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Paul Badura-Skoda
Paul Badura-Skoda (born 6 October 1927, Vienna) is an Austrian pianist, prolific recording artist, scholar and keyboard instrument collector.
A student of Edwin Fischer, Badura-Skoda first rose to prominence by winning first prize in the Austrian Music Competition in 1947. In 1949, he performed with distinguished conductors including Wilhelm Furtwängler and Herbert Karajan; over his long career, he has recorded with conductors including Hans Knappertsbusch, Hermann Scherchen, and Georg Szell. Along with his contemporaries Friedrich Gulda and Jörg Demus, he was part of the so-called "Viennese Troika".
He is best known for his performances of works by Mozart, Beethoven and Schubert, but has an extensive repertoire including many works of Chopin and Ravel. Badura-Skoda is well known for his performances on "historical instruments", and owns several (his recording of the complete piano sonatas of Schubert is on five instruments from his private collection). A prolific recording artist, Badura-Skoda's over 200 records include many duplicates made to highlight the sound of different pianos: in a 2013 record, he recorded Schubert's last sonata three times on instruments from the 1820s, 1920s, and early 2000s (having already recorded the piece several times before); one of his box sets of the complete piano sonatas of Beethoven similarly includes three different versions of the "Hammerklavier" Sonata. Indeed, he is the only pianist to have not only recorded the complete piano sonatas of Mozart, Beethoven, and Schubert, but to have done so on both historic and modern instruments.
His frequent collaborations with Demus include several duet recordings and performances, and a book on the interpretation of Beethoven's piano sonatas. Badura-Skoda also collaborated with Frank Martin, producing editions and recordings of his music, and several articles on it.
Badura-Skoda is also well known for his musical scholarship, often along with his wife Eva Badura-Skoda. The Badura-Skodas edited one of the volumes of Mozart's piano concertos for the Neue Mozart-Ausgabe (Serie V/Werkgruppe 15/Band 5, consisting of K. 453, 456, and 459). They also produced books on the interpretation of the piano music of Mozart and the keyboard music of Bach, which have been translated into several languages.
A student of Edwin Fischer, Badura-Skoda first rose to prominence by winning first prize in the Austrian Music Competition in 1947. In 1949, he performed with distinguished conductors including Wilhelm Furtwängler and Herbert Karajan; over his long career, he has recorded with conductors inclu...
BADURA-SKODA Rimsky-Korsakov: Piano Concerto (1950) - PASC030
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RIMSKY-KORSAKOV Piano Concerto
Recorded in 1950
Paul Badura-Skoda, piano
Vienna Symphony Orchestra
Conductor: Henry Swoboda
BADURA-SKODA Scriabin: Piano Concerto (1950) - PASC031
SCRIABIN Piano Concerto
FOURNIER, JANIGRO & BADURA-SKODA Beethoven: "Archduke" Trio (1951) - PACM028
BEETHOVEN Piano Trio No 7 in B flat, Op. 97, "Archduke"
FOURNIER, JANIGRO & BADURA-SKODA Brahms: Piano Trio No. 1 (1953) - PACM043
BRAHMS Piano Trio No. 1 in B, Op. 8
Jean Fournier, violin
Antonio Janigro, cello
Duration: 33'23"
FOURNIER, JANIGRO & BADURA-SKODA Haydn: Four Piano Trios (1952) - PACM070
HAYDN Piano Trio No. 39 in G major, HOB XV:25
HAYDN Piano Trio No. 18 in G major, HOB XV:5
HAYDN Piano Trio No. 28 in D major, HOB XV:16
HAYDN Piano Trio No. 23 in E flat major, HOB XV:10
FOURNIER, JANIGRO & BADURA-SKODA Mozart: Piano Trios, Vol. 1 (1953) - PACM032
MOZART Divertimento in B flat major, K.254
MOZART Piano Trio in G major, K.564
MOZART Piano Trio in B flat major, K.502
Recorded c.1953, Konzerthaus, Mozart-Saal, Vienna