The Berliner Philharmoniker mourn the loss of Maurizio Pollini, who was one of the orchestra’s closest musical partners for decades. Since his debut in 1970, he appeared in almost every season as soloist performing concertos including, amongst others, those by Beethoven, Mozart, Brahms and Bartók, and later with solo recitals dedicated primarily to the works of Frédéric Chopin. The collaboration intensified from 1990, when Claudio Abbado, a close personal and artistic friend of Maurizio Pollini, became chief conductor of the Berliner Philharmoniker. The special bond between conductor, pianist and orchestra was expressed not least by joint tours including those to Italy, France and the USA, as well as several award-winning recordings.
Eva-Maria Tomasi, violinist and member of the orchestra’s board: “Maurizio Pollini was one of the great pianists of our time. He had an individual tone that combined extraordinary clarity with deep feeling. In person, we experienced Maurizio Pollini as a noble character for whom music was above all else. We are particularly grateful that we were able to share in the unique artistic friendship between Maurizio Pollini and Claudio Abbado over the years. We will never forget this wonderful musician and person. Our thoughts are with his loved ones.”
