Brazilian pianist (1944?2021)
Nelson Freire
|
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Born
| Nelson Jose Pinto Freire
(
1944-10-18
)
18 October 1944
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Died
| 1 November 2021
(2021-11-01)
(aged 77)
|
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Occupation
| Classical pianist
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Awards
| |
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Nelson Jose Pinto Freire
(
Portuguese:
[?n?wso
?f?ej?(i)]
; 18 October 1944 – 1 November 2021) was a Brazilian
classical pianist
. Regarded as one of the greatest pianists of his generation, he was noted for his "decorous piano playing" and "interpretive depth".
[1]
[2]
His extensive discography for labels such as
Sony Classical
,
Teldec
,
Philips
, and
Decca
has garnered awards including the
Gramophone Award
and
Diapason d'Or
. Freire appeared as soloist with the world's most prestigious orchestras, including the
Berlin Philharmonic
, the
London Symphony Orchestra
, the
Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
and the
New York Philharmonic
. He played and recorded piano duo music with
Martha Argerich
, a long-time musical and personal friend.
Life
[
edit
]
Nelson Jose Pinto Freire was born on 18 October 1944 in
Boa Esperanca
.
[3]
[2]
He began playing the piano at age three.
[4]
He replayed from memory pieces his older sister, Nelma, had just performed. His teachers in Brazil were Lucia Branco, a former student of
Arthur De Greef
, a pupil of
Franz Liszt
, and her assistant Nise Obino.
[2]
He gave his first public recital at the age of four.
[4]
In 1957, Freire's performed Beethoven's
Piano Concerto No. 5
, at the age of 12. He was awarded 7th place at the Rio de Janeiro International Piano Competition. He subsequently received a Brazilian government grant to study in Vienna with
Bruno Seidlhofer
. By 1964, Freire had won his first prize at the
Vianna da Motta International Music Competition
in Lisbon (ex-aequo with
Vladimir Krainev
) and he also received the Dinu Lipatti Medal and the
Harriet Cohen Medal
in London. In December 2001, he chaired the jury for the Marguerite Long Competition in Paris. His debut at
The Proms
was in August 2005.
[5]
In general, Freire
[6]
tended to avoid the limelight, publicity, and interviews.
[7]
[8]
However, in 2011, he withdrew from a scheduled engagement with the
Orquestra Sinfonica Brasileira
(OSB) and conductor
Roberto Minczuk
, in support of the orchestra musicians, following the dismissal of about three dozen OSB musicians by Minczuk.
[9]
Freire appeared as soloist with the world's most prestigious orchestras,
Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
, the
Saint Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra
, the
Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
, the
London Symphony Orchestra
, the
Orchestre de Paris
, the
Orchestre National de France
, the
New York Philharmonic
, the
Cleveland Orchestra
, and the
Montreal Symphony Orchestra
.
[10]
Freire died from a fall
[11]
at his home in
Rio de Janeiro
on 1 November 2021, two weeks after his 77th birthday.
[2]
[12]
[13]
Recordings
[
edit
]
Freire recorded for
Sony Classical
,
Teldec
,
Philips
,
Decca
, and
Deutsche Grammophon
. He recorded
Liszt's piano concertos
with the
Dresden Philharmonic
, conducted by
Michel Plasson
for Berlin Classics. Freire recorded commercially with
Martha Argerich
,
[14]
with whom he shared a long-time musical collaboration and friendship.
[7]
Freire later recorded exclusively with
Decca
, the first result of which are recordings devoted to the works of Chopin, receiving the
Diapason d'Or
, a "Choc" award from
Le Monde de la musique
, as well as being rated a "10" by the Repertoire magazine and "recommended" by
Classica
.
The recordings comprise, in two CDs, the 24 piano etudes and the 2nd and 3rd piano sonatas, as well as the Barcarolle op. 60. Subsequent Decca recordings include a 2-CD set of the
Brahms piano concertos
with the
Gewandhaus Orchestra
under
Riccardo Chailly
,
[15]
which won the 2007 Classic FM and Gramophone awards in the Record of the Year and Concerto categories, and CDs devoted to
Beethoven's piano sonatas
,
[16]
Chopin,
[17]
and
Debussy
.
[18]
He marked the 2011 bicentenary of the birth of Franz Liszt with a Decca CD entitled
Harmonies du Soir
.
[19]
He also recorded Brazilian piano music for Decca.
[20]
An archived recording of Freire at the age 12?13 includes his 1957 live concert performance in the final round of the Rio de Janeiro Piano Competition of that year, which launched his career, as well as pieces he recorded immediately after the competition.
[21]
Awards
[
edit
]
Music
[
edit
]
Freire's recordings garnered awards such as the
Gramophone Award
,
Diapason d'Or
, and the
Latin Grammy Award
(best classical album),
[22]
in addition to three
Grammy Award
nominations.
[23]
Nominations for the
Grammy Awards
Orders
[
edit
]
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
Kozinn, Allan (20 April 2009).
"For Dramatic Impact? A Subtle Palette"
.
The New York Times
.
ISSN
0362-4331
. Retrieved
1 November
2021
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
Lopez, Louis-Valentin (1 November 2021).
"
"La perte d'un geant" : le pianiste Nelson Freire nous a quittes"
.
France Musique
(in French)
. Retrieved
1 November
2021
.
- ^
Allen, David (4 November 2021).
"Nelson Freire, Piano Virtuoso of Warmth and Finesse, Dies at 77"
.
The New York Times
.
ISSN
0362-4331
. Retrieved
4 November
2021
.
- ^
a
b
"Pianist searches for improvement and change".
The Vancouver Sun
. 22 January 1987. p. C6.
- ^
Andrew Clements (1 August 2005).
"BBCSSO/ Volkov"
.
The Guardian
. Retrieved
25 December
2014
.
- ^
Jean-Pierre Thiollet
,
88 notes pour piano solo
, "Solo nec plus ultra", Neva Editions, 2015, p.51.
ISBN
978-2-3505-5192-0
.
- ^
a
b
Leslie Kendall (2 April 2000).
"Pianist Takes Back Seat, But His Talent Doesn't"
.
The New York Times
. Retrieved
25 December
2014
.
- ^
Andrew Clements (3 September 2014).
"Nelson Freire: Radio Days ? Concerto Broadcasts 1968?1979 review ? not a dud among them"
.
The Guardian
. Retrieved
25 December
2014
.
- ^
Cristina Grillo (4 June 2011).
"Solistas incendeiam crise na OSB"
.
Folha de S.Paulo
. Retrieved
25 December
2014
.
- ^
"Nelson Freire"
.
LA Phil
. Retrieved
1 November
2021
.
- ^
"Nelson Freire caiu em casa e teve uma concussao cerebral, diz assessora; corpo sera enterrado em Minas"
.
G1
(in Brazilian Portuguese). 2 November 2021
. Retrieved
2 November
2021
.
- ^
"Nelson Freire, um dos mais talentosos pianistas do mundo, morre no Rio aos 77 anos"
.
G1
(in Brazilian Portuguese). November 2021
. Retrieved
1 November
2021
.
- ^
"Nelson Freire, um dos mais talentosos pianistas do mundo, morre no Rio aos 77 anos"
.
classicfm.com
. Retrieved
1 November
2021
.
- ^
Nicholas Kenyon (6 December 2009).
"Martha Argerich and Nelson Freire: Live from Salzburg"
.
The Observer
. Retrieved
25 December
2014
.
- ^
Andrew Clements (16 June 2006).
"Brahms: Piano Concertos Nos 1 & 2, Freire/ Leipzig Gewandhaus O/ Chailly"
.
The Guardian
. Retrieved
25 December
2014
.
- ^
Andrew Clements (31 May 2007).
"Beethoven: Piano Sonatas Opp 27 no 2, 53, 81a and 110, Nelson Freire"
.
The Guardian
. Retrieved
25 December
2014
.
- ^
Andrew Clements (4 March 2010).
"Chopin: The Nocturnes"
.
The Guardian
. Retrieved
25 December
2014
.
- ^
Andrew Clements (23 January 2009).
"Debussy: Preludes Book 1; Children's Corner; etc: Nelson Freire"
.
The Guardian
. Retrieved
25 December
2014
.
- ^
Andrew Clements (28 April 2011).
"Liszt: B minor Ballade; Six Consolations, etc ? review"
.
The Guardian
. Retrieved
25 December
2014
.
- ^
Andrew Clements (22 August 2012).
"Brasileiro: Villa-Lobos and His Friends ? review"
.
The Guardian
. Retrieved
25 December
2014
.
- ^
Sidney Molina (25 June 2012).
"Lancamento historico traz primeiras gravacoes de Nelson Freire aos 12, tocando Beethoven e Chopin"
.
Folha de S.Paulo
. Retrieved
25 December
2014
.
- ^
"Latin GRAMMYs 2013 Best Classical Album"
.
Latin GRAMMYs
. Retrieved
2 November
2021
.
- ^
"Nelson Freire"
.
GRAMMY.com
. 23 November 2020
. Retrieved
1 November
2021
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
"Nelson Freire"
.
Geza Anda Foundation
. Retrieved
6 October
2021
.
- ^
"Liszt Harmonies du Soir / Freire"
(in German)
. Retrieved
6 October
2021
.
- ^
"Quarterly Critics Choice"
.
Preis der deutschen Schallplattenkritik
. January 2010
. Retrieved
6 October
2021
.
- ^
"Quarterly Critics Choice"
.
Preis der deutschen Schallplattenkritik
. March 2011
. Retrieved
6 October
2021
.
- ^
Schwenger, Dietmar (20 July 2016).
"Echo Klassik 2016: Alle Preistrager"
.
MusikWoche
(in German)
. Retrieved
6 October
2021
.
- ^
a
b
c
"Nelson Freire"
.
Grammy Awards
. 23 November 2020
. Retrieved
6 October
2021
.
External links
[
edit
]
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