2015 marks the 90th anniversary of Pierre Boulez. The French composer-conductor-essayist, a musician with a capital M, is up for a big year. Among many laurels to come is a Lifetime Achievement Grammy Award which he receives on February 7th. Even more importantly, his music will be heard in many top arenas and Boulez enthusiasts all around the world can experience the sounds of “organized delirium” in their nearby venues. Check out Ensemble Intercontemporain’s Pli selon Pli , Sydney Symphony’s Rituel, and Pierre-Laurent Aimard’s complete Boulez piano music tour with Tamara Stefanovich, to name but a handful!

I had the pleasure of working with Boulez a bit over ten years ago in preparation for the recording of his three piano sonatas. Approaching the first face-to-face session with him at Cité de la Musique I was all but terrified. Continue reading →