Alfred Brendel

What pianist Alfred Brendel has achieved is no small feat. According to contrived musico-sociological theories, it is even impossible: flourishing in the current music world in full instinctive and spiritual freedom without any form of epigonism. Brendel has played roughly the entire known concert literature, given recitals, investigated the concertos of Beethoven, Brahms, Liszt and Mozart and even ventured upon the concerto of Schoenberg, actualized Mozart’s solo works, convincingly realized Bach on the piano, given a new meaning to Haydn’s piano works, brought Lisztz Variations to light and given the late Schubert new prestige by making an expedition to his soul, with al its melancholy, cheerfulness, sadness and domesticity , during that special undertaking. He has written down his insights in a book and ventures at set times upon Beethoven and Schubert marathons on the concert stage.
Based on his looks, Brendel is an unlikely hero. His hair is almost always tousled, his forehead constantly frowned, his teeth are featured to prominently and he enters the stage as a slightly absent-minded professor, who could pass for an oversized Woody Allen. And anyone who sees him in close up for a long time during a performance, must be resistant to psychedelic effects.
  Fortunately, an antihero also has very attractive sides, and anyone who listen to him trough albums, is not exposed to distraction and can fully enjoy his clear, intelligent and beautifully nuanced Haydn, Beethoven, Schubert and Liszt. Thus he slowly began his international career, only noticed by conoisseurs.
(Source: Musicalifeiten.nl)