Embracing Musical Uncertainty

“Making it up as you go along might work well in the worlds of experimental theatre, freeform jazz, or when you’re caught pilfering biros, but in the world of classical music improvising went the way of Beethoven at around the same time Beethoven went… [Now,] most soloists prefer the security of jotting down a few bars before they put a shoe on stage. Not so Gabriela Montero, the 38-year-old Venezuelan concert pianist who is reviving this neglected art.”