11/01/2025
https://www.facebook.com/100063482595829/posts/1173862861406456/
Eileen Joyce was a remarkable Australian pianist who rose to superstardom from very humble beginnings, training at the Leipzig Conservatory with Teichmuller and enjoying an international career for many decades.
She was justly recognized for her dazzling finger work and ease at the piano, but she was also gifted with exceptional musical intelligence, delivering performances that were poised and natural in their expression.
Joyce produced a good number of discs from the 1930s through to about 1958, and there are a handful of filmed and live recordings from that period that further showcase her glorious artistry.
Today I am sharing for the first time audio from two BBC television broadcasts of the 1950s: a March 21, 1956 performance of Liszt's Un Sospiro and a November 12, 1957 account of the Litolff Scherzo with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Eric Robinson.
Both performances are marvelous, and a surprise in the proceedings takes place partway through the Litolff: as the announcer explains in conversation with the soloist after the performance, a studio light exploded (fortunately not injuring anyone), audible as a loud bang … talk about an electric performance!
A few other links that I’ll share (EDIT - adding one more a day later because I just came across it)
- A clip from the 1943 British movie Battle for Music in which Joyce plays an abbreviated last movement of the Grieg Concerto. She not only dazzles with some incredible octaves and runs here, but plays with beautiful tone, clearly highlighted melodic lines, and impeccable timing and balance.
- A September 19, 1953 radio recording of Joyce playing the Schumann Concerto at the closing night of that year's Proms, with Basil Cameron conducting the BBC Symphony Orchestra. Her burnished sound, gorgeous phrasing, and natural timing all highlight the musical content with disarming simplicity and clarity.
- My overview of her complete discography (with a few selected recordings) and a wonderful biography that was put together in her native Australia - both of great interest to pianophiles!
(LATE ADDITION) - A wonderful selection of her studio recordings (labeled a 'recital' but it's not an actual live performance - that was a term used by record companies in the '50s for a selection of solo works on a disc) ... what phenomenal playing throughout!
A truly astounding pianist!
