My Top 10 Recordings - no. 2: Anda/Bartok

Growing up in Germany and moving through the music conservatory system meant playing lots of Bartòk. 

Back then I connected most with the third piano concerto. The foreignness of the musical language was so exotic, it was intoxicating. I loved the gentle flow of the irregular meter of Bartòk’s music, and I was drawn to the driving rhythms.

This recording of Geza Anda of Bartòk’s piano concertos no. 2 and 3 is in my eyes one of the most authentic interpretation of Bartòk’s music. There is a rare mix of majestic gesture and gritty folklore which I love. It is pristine yet so very human. 

I probably have played the concerto for two pianos and percussion most of all Bartòk pieces, but on my wish list is his concerto no. 3. I would love to perform it with orchestra.