“Hearing of the Austrian pianist Paul Badura-Skoda’s passing on September 25 just short of his 92nd birthday brought back happy memories of enjoying his many distinguished recordings,” writes Rob Cowan in Thursday’s (9/26) Gramophone (U.K.). “In fact, in 2017 Deutsche Grammophon … released a 20-disc ‘Paul Badura-Skoda Edition’ in honor of the pianist’s 90th birthday…. He played under the baton of … Wilhelm Furtwängler, as well as under Herbert von Karajan, Hans Knappertsbusch, Hermann Scherchen … and George Szell…. Badura-Skoda was an especially noteworthy exponent of Mozart’s piano concertos … although his way with Schubert … was unforgettably persuasive and he was also highly adept in the music of Chopin, … Rimsky-Korsakov and Scriabin. He toyed with many keyboard instruments, from accordion and a ‘Computer-Controlled Bösendorfer Grand Piano’ to numerous early instruments…. He collaborated with the Swiss composer Frank Martin, producing editions and recordings of his music, as well as preparing several articles on it. He was widely celebrated for his musical scholarship, often along with his wife, Eva Badura-Skoda. The Badura-Skodas edited one of the volumes of Mozart’s piano concertos for the Neue Mozart-Ausgabe [and] produced books on the interpretation” of the keyboard music of Mozart and Bach.
Posted October 1, 2019
