“I'm the living counter-example”
How is it possible for a French pianist to feel closer to Bartók than to Debussy? Let's meet a musician who was Sir Georg Solti's last discovery, was supported by Georges Cziffra, and today plays chamber music with some of Hungary's greatest musicians. An interview with Jean-Efflam Bavouzet, who in November will be giving a two-piano concert with Balázs Szokolay at the Liszt Academy.
Who was the first Hungarian musician you had contact with?
My wife. Or rather, slightly earlier, Georges Cziffra. I won a competition in 1979 and was due to make my debut in Paris, but because of a great storm, the venue had become unusable, so the concert could not take place. Cziffra gave a charity concert a week later, the revenue from which he offered for the renovation of the hall, and he gave me the opportunity to play in one of the breaks to make up for my missing concert.
Jean-Efflam Bavouzet (fotó: Henry Fair)
How did you get to know Zoltán Kocsis?
My first meeting with him and our joint concert was a turning point in my life. Kocsis wrote a commendation for my first record on which I played pieces by Haydn. This gesture launched our friendship. Later in 1995, to mark the Bartók anniversary, we gave several two-piano recitals together. On several occasions I have performed with Kocsis conducting. The concert in Berlin for composer György Kurtág's 80th birthday was a profound experience for me: I performed the composer's Double Concerto with Miklós Perényi. Kurtág was present at the rehearsals and supplied all three of us with instructions that had a deep influence on my musical thinking.
Have you played with Balázs Szokolay before?
This will be our first joint concert but we have known each other for a long time. A few years ago, Szokolay contacted me saying if he had the opportunity to play the Bartók sonata for two pianos, would I play the other piano part. I am very pleased that we can perform this work together.
How it is possible that it took so long for a French artist to discover Debussy's music?
Of course, I have always marvelled at Debussy and been interested in his art but for a long time, it didn't move anything inside me. Today you often hear in international musical life that if you are Russian, you will play Russian music better than anyone else; that if you are Hungarian you will play Bartók better than anyone; if you are French then Debussy is in your genes. Utter nonsense! I am the living counter-example of this. I was thirty-five years old when Debussy's music first moved me to tears. For the longest period, Bartók felt much closer to me. My emotional passionate relationship with Debussy's music does not derive from my identity as a Frenchman.
Interview by Anna Belinszky
Originally published in the 2014/II Liszt Academy Concert Magazine