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When Giselle Brodsky was growing up in La Paz, Bolivia, her
family never suspected she would become involved in the ferocious
world of pianos and pianists, referred to by aficionados as
the ''ivory trade.'' Her parents didn't realize she was so
passionate about the instrument that she eventually would
teach it, and ultimately create a festival to promote extraordinary
talents.
But Brodsky's dream, the Miami International Piano Festival
of Discovery -- which is to piano buffs what a good film festival
is to movie fans, an annual sampling of some of the world's
most intriguing talent -- is about to celebrate its fifth
anniversary with two series of concerts: One, Thursday through
March 3 at Broward Center's Amaturo Theater; another, April
9-12 at Miami Beach's Lincoln Theater.
Call it a glistening showcase for a new generation of rising
stars. This year's festival brings back Poland's Piotr Anderszewski,
internationally praised for his imaginative probing of Beethoven's
daunting Diabelli Variations. There's a slew of Italian pianists
-- fleet-fingered Francesco Libetta, contemplative Pietro
De Maria and a newcomer, Emanuele Arciuli. Also new here,
though gaining ground in Europe, are Romania's Mihaela Ursuleasa
and Britain's Steven Osborne.
They are all pianists with impressive techniques, but also,
in Brodsky's opinion, with something urgent to say -- which
is what her quest is all about. For, as a piano lover attending
concerts for years in South Florida, she was often bored with
what she heard.
''How many times can you listen to the same big names like
Andre Watts, Emmanuel Ax or Yefim Bronfman?'' Brodsky asks
in her Aventura apartment, surrounded by plush rugs, contemporary
art and a rare vintage Steinway -- another of her ''discoveries,''
rescued from the oblivion of a dusty Bolivian basement.
'So many star pianists who tour a lot approach concerts as
a `job,' and their playing reflects it,'' she observes. ''I
wanted to hear different pianists,'' the young risk-takers
and daredevils, and the poets who lack opportunities, ``to
whom music isn't routine and who play with a feeling of almost
improvisation.
''I have never liked competitions,'' she continues. ``They're
only good for pushing one or two artists and most are judged
unfairly. There were so many interesting new pianists that
Europe was hearing, even Americans who couldn't get concerts
at home. Some had exciting recordings out, but they weren't
playing here. I wanted to change that.''
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