A Tribute to Masters:
Philippe Entremont (MGBH) – 70 Years In Black and White.
Interview by Esther Basha
This year we are celebrating the 85th anniversary of a world renowned pianist Philippe Entremont. His career and life has been long and rewarding, and today he continues to thrive through his connection to music and his Italian friend Pianoforte. In this interview we tried to ask him questions that would help our readers see him not only as a professional, but also as a man of many admirable qualities. We hope you enjoy this interview and get a personal insight into some professional secrets of the Piano Master.
Piano Performer Magazine: Do you come from a musical family? What was your first childhood encounter with the piano?
Philippe Entremont (PE): Yes, I do come from a musical family. My father was a violinist and a conductor, and my mother – a pianist and a piano teacher. My first instrument was the violin. And I wasn’t really in love with the sound I produced with the violin at the beginning… at all! At home the piano was in the room where I studied the violin. To me it was a nice instrument, a beautiful piano, and I really didn’t understand why I should be standing instead of being comfortably seated at the piano….I was extremely lazy as a kid. So I said, “I think I better play the piano because at least I can sit down.” And I put the hand on the piano, and it worked like magic. That was the end of my violin career and the beginning of the encounter with my now good friend – the piano.
I was extremely lazy as a kid. So I said, “I think I better play the piano because at least I can sit down.” And I put the hand on the piano, and it worked like magic.
PPM: When was your first public piano performance? What did you feel before and after?
PE: I gave my first public performance when I was 10 years old. I played the piano part of the 1st Mozart Quartet with my father’s ensemble. The concert took place in Reims, my home town. I have beautiful memories of that concert. Although it was my first performance, it went very smoothly. In confidence, I was told that General Eisenhower (OBM) was in the audience! Do you know that the end of the 2d World War was signed in Reims in the school my father was teaching at and, in fact, at his office table!?
PPM: Which teacher influenced you the most?
PE: When my passion towards piano became evident to my parents, they decided to teach me professionally. I had a chance to have a fabulous teacher – Rose Aye-Lejour (OBM) – who was the main assistant of Jean Doyen (OBM), my principal teacher at the Conservatoire de Paris (where I studied from the age of 12 to the age of 15).
PPM: How much time do you devote to practice?
PE: I don’t think it’s the number of hours that I spend with the instrument. I am blessed with the fact that I don’t really need any warm up to play. That’s a big plus. If you play with the right concentration, you don’t need so many hours. In my case, I play about two hours a day, but I think a lot.
PPM: Who are some of your favorite pianists?
PE:I admire immensely such pianists as Serguei Rachmaninov (OBM), Rudolf Serkin (OBM), Emil Guillels (OBM), Wilhelm Backhaus (OBM), Arthur Rubinstein (OBM), Alicia de la Rocha (OBM) to name a few.
PPM: Please, tell our readers about your most recent recordings.
PE: Last year I recorded the Schubert D960 Sonata. That piece was on my list for decades…. This year I recorded 4 Beethoven sonatas, and each one represents the diversity of his genius. For my 85th birthday Sony is issuing a 35CDs box set “Philippe Entremont: the Complete Piano Solo Recordings on Columbia Masterworks.”
For my 85th birthday Sony is issuing a 35CDs box set “Philippe Entremont: the Complete Piano Solo Recordings on Columbia Masterworks.”
PPM: Throughout your career you have played over 7, 000 concerts. How did you manage to play that many?
PE: One thing I noticed, in spite of the huge number given annually, I never encountered any special fatigue and although it’s hard to believe, I still feel the same way even now at my age. I know how to breathe with music, I never go too far with effort. An on stage, I really feel at home.
PPM: You played with the most famous orchestras under the baton of the most renowned conductors. What memories stand out for you?
PE: When I was under 20, a lot of people especially in France, were amazed and fast to say how lucky I was to be invited to play at the Carnegie Hall. Perhaps, I was lucky to get in, but after I was invited again and again… not only as a pianist, but also as a conductor.
I will never forget a Carnegie Hall concert presentation with the Alban Berg Quartett playing the Schumann (OBM) Piano Quintett. This performance was luckily recorded, and this recording is still available on the EMI label.
I played at Carnegie Hall with an incredible number of orchestras – the New York Philharmonic, the NDR orchestra from Hamburg, the Orchestra of the Americas conducted by Leopold Stokowski (OBM), the Wiener Symphoniker, the Vienna Chamber Orchestra under my conducting (many times), the Dresden Philharmonic also under my conducting, the New Orleans Philharmonic Orchestra and many more….
We must not forget that I gave an equivalent number of concerts at the Avery Fisher Hall of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra.
PPM: Do you ever experience stage freight?
PE: I do have fears like everybody else – I am subject to stage fright. That’s no doubt. Before a concert I am a wreck. And I have decided a long time ago that stage freight is my friend. If I don’t feel that, I know that something wrong. I need it… I need to be totally distraught before I am on stage, and as soon as it starts, it clears up… Just like the cold. I am miserable before the concert.
Before a concert I am a wreck. And I have decided a long time ago that stage freight is my friend. If I don’t feel that, I know that something wrong.
PPM: Do you think about the audience when you are on stage?
PE: The communication between the audience and the artist is tremendous. And I feel.. I am very sensitive to the quality of the audience. I can hear people listening.
PPM: Having had such a busy career, have you had time to build a family of your own?
PE: Yes, I have been married for 64 years. My wife Andree (MGBH) and I have two children – a daughter Felicia (MGBH) and a son, Alexandre (MGBH), who is a prominent physician.
PPM: Do you have any pets?
PE: Yes, a cat named Sam. I always had cats.
PPM: What is your favorite part of Paris?
PE: Place Vendôme, not far from where I live.
PPM: You have been invited as a judge to many piano competitions. What criteria do you usually use in making your decisions of who deserves the award?
PE: It’s not easy, because there are so many things involved. The performance has to please me, of course, but I am only one person. I understand very well that maybe someone else does not like the performance as much as I do. When I am in a jury and there are so many pianists – one after another – I am always interested in the one who is waking me up. It’s as simple as that. The one that puts me on the edge of the seat. I like artists who are not afraid of taking chances.. And it is wonderful to have the courage and the vision. I try to be extremely honest. I place music first. I look for comprehension of the piece. I am extremely sensitive to the sound. And I love people who are not afraid to use nuanced play. It’s so important to use the pedal well. Especially with the piano that we are using today. We have to be extremely discrete with the pedal. You have to practice it the way you practice the hand.
I like artists who are not afraid of taking chances..
PPM: What about the technique?
PE: If you don’t have a good technique, you don’t have the tools to project the quality of your interpretation.
PPM: What was is like for you to participate in a competition early on in your career?
PE: I was very young – 17 at the time. It was the beginning of my piano career. And there were great people at the jury at the time – Emile Gillels (OBM) and Arthur Rubinstein (OBM). Not bad. And speaking of Rubenstein, this is the pianist that I admire immensely. And… I miss him. We knew one another extremely well. Much more than people think. And I remember talking to him when I was very young trying to ask him very timidly if I could work with him. And he said to me, “Never.” It shocked me. And I said, “Why?” He said, “I know it’s going to be alright. You are going to make a mistake, but I have total confidence in you. ” Isn’t it wonderful? And I will never forget that. That was an excellent way to putting things. But when you have mastered your craft and you reach a very high level, your best teacher is yourself. And this is a fabulous responsibility.
When you have mastered your craft and you reach a very high level, your best teacher is yourself. And this is a fabulous responsibility.
PPM: Thank you for the interview and congratulation on your anniversary!