At University of California, Berkely, The Townsend Center’s Forum on the Humanities and the Public World presents eminent artists, political leaders, writers, and scholars, each representing a unique discipline, viewpoint, and medium. The series brings the humanities into dialogue with the critical issues at play in the public sphere. The Townsend Center at UC Berkeley has a long and distinguished tradition of humanistic scholarship, open dialogue, and pioneering innovation in the humanities. It is in this spirit that the Forum on the Humanities and the Public World presents leading figures from the academic and public worlds in settings designed for scholars and for the public at large.
On May 10th, 2010, the winner of the 1970 Chopin International Piano Competition, pianist Garrick Ohlsson gave a lecture there entitled; “Why Chopin? and Other Questions”.
In this conversation lecture Garrick Ohlsson discusses issues such as Chopin’s relationship to the piano (3.00), Chopin and period instruments (10.28), the “pianistic” Chopin (14.55), the Nocturnes (30.22) and performs the Nocturne in D-flat major Op. 27/2 (54.33).
In the final section he answers questions from the audience:
- on emotional contents, tempo and let go (1.01.12)
- Chopin and other composers (1.04.25)
- Chopin’s relation to opera and singing (1.08.00)
Garrick Ohlsson is regarded as one of the world’s leading performers of the music of Frédéric Chopin. He is also noted for his masterly performances of the works of Mozart, Beethoven and Schubert, as well as the Romantic repertoire. A prolific recording artist, Mr Ohlsson can be heard on the Arabesque, RCA Victor Red Seal, Angel, Bridge, BMG, Delos, Hänssler, Nonesuch, Telarc and Virgin Classics labels. His undertaking of the complete Beethoven sonatas for Bridge Records resulted in a Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Soloist Performance (vol. 3 in the series). His sixteen-disc set of the complete works of Chopin, originally recorded for Arabesque, was re-released by Hyperion.
The Art of Chopin, trailer from the 2010 film
Hear Ohlsson’s complete Chopin recordings on Hyperion label
Garrick Ohlsson entries in The New York Times