Sicklist: Murray Perahia’s still out
mainHe was supposed to have directed the Israel Phil from the keyboard in January.
Instead, they’ve had to call in a conductor Frederic Chaslin, with pianist Denis Kozukhin.
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Bad news. Anybody know what sort of illness ? Hope MP is on the mend.
Probably yhis is his chronic hand injury. Perahia is also the president of the Jerusalem academy of music and as such he holds frequent masterclasses in Jerusalem ,in spite of not being able to perform as a concert pianist for nearly two years.
Perahia never had hand problems until after his lessons with Horowitz – when he started playing faster & louder, and adding Liszt & Rachmaninoff to his repertoire.
Perahia’s work with Horowitz has absolutely nothing to do with his hand problems. According to Perahia, He suffered a paper cut on his thumb that became infected. He had to cancel over two seasons worth of concerts to deal with the severity of the infection and has been a recurring issue since.
My understanding from a reputable source is that his current condition has nothing to do with his hand.
Kozhukhin. A wonderful pianist.
All of our thoughts are with Perahia, an truly extraordinary pianist.
Why oh why, though, given he has such a serious injury, does his agent continue to allow him to commit to such a schedule? These rolling cancellations have been happening for about two years and are a considerable nuisance for both organisers and concertgoers. I have friends who simply do not book Perahia concerts because they know he will not be there.
Surely it is better to give the man the space to recover properly: no doubt the demand will be sufficient as soon as he is ready.
According to a reputable source, his current cancellations have nothing to do with his injury. It is problematic for both the artist and presenters because all the artist can do is hope that they are well enough to travel but it is hard to know until maybe only 6-8 weeks away. This is why they try to keep the date and the artist does whatever they can to fulfill their end of the contract.
Frankly, it is just the loss of the concert presenters if they choose not to book Perahia and he indeed is able to perform during their available dates. This has never stopped Argerich from being less than reliable and it won’t stop Perahia either. When they do appear, it’s because they are in good health and able to deliver on the expectation of their performing.
His cancellations started since early 2018 so it is worrying. Does anyone know if this is a health issue or is he tied up with completing the Beethoven sonatas for G. Henle Verlag in time for the Beethoven 2020 anniversary?
It’s just been announced that Murray Perahia has canceled his 2020 North America tour. This is beyond worrisome.