In the podcast, pianist Víkingur Ólafsson talks to Ulrike Thiele about his love of independent interpretations and afternoon naps – and about the piano concertos by Brahms and John Adams.
Why was the piano the only instrument that came into question for Víkingur Ólafsson? Why does he advise his sons to learn another instrument? How does it feel for him to play Brahms' music under his eyes in Zurich? And why did his wife once throw cold water in his face? Find out: in the new episode of our podcast «Intro».
Intro in English
00:00 A look into Zurich's composer heaven
01:00 The bearded sage or the beautiful youth?
02:30 Brahms Hall instead of Tonhalle
03:15 Challenges for the Focus residency
04:00 Tailor-made: John Adams' new Piano Concerto
05:00 Kindred spirit and youthful hero
06:25 Discussions? It comes last, and it comes fast!
07:55 Dialogue with the concert hall
08:45 Home is home
09:30 Jogging lap and nap
10:35 Music is everything – with one exception!
11:45 Piano was the only possible choice
14:20 The day he almost gave up
16:15 Yuja Wang's crazy idea
17:00 Free, creative, independent
19:45 Bach to Bartók, Gould to Fischer
Our "Intro" is now also available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and many other podcast platforms: Simply subscribe to our podcast directly here, in the player or set up an RSS feed.
