I agree that there’s a far “cooler” sensibility alive in today’s pianists, but the “newness” is a stretch (Pollini epitomized cool a generation ago), and the influence of rock is a wayward swipe:
This is like saying “the influence of television on novels,” as though rock is a single, monolithic entity that can be reduced to “rhythmic crispness and clarity.” Is there any doubt that Elvis influenced Glenn Gould’s sound for same? It’s one of those essays that should have more room to breath so Tommasini can track down more nuances, he’s better than this. A lengthy comparison of Lang Lang vs. Andsnes might have been a better format, there’s your Yin-Yang, and the reasons Andsnes finds much more critical favor is because his listeners probably listen to far more pianists than Lang Lang’s core crowd do. An article like this that doesn’t mention Pogorelich or Kissin has some gaping holes. IP was flavor of the month, and a weird, untamed sensibility who didn’t really survive the hubbub… where is he now? He should be turning in fascinating recordings if his thoughts developed at all. And Kissin is an even stranger case: freakish virtuosity with an intelligence that sounds like it’s always running to catch up, but never quite does. I keep thinking “He’ll be fascinating in about ten years if he can start listening to himself better…” And I think that each time I hear him. The other name missing from this overview is Lars Vogt, who recorded Brahms Sonatas with Christian Tetzlaff last year, and straddles the line AT is talking about between passion and craft.