The pianist Maria Joao Pires (69) is coming to Korea. The Portuguese pianist is admired as the best Mozart specialist of our times. Unlike her rival, another Mozart specialist born in Japan, Mitsuko Uchida (65), whose performance is joyful, Pires's performance is poetic.

This will be her second performance in Korea. This is her second visit in 17 years since she performed with the Royal Concertgebouw conducted by Riccardo Chailly in 1996.Many anticipate this performance, which Pires will perform with the elderly maestro Bernard Haitink (84).

We corresponded with Pires via e-mail ahead of her performance at the Seoul Arts Center on February 28 and March 1. Pires, who opts for a hippie style "naturalistic" stage costume instead of the typical dress, revealed an ecological awareness and criticized the musical competitions which have fallen into a competitive ideology. She spared no praise for the meditative performance of Radu Lupu, a pianist one year younger than Pires. We print her answers almost in their entirety.

KH: In 1996, you performed at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts in Korea. It was completely nonsense. Your performance and the huge concert hall at the Sejong Center was simply an inadequate combination. It is fortunate that this time you will play at another concert hall.

Pires: To a pianist, the primary instrument is the body. You have to liberate your body, so that it can control the second instrument, the piano, freely. Music flows from the harmony of the body and the piano. As you know, my hands are small. So I have tried my best to eliminate unnecessary gestures and encounter a piano in good condition. The condition of the concert hall the last time I visited Korea was not something that my body could handle, and something no piano could solve.

KH: You took a break in the 1980s due to a wrist injury and received heart surgery in 2006. Have there been any changes due to these experiences?

Pires: When I had to stay away from playing for a while, I constantly asked myself how I was going to live and what I was going to do. It was a time for me to think about what was important in my life and a time when I learned how to talk with my inner self. What I felt then was that I would play only what I wanted to play. I'm not the kind who is confident about one's performance. So I always worry. In order to relieve the distress, I listen to other people's music and then open my eyes.

KH: What have you pursued so far as a musician?

Pires: Music is service to a god. That is why I do not add additional interpretations or unnecessary decorations. If the listener can purify her heart with my music, then that is enough.

KH: Is there a pianist who you think you were influenced by?

Pires: Rada Lupu. He is not simply a great pianist, but a great musician as well. He creates perfect music. Lupu's performance will shine as a rare example in our age, which the future generation will remember as the purest music. This is not an answer to your question, but I would also say Hoshino Jun, the tuner of my favorite Yamaha piano. He passed away in 2001 and I miss him. Sometimes Hoshino would say, "Today, I would like to listen in the audience," and I would respond, "You must continue behind the stage."

KH: Your stage costumes are simple. You don't wear a dress, which pianists commonly wear.

Pires: I like dark colors and easy-to-wear fabrics. I like natural fabrics such as hemp or cotton. I don't wear makeup and my hair is always cut short. I only wear flat shoes. That way my mind is at ease.

KH: Many Asian students including Koreans long for Europe and leave to study music abroad. What do you think about this?

Pires: Asian students seem to think studying in Europe has a great advantage. But I've seen many students living in constant tension because of the difference in language and customs. They can't relax and act natural and they remain tense when they study the piano. It's not a good way.

KH: Young musicians also dream of winning a famous competition.

Pires: It may not be easy, but I wish young people would have the courage to boldly refuse commercial propositions. I hope they remember that competitions, which divide the participants into winners and losers, are not the way of an artist. Also, this may not be an answer to your question either, but I have something I would like to say to the audience. I wish the audience would not applaud during the pause. Whether it is a recital or a concert, I want to share the peace in the silence with the audience.

KH: You seem to enjoy accompanied performances more than solos.

Pires: I am more comfortable performing a solo as part of a duo or trio on stage rather than performing alone in a recital. For instance, I enjoy performing an accompaniment to a song and then playing a piano sonata in the middle of the performance. Then the singer does not leave the stage, but listens to my performance seated in a chair prepared on stage. There will be a table next to his chair and a light as well. There will be water on the table for him to drink. I hope the sight of us sitting comfortably and resonating with each other will appear like a painting to the audience.

KH: There are rumors that you will retire from the stage.

Pires: In 2010, the Spanish newspaper, El Pais reported that I would retire. It is not true. Wanting to retire is different from retiring. Next year, I will turn seventy. I only said that I would like to concentrate on helping abused children after I turn seventy.