarian nationalists.
On 14 January 2012, in an interview with the German newspaper ''Der Tagesspiegel
''Der Tagesspiegel'' (meaning ''The Daily Mirror'') is a German daily newspaper. It has regional correspondent offices in Washington D.C. and Potsdam. It is the only major newspaper in the capital to have increased its circulation, now 148,000, ...
'', Schiff expressed his deep worries about right-wing radical gangs terrorising Roma
Roma or ROMA may refer to:
Places Australia
* Roma, Queensland, a town
** Roma Airport
** Roma Courthouse
** Electoral district of Roma, defunct
** Town of Roma, defunct town, now part of the Maranoa Regional Council
* Roma Street, Brisbane, a ...
, open antisemitism
Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism.
Antis ...
, and the very conservative chauvinism and nationalism of the ruling Fidesz
Fidesz – Hungarian Civic Alliance (; hu, Fidesz – Magyar Polgári Szövetség) is a right-wing populist and national-conservative political party in Hungary, led by Viktor Orbán.
It was formed in 1988 under the name of Alliance of Young ...
party in Hungary lately. Since, as he said, “antisemitic baiting has become socially acceptable in Hungary”, and he had been decried as '' Saujude'' on the Internet, he had cancelled all his concerts in Hungary, he said.
In December 2012, he said to the website of ''Yle Uutiset
Yle Uutiset is the Finnish news production unit of Yle. Yle Uutiset also produces news in Sami, Russian and English. News in the other national language, Swedish, is produced by the unit Svenska Yle.
On TV, news is broadcast daily on Yle TV1 at ...
'' (Finnish television) that he would remain in self-imposed exile from Hungary.
In December 2013, Schiff told an interviewer from the BBC that he had received anonymous threats through the internet, stating that "If I return to Hungary, they will cut off both of my hands. I don't want to risk physical and mental assault." In addition, wrote the interviewer, "Even without that threat, Schiff says he would find it difficult to play in Hungary. Art and politics cannot be disentangled. The audience matters to performers. 'We are not naïve,' he says."
References
Further reading
*
*
*
*
*
*
External links
Andras Schiff: Beethoven Lecture-recitals at Wigmore Hall, London
In Concert on National Public Radio
Andras Schiff biography
at the Pittsburgh Symphony
Lucerne Festival profile of the Cappella Andrea Barca
Carnegie Hall Perspective page on András Schiff
András Schiff, "Hungarians must face their Nazi past, not venerate it". ''The Guardian'', "Comment is free" blog, 11 December 2013
* , WNCN-FM, 20 May 1983
{{DEFAULTSORT:Schiff, Andras
1953 births
Living people
Grammy Award winners
Hungarian classical pianists
Hungarian male musicians
Male classical pianists
British male pianists
Classical accompanists
Members of the European Academy of Sciences and Arts
Hungarian Jews
Jewish classical musicians
Jewish classical pianists
Franz Liszt Academy of Music alumni
Prize-winners of the Leeds International Pianoforte Competition
Honorary Members of the Royal Academy of Music
Bach musicians
British classical pianists
Winners of the Royal Academy of Music/ Kohn Foundation Bach Prize
Knights Bachelor
Royal Philharmonic Society Gold Medallists
Hungarian emigrants to England
Naturalised citizens of the United Kingdom
Recipients of the Pour le Mérite (civil class)
Hungarian emigrants to Austria
Naturalised citizens of Austria
Hungarian pianists
British people of Hungarian-Jewish descent
21st-century conductors (music)
Musicians from Budapest
Musicians awarded knighthoods
20th-century classical pianists