The Italian pianist Maurizio Pollini, virtuoso of Chopin and Beethoven, died on Saturday at the age of 82, announced La Scala in Milan. The artist had canceled concerts in recent years due to poor health. For the prestigious La Scala opera hall, Maurizio Pollini is “one of the great pianists of our time and a fundamental reference in the artistic life of the theater for more than fifty years”.
“Chopinian pianist”
Between 1958 and his last recital in February 2023, Pollini performed 168 times at La Scala, not counting his participation in a large number of workshops with students or in conferences. “Pollini was an interpreter capable of revolutionizing the perception of composers like Chopin, Debussy and Beethoven himself, and of pushing people to listen to the avant-garde, above all Schönberg, and contemporary music,” underlines La Scala. Born in Milan on January 5, 1942 into a family of artists, Maurizio Pollini made a sensational entry into the cozy world of classical music in March 1960.
He won first prize in the Chopin competition in Warsaw where he was, at 18 years old, the youngest entrant. The chronicle notes that the president of the jury, Arthur Rubinstein, complimented the prodigy: “He already plays better than any of us!”. Winner of this prestigious competition, Maurizio Pollini could have embarked on the well-trodden path of a great concert artist. He chose to put his career on hold, to take lessons and expand his repertoire. At the end of the 1960s, he participated in improvised concerts in factories, programming for students and workers at La Scala in Milan, with his friend Claudio Abbado at the helm.
Pollini made his first American tour in 1968. In the 70s, 80s and 90s, he recorded recordings with the prestigious Deutsche Grammophon, concerts and tours. Labeled from his early youth as a “Chopinian pianist”, Pollini made a reputation in his maturity with Ludwig van Beethoven, Robert Schumann and Franz Schubert. He also attracted the admiration of critics with Johannes Brahms.