PIANO MAN: He's a star soloist, but Andsnes thrives on collaborating with fellow musicians
UNITED KINGDOM SUMMER PEARLS: London's architectural gems along the banks of the Thames
MUSIC: Europe's best pop and rock gatherings
BAGPIPES: The plaintive sounds of Scotland
SUBMARIUM: Journey to the bottom of the sea FESTIVALS: Fun in the sun in West Belfast
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FRANCE and SWITZERLAND VULCANIA: Blow your top at France's volcano park
ART: Berthe Morisot, the unknown Impressionist
FESTIVALS: Aix-en-Provence has it all
ART: The Barbizon School painters come to life
ART: Take a stroll through medieval gardens of delight
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SPAIN, PORTUGAL, ITALY and GREECE SALAMANCA: The city splashes out on culture
MUSIC: God's rock stars: the singing Greek monks
FOOD: Italy's unusual culinary delights
FILM: Great outdoor viewing in Rome
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GERMANY and BENELUX HORTICULTURE: The world blossoms at Floriade
BRUGGE: Belgium's second city shines
ART: Berlin's homage to multiculturalism ART: The best of the world's artists on show at Documenta 11
DANCE: Czech twin ballerinos steal the show in Hamburg MORE ..
CENTRAL and EASTERN EUROPE ART: Yugoslavia's modern art museum is back
ART: A retrospective of Samizdat art and writing from the Communist bloc
GRAZ: Austria's little-known city of culture
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THE NORDIC REGION DESIGN: Denmark celebrates Arne Jacobsen
MUSEUM: Get a blast from the past at Stalin World
STOCKHOLM: Welcome to the Venice of the North
MUSIC: Pianist Leif Ove Andsnes on tour MORE ..
PLUS LISTINGS: Other things to see and do in each region
Leif Ove Andsnes has forged a reputation as one of the most accomplished pianists of his generation
Pianist Leif Ove Andsnes' first recording, made at the beginning
of his international career a decade ago, was of fellow Norwegian
Edvard Grieg's Piano Concerto in A Minor. The Nordic combination
was a hit with concert organizers, audiences and critics, and
Norway's most famous composer featured prominently in Andsnes'
early repertoire. But reluctant to be typecast and eager to
demonstrate his artistic breadth, Andsnes forged a reputation
as one of the most accomplished pianists of his generation with
performances of works by composers as varied as Brahms, Liszt
and Shostakovich, as well as lesser-known names like the contemporary
Polish composer Witold Lutoslawski.
"I feel sort of by instinct when I want to study something,"
he explains. "Like Mozart. It took me a lot of time to get to
the stage where I felt ready to tackle, to really know Mozart
and to see all the faces of his music." Now, just 32 and still
in the relatively early stages of his career, Andsnes has returned
to his compatriot in his latest CD, a selection of Grieg's Lyric
Pieces recorded on the composer's own period Steinway at the
Grieg home-turned-museum in Troldhaugen. Andsnes plays the well-known
pieces, which he says laughingly have come to be seen as so
typically Norwegian that they conjure up images of fjords and
waterfalls, with his characteristic combination of lyrical virtuosity
and subtle restraint. While other pianists of his caliber choose
to concentrate on solo work, Andsnes' busy calendar includes
chamber performances and serving as an accompanist. "I wouldn't
want to be without that experience of working so closely with
other performers," he says.
In June, Andsnes returns to his roots for six days of musical
collaboration. He is co-director of the Risør Festival of Chamber
Music, which since 1991 has been held in a small fishing village
in southern Norway where the main concert venue, a wooden church
hall, can accommodate just 550 people.
The festival, which this year focuses on works by Schubert,
features only chamber music with no solo performances, allowing
Scandinavian musicians the opportunity to interact closely with
renowned artists like the Artemis Quartet. Andsnes' priorities
include promoting contemporary music and exposing the world
to Norwegian music beyond the familiar Grieg — such as
the work of contemporary composer Nils Henrik Asheim, three
of whose pieces are included in this year's program.
