Reserve and Release

Jeremy Denk may not have as high a profile as other classical pianists, but he has a deep range of accomplishments both inside and outside of music. Last year, Nonesuch released his latest recording: Mozart Piano Concertos with the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra (he plays No. 20 and 25, and the Rondo in A minor, K. 511). On March 22, Penguin Random House will publish Denk’s new book, Every Good Boy Does Fine: A Love Story in Music Lessons.

Group Denk into the category of “thoughtful” musicians, because when he plays he’s clearly thinking about the reasons for what he’s doing. More, he’s argumentative—in the sense of interrogating a piece and his own thinking about it. He recently spoke to me on the phone about the genre of his book, the boundaries between technique and musicality, and lessons he’s still learning—in essence, we discussed how to learn about music.