Pianist Brendel to perform at Union Theater

Alfred Brendel, “reckoned to be the world’s greatest living pianist,” according to The New Yorker, will perform at the Wisconsin Union Theater on Thursday, March 31, at 8 pm.

Renowned for his masterly interpretations of the works of Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Brahms and Liszt, Brendel is one of the indisputable authorities in musical life today and one of the few living pianists whose name alone guarantees a sellout crowd anywhere in the world. He has performed for more than half a century at some of the world’s most prestigious concert venues and has created a rich legacy of recordings through the course of his career.

He is returning to the Wisconsin Union Theater for the fifth time since 1973.

Brendel’s “clarity and mastery drive a breathtaking program,” writes The Seattle Times. He possesses a legendary ability to communicate the emotional and intellectual depths of whatever music he performs. With the skill of a master actor Brendel captures the essential character of each piece he plays.

The Washington Post writes that Brendel “can heighten that sense of anticipation by subtle intensifications of emotion – through nuances of tone, color, phrasing, tempo and weight of touch – then catapult the listener in a totally opposite direction in a cat-and-mouse fashion. In short, a revelation.”

The show is sponsored by the Wisconsin Union Directorate Theater Committee with additional support from WERN, 88.7 FM. Tickets start at $22; tickets for UW–Madison students are $10. For more information, call the box office at (608) 262-2201.