The Pianist Who Walked a Tortoise Through Vienna

Hosts Alex and Isabel talk about a remarkable interview with the
legendary pianist and writer, Alfred Brendel, conducted by Malte
Herwig eleven years before Brendel's death in 2025. Join us as we
discover the surprising wit and wisdom of an extraordinary
musical mind and talk about how Malte managed to get the famously
cantankerous pianist to open up. 

• Brendel discusses his hearing loss with remarkable candor,
explaining how he continued to work on music mentally even when
he could no longer enjoy listening
• Retiring after 60 years was "a relief" for Brendel, who
contrasts himself with colleagues who pursue performing "like
addicts their morphine"
• His fierce resistance to fate and refusal to accept the
injustice of Schubert's early death reveals passionate conviction
beneath his disciplined exterior
• The story of walking a baby tortoise through Vienna's
Musikverein showcases Brendel's mischievous protest against
overly solemn concert atmospheres
• For Brendel, the piano is "a vessel for all sorts of musical
ideas" - some pianists "play the piano," while others "play the
rainbow"
• His practical performance advice includes starting immediately
rather than "fiddling around" and simply waiting silently when
audiences applaud between movements
• The profound observation that "music comes from silence and
leads into silence" underscores his reverence for the concert
experience
• Brendel succinctly identifies the two things that made his life
worth living: art and love


Original interview (German language): 


https://sz-magazin.sueddeutsche.de/musik/musik-kommt-aus-der-stille-und-fuehrt-in-die-stille-80650


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