Expert curation of Turkish pianist Idil Biret’s finest recordings, highlighting standout performances of Beethoven, Chopin, Berlioz-Liszt, and Boulez.
By Jeff Distler
Introduction
I received a suggestion from a listener to dedicate a podcast episode to the extensive box set released a few years ago containing the recordings of Turkish pianist Idil Biret. Although not quite a complete edition of Biret’s recordings—many items have been released since the box set’s publication—I cannot think of another pianist who has recorded so prolifically, with the possible exception of Vladimir Ashkenazy. Ashkenazy may have been even more prolific when counting his recordings as a conductor, which would certainly add numerous discs to a comprehensive set.
The Idil Biret box set was a limited edition comprising 130 CDs and 4 DVDs.
I considered creating a podcast episode where I would briefly comment on each recording: “Here’s her complete Beethoven concertos. Nah. Okay, here’s the complete Beethoven sonatas. Meh. Here’s the complete Chopin piano music. So-so. Here’s the complete Brahms piano music. Ah, this one is great. Here are the Rachmaninoff concertos. Really, really good. Here are the Hindemith concertos.”
I could have produced something like that, which might have satisfied some listeners, but realistically, I thought it would be more valuable for collectors and piano enthusiasts if I compiled a list of some of Biret’s finest recordings—ones that offer a well-rounded view of her discography while highlighting releases that I have greatly enjoyed throughout the years and continue to appreciate.
Beethoven
Let me begin with Beethoven’s music. I have previously discussed on this podcast Biret’s release on the Finnadar label containing Beethoven’s “Pathétique” and “Hammerklavier” sonatas. These are remarkably strong, vividly detailed, and interestingly characterized interpretations that possess considerably more vibrancy and shape than her later recordings for the complete Beethoven cycle on her own label. The original Finnadar release of Beethoven’s “Pathétique” and “Hammerklavier” sonatas is worth seeking out and can be found on Biret’s own label distributed by Naxos.
Chopin
While I find Biret’s complete Chopin cycle somewhat uneven—I gave it a fairly positive review many years ago, but not all performances have held up equally well for me—she delivers a scintillating and quite stylish performance of the rarely heard “Krakowiak” for piano and orchestra. I consider this one of the finest recordings of this work.
I also want to mention a live all Chopin concert that Idil Biret played in Ankara, Turkey on October 1st, 1999. Someone uploaded this recital to archive.org, and I’ve included a link to it in my episode description. This is a really interesting recital. It begins with a terrific reading of Chopin’s Rondo à la mazur, Op. 5. Then there’s the Chopin Sonata No. 3 in B minor, and it’s a spirited performance that I like, although there are some signs of struggle and some over pedaling in the finale. There are some impetuous renditions of the second and third Impromptus. There are flexible and poetic readings of the C-sharp minor Op. 50 No. 3, and A-flat major Op. 59 No. 2 Mazurkas, and I think these are a little more imaginative than the ones in the studio Naxos recordings. And finally, there’s a performance of the Tarantelle in A-flat Op. 43 that almost races off the rails. It’s a little too fast, but it’s a lot of fun to listen to. But still, I have to say that this live all Chopin concert catches fire in ways that Idil Biret’s solo studio recordings of Chopin did not. Or did not consistently catch fire, let’s put it that way.
Berlioz-Liszt
I should mention the Berlioz Symphonie fantastique in Franz Liszt’s solo piano transcription. This was a significant showpiece for Biret, and she made the world premiere recording of this transcription around 1979, certainly in the late 1970s, for the Finnadar label. It is a colorful and virtuosic performance that fully embraces the music’s eccentricity. I find this premiere recording more incisive and energetic than her later remake for Naxos, which nevertheless remains quite good. This first version is definitely the one to acquire—it is a remarkable recording.
Boulez
One of Biret’s finest recordings features Pierre Boulez’s three piano sonatas, released on Naxos in the mid-1990s. Her command of the notes, her feeling for extended musical lines, and her sense of narrative cohesion are all exceptional. She truly understands how to convey the essence of this music. Whether or not one responds to the strict total serial twelve-tone language of the young Boulez, Biret makes a convincing case for the composer’s work.
Brahms
Idil Biret’s cycle devoted to the complete piano works of Brahms is probably her most consistently satisfying cycle devoted to one composer. If I had to pick just one recording from it to represent on this list, it would be the Piano Sonata No. 3 in F minor, Op. 5. In many ways, her interpretation is modeled after the one by her teacher and mentor, Wilhelm Kempff. I am talking about the clipped and angular passage work, and also her strong attention to bass lines and her very discreet peddling. It’s a very line-oriented reading, but there’s a lot of energy and power. Also, like Kempff, she really feels the second movement Andante espressivo as two beats to the bar rather than a heavier four beats to the bar. And some people might find her risqué and sometimes unyielding approach maybe not as tender or as expressive when you compare it to the slower performances by people like Claudio Arrau.
Also, I should say that Idil Biret’s very first recording of the Paganini Variations of Brahms from the early ’60s is great fun to hear. It’s purely unabashed and untrammeled virtuosity. The dynamic range is kind of limited, I think it’s all kind of mezzo forte to forte, but it’s kind of a machine-like recording but I enjoy listening to it just because the virtuosity is way over the top. I mean not over the top mannered, it’s just the kind of typewriter-like precision is kind of fun to hear. I mean it’s not my top recording of the Paganini Variations, but I do get a kick out of it. And while we are on the topic of Brahms, I think that Idil Biret’s recording of the Brahms Piano Concerto No. 1 is one of the best in the catalog actually. It’s totally under the radar, nobody ever talks about it. I reviewed it when it came out on an individual disc coupled with Schumann’s Introduction and Concert Allegro, and I just pulled out my original review from classicstoday.com, and let me read it to you, because I think this really describes what the performance is like.
If you’re looking for a Brahms D minor concerto, consider this one. It’s played with distinction, forethought, care, and real individuality. The tumultuous first movement is sculpted with broad rhetorical brushstrokes, yet never sags under its weight. Credit conductor Antoni Wit, who takes great care to shape and clarify the composer’s difficult-to-balance orchestration. Idil Biret channels her considerable technique toward musical ends, and admirably integrates the first movement’s taxing chains of trills, descending octave thunderbolts, and upward scale passages into the orchestral fabric”. So this is a really, really good recording. And also the Schumann Introduction and Concert Allegro has a wonderful performance here. The piano writing just soars like crazy, it’s a marvelous performance. Among Idil Biret’s recordings of Robert Schumann’s piano music, I like her very sensitive and poetic readings of the Untere Blätter Op. 99. It’s very poetic and flexible playing, and the recording quality is a little bit on the dry side but I think that kind of adds to the intimate aura of these performances. I really like them a lot.
Rachmaninoff
Idil Biret’s cycle of the four Rachmaninoff concertos, which also were made with the conductor Antoni Wit, are well worth checking out, especially in the first and fourth concertos. And they just play the first concerto to the hilt and they bask in the virtuosity and emotional generosity of the music. And the fourth concerto was really great, especially with the orchestra. At the very beginning those repeated brass and woodwind chords are so clear, but they’re so beautifully balanced. And also listen to how Idil Biret just scampers through that final movement in the fourth concerto. She’s every bit as playful as Earl Wild, and it’s a really terrific performance.
Liszt
If I had to choose one release to represent Idil Biret in the music of Franz Liszt, it probably would be the second volume in a cycle that was devoted to some of this composer’s works. This volume two contains the first versions of the 12 Études that would eventually become the 12 Transcendental Études. These are really superb performances of these youthful efforts. And also there are wonderful performances here of the Three Concert Études, Il lamento, La leggierezza and Un sospiro. And also the Two Concert Études, Waldesrauschen and Gnomenreigen. God, these are beautifully, beautifully played, especially the Waldesrauschen. There’s also a disc of Wilhelm Kempff’s original transcriptions and compositions. This was on the Marco Polo label originally, and you know that Idil Biret is going to put her best efforts on behalf of her teacher. Kempff’s music is kind of lightweight and old-fashioned, but it’s very sincere and beautifully crafted music, and Idil Biret plays his music and his transcriptions with obvious love and devotion.
Direct-to-Disc Pioneer
In the late 1970s, a handful of audiophile aware labels experimented with direct-to-disc technology, which meant that they bypassed the analog tape machine and they fed the recorded signal directly to metal parts on a disc-cutting lathe just like in the 78 RPM era. No splicing or inserts were possible, which meant that an entire LP side had to be cut in one continuous take, including pauses between pieces or movements in real time, and this could be very nerve-wracking for sure. But the first direct-to-disc release by a classical solo pianist was actually by Idil Biret. She recorded this for Finnadar in 1976, and she must have had nerves of steel to get through the session, and she must have relished the challenge because she is on tip-top form on this recital. It includes two Chopin Mazurkas, the A minor Op. 17 No. 4, and the B major Op. 56 No. 1. And these are much freer and imaginative performances than the straighter ones, relatively speaking, that she did in her Naxos Chopin cycle.
Scriabin
She also plays the Scriabin 10th sonata. It’s not an explosive kind of performance like Horowitz, it’s not like that pressure cooker kind of Scriabin. But the performance has a lot of off tints and very subtle dynamic hairpins that really beckon your attention. She also plays the Prokofiev second sonata, and this has great virtuosic aplomb, especially in the outer movements. Also on the CD edition of this recital, there’s a performance of the seventh sonata, which was not on the original direct-to-disc LP, but it’s a great, great performance. And there are little rushings here and there, I mean come on there was no editing, but still it’s a very well put together interpretation.
Franck and Massenet
Also, I want to mention a really nice concerto disc that originally appeared on the Alpha label that coupled Franck’s Symphonic Variations with, of all things, the Piano Concerto by Jules Massenet, and this coupling later appeared in the big box. And the Massenet Concerto was a work from that youth and it is certainly not the most tightly constructed piano concerto around, but it has great tunes and there’s real sparkle to the piano playing. And the second part of the Franck Symphonic Variations features some really spirited and scintillating finger work from Idil Biret.
Ravel
There was also an interesting disc that came out a few years ago that contained three different recorded versions of Ravel’s Gaspard de la nuit played by Idil Biret. There was one from 1965 that was recorded for the Vega label, but it was not approved at the time that she recorded it. But then she discovered an acetate LP master in her archive, and then she allowed it to be released alongside recordings that she made in 1974 and 1984. And I did a detailed review of this disc for classicstoday.com, and you can look that up, but it’s a fascinating issue. I mean just to have three different recorded versions of Gaspard de la nuit on one disc, you don’t get that every day. And I really enjoyed reviewing it, and I’m happy to have that in my collection.
Turkish Composers
And now for my final selection from Idil Biret’s Naxos catalog. It’s a four disc collection of works by 10 Turkish composers. Some of these works are for solo piano, others are for piano and orchestra, some are studio efforts and others come from archival tapes. I’m not going to go into great detail to talk about these four discs or the composers or the works, but I thought that given Idil Biret’s Turkish roots and her lifelong advocacy for the music of her country, one really should investigate this release because it’s the only way to hear many of the pieces included on these four discs. And you can certainly check it out through YouTube or on all major streaming platforms, in fact, you can easily access all of the Idil Biret Naxos distributed recordings online.
Above I recommend what I think are some of the best of Idil Biret’s vast number of recordings, and that’s a good place to start on my list when faced with such a massive discography. You have to say that she was one of the most industrious and musically eclectic pianists of her generation, and she is an artist greatly respected by her fellow pianist colleagues.
