The world is lucky to have this historical record of the early days of Yuja Wang's career. Her immense talent is already evident. What a treat for the audience that attended her graduation recital - a concert I'm sure they treasure - and by the grace of RUclips a performance that the rest of us can treasure too.
Exquisitely beautiful playing of Chopin. Her technical wonder & romantic heart reveals fully when she's most 'bare' without ensembles. This woman is a genius. I love her.
Ma questo è prima di tutto uno spettacolo della condizione umana:un poeta dei suoni incanta una ragazza che lo segue con la bravura delle dita a significare le meraviglie della creazione dell'arte..E noi che ne godiamo la presenza ci accorgiamo di quale valore siamo capaci.Altro che delitti e
To my taste it is wonderful.Spontaneous,creative and fantastic timing..Plus a wonderful sound,gentleness,power and clarity.Great bravura and tonal beauty. Brava.
Hats off, gentlemen, a genius! I predict this lady will become the premier concert pianist of her generation. Oh wait a minute -- she already did! Yuja seems to shy away from the larger Chopin works, but you're not going to find many finer interpretations. Maybe Horowitz in his prime or Rubinstein. If there's one thing I would say, it's that she's trying a little hard to be "profound" throughout. It's true there are dozens of profound ideas in this piece, but Chopin didn't see it that way! He had a dozens of profound musical ideas every day of his life. A little more element of FUN would be welcome. Chopin is exalting in his mastery of "the Grand Style" and you should too, Yuja! Please take this in the spirit it was intended, from someone quite a bit older, who once was known for his Chopin. Of course, I never had your technique or your fame or your repertoire. But then WHO DOES? And if you miss a note or two in the effort to scale the Grand Style, WHO is going to hold it against you at this point?? Take it to the hilt and have a ball!
Bill Teichman Yes, this is a larger Chopin work. I will just note that she did it for her graduate recital at Curtis -- possibly an assignment from her famous teacher. I don't think she's done an "official" recording. If you look over the albums listed on her web site, she has the Piano Sonata No.2 in B flat minor (the one with the "Funeral March"), and also the Waltz in C# minor. That's it for Chopin -- while she has an entire album devoted to Rachmaninoff, and much from Scriabin, Brahms, Prokofiev, etc. I think I'm right in my hunch that she's taking her time to "digest" the grand Chopin style. She made a similar comment about Bach in general. The Bb m. Sonata is nice, but doesn't quite encompass the grandeur of the Ballades, for example, even though they're shorter. Still, you can find the First Ballade here on RUclips, with a very young Yuja blowing away every other so-called child prodigy on the planet.
18 dislikes? Really? What are these people looking for? I know we all have our favorites, but I can't figure out what there is to dislike about this performance?
+suegha Wow, wow, wow !!! : Sex in advertising From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia "Sex in advertising or "sex sells" is the use of sex appeal in advertising to help sell a particular product or service. Sexually appealing imagery may or may not pertain to the product or service in question. Examples of sexually appealing imagery include nudity, pin-up girls, and muscular men. The use of sex in advertising can be highly overt or extremely subtle. It ranges from relatively explicit displays of sexual acts, to the use of basic cosmetics to enhance attractive features." ALEXANDER BOOT Author, critic, polemicist Blogs > Alexander's blog > Sex sells - all of us short Submitted by Alexander on 24 June 2013 - 12:59pm The other day I listened to something or other on RUclips, and a link to Chopin’s Fourth Ballade performed by the Georgian pianist Khatia Buniatishvili came up. The link was accompanied by a close-up publicity photo of the musician: sloe bedroom eyes, sensual semi-open lips suggesting a delight that’s still illegal in Alabama, naked shoulders hinting at the similarly nude rest of her body regrettably out of shot… Let me see where my wife is… Good, she isn’t looking over my shoulder, so I can admit to you that the picture got me excited in ways one doesn’t normally associate with Chopin’s Fourth Ballade or for that matter any other classical composition this side of Wagner or perhaps Ravel’s Bolero. Searching for a more traditional musical rapture I clicked on the actual clip and alas found it anticlimactic, as it were. Khatia’s playing, though competent, is as undeniably so-what as her voluptuous figure undeniably isn’t. (Yes, I know the photograph I mentioned doesn’t show much of her figure apart from the luscious shoulders but, the prurient side of my nature piqued, I did a bit of a web crawl.) Just for the hell of it I looked at the publicity shots of other currently active female musicians, such as Yuja Wang, Joanna MacGregor, Nicola Bendetti, Alison Balsom (nicknamed ‘crumpet with a trumpet’, her promos more often suggest ‘a strumpet with a trumpet’ instead), Anne-Sophie Mutter and a few others. They didn’t disappoint the Peeping Tom lurking under my aging surface. Just about all the photographs showed the ladies in various stages of undress, in bed, lying in suggestive poses on top of the piano, playing in frocks (if any) open to the coccyx in the back and/or to the navel up front. This is one thing these musicians have in common. The other is that none of them is all that good at her day job and some, such as Wang, are truly awful. Yet this doesn’t really matter either to them or to the public or, most important, to those who form the public tastes by writing about music and musicians. Thus, for example, a tabloid pundit expressing his heartfelt regret that Nicola Benedetti “won’t be posing for the lads’ mags anytime soon. Pity, because she looks fit as a fiddle…” Geddit? She’s a violinist, which is to say fiddler - well, you do get it. “But Nicola doesn’t always take the bonniest photo,” continues the writer, “she’s beaky in pics sometimes, which is weird because in the flesh she’s an absolute knock-out. “The classical musician is wearing skinny jeans which show off her long legs. She’s also busty with a washboard flat tummy, tottering around 5ft 10in in her Dune platform wedges.” How well does she play the violin though? No one cares. Not even critics writing for our broadsheets, who don’t mind talking about musicians in terms normally reserved for pole dancers. Thus for instance runs a review of a piano recital at Queen Elizabeth Hall, one of London’s top concert venues: “She is the most photogenic of players: young, pretty, bare-footed; and, with her long dark hair and exquisite strapless dress of dazzling white, not only seemed to imply that sexuality itself can make you a profound musician, but was a perfect visual complement to the sleek monochrome of a concert grand... [but] there’s more to her than meets the eye.” The male reader is clearly expected to get a stiffie trying to imagine what that might be. To help his imagination along, the piece is accompanied by a photo of the young lady in question reclining on her instrument in a pre-coital position with an unmistakable ‘come and get it’ expression on her face. The ‘monochrome’ piano is actually bright-red, a colour usually found not in concert halls but in dens of iniquity. Nowhere does the review mention the fact obvious to anyone with any taste for musical performance: the girl is so bad that she should indeed be playing in a brothel, rather than on the concert platform. Can you, in the wildest flight of fancy, imagine a reviewer talking in such terms about sublime women artists of the past, such as Myra Hess, Maria Yudina, Maria Grinberg, Clara Haskil, Marcelle Meyer, Marguerite Long, Kathleen Ferrier? Can you see any of them allowing themselves to be photographed in the style of “lads’ mags”? I can’t, which raises the inevitable question: what exactly has changed in the last say 70 years? The short answer is, just about everything. Concert organisers and impresarios, who used to be in the business because they loved music first and wanted to make a living second, now care about nothing but money. Critics, who used to have discernment and taste, now have nothing but greed and lust for popularity. The public… well, don’t get me started on that. The circle is vicious: because tasteless ignoramuses use every available medium to build up musical nonentities, nonentities is all we get. And because the musical nonentities have no artistic qualities to write about, the writing nonentities have to concentrate on the more jutting attractions, using a vocabulary typically found in “lads’ mags”. The adage “sex sells” used to be applied first to B-movies, then to B-novels, and now to real music. From “sex sells” it’s but a short distance to “only sex sells”. This distance has already been travelled - and we are all being sold short.
the subtle emotions that Chopin (a Polish-French) managed to write down and she (a Chinese) interpretes in a universal way, shows how music is the universal language of the soul. wish those who think of 'refugees' as beings (if at all) from another planet, will become aware of...
Yuja Wang came at a time when classical CD industry was in demise ! Her future lies in digital propagation and in live concerts. In the last 5 years, she continued to impress audience with her technical prowness. Let us wait and see in 5-10 years time if her maturity can compel disagreed audience to woo her.
Well it's now eight years later, what do you think? Since your post she has stood her ground as an international superstar pianist who recorded numerous CDs and performed an average 100 to 120 live concerts per year. She also has not back down from the obstinate criticism of her stage satorial choices. In recent years she has delved into compositions by Beethoven and Bramhs and devoted a large portion of her touring schedule to playing chamber music and other onstage collaborations. In addition she's conducted a few master classes. Indeed she has matured and I can hear/see that maturity not only in her musical interpretation and jaunty presentation but also in her exploration in music and in life. Bravo!
In case you don't know, Yuja Wang is probably the world's most important young pianist. This is from her Curtis graduation recital 4 years ago. She has just ungodly technique but you can see from this video what makes her really special -- delicacy and sensitivity and a tremendous tonal range.
At this young age she was an incompearable talent...now she's the greatest! Perfect technique, always good taste in interpretation. Every composer sounds like it should be!
Well said Bravo ! I saw Lang Lang in Sydney ( Australia ) a few years back . He received a 15 minute standing ovation and played several encore that went for far longer then any other concert pianist I have seen . He has a wicked sense of humour coupled to his somtimes mischievious playing which had us in fits of laughter. He was also interviewed on Radio and a perfect gentleman as well
10 лет назад+1
Pero su inspiración y paso extático se siente de inmediato . Sus dedos realmente cantan las melodías que asoman mudas desde su alma por sus bellos labios.
When I read the earlier expert comments (Not the "Trolls") I remain glad I'm ill-informed about all these arcane subtleties and a simple lover of music - and especially as performed by this magical lady.
Where did I say you should not enjoy this? I am not angry. You are right: It is an harmonically and structurally complex work. Yuja plays this nicely like a walk in the park, no problems, happy and innocent, and if you like Chopin like this, it's nice for you!
Lang Lang has gotten a lot better in the past few years. I didn't used to like him, now I do. The difference I notice is that his hand position has gotten lower, like Glenn Gould used to play. Yuja Wang also has a low hand position. If you have huge strong fingers, you can do it. But probably not ordinary people.
I respect this post, even if I disagree with it. My positive reaction to your post rests on the last four words. They make all of the difference in the world!
I hope she comes to Boston, I would love to hear her live. As for the negative commentator: Can't you just shut it and enjoy a beautiful, extremely talented pianist play in peace?
great performance! She is a great pianist! But,for this piece, I still like Ingolf Wunder's more. The one he played in 2010 Chopin Competition is astonished!!!
Thank you for your angry opinion. You add so much to the world. I agree with you completely: aesthetics in music, especially for a piece as harmonically and structurally complex as Chopin's Polonaise-Fantasie, are best expressed as universal truths rather than opinions, reactions and observations. I was finding myself really enjoying her performance, but your highly informed opinion made me realize the error of my ways.
I think that we should confine ourselves to making comments on the topic at hand rather than making personal attacks on those who express their opinion. I am not fanatical about any pianist, not even Fabio Bidini. I merely mentioned that I liked his interpretation. As for Horowitz, indeed, I did hear him play the PF in concert on a night when he was not particularly on. But I suppose I have no right to express that opinion because I am a troll. :)
Yuja graduated Curtis in 2008 at age 21. So the 2006 date is not right. Assuming her recital took place the year she graduated, she was 21 in this video.
I heard Ms Wang last night here in Los Angeles. She performed the Tchaikovsky 2 concerto in G major. I must admit that her technique, dexterity and speed are phenomenal. Pletnev conducted the Russian National Orchestra. I love the Polonaise Fantasy and think she does a superb job in this "young" performance. I would like to hear her perform what is my ultimate test for Chopin... the minor ballade.... #4. Has she performed or recorded it? RSVP BTW having heard the 2nd Tchaikovsky, I now understand why it is "on the shelf. It is a lot of banging that shows off the pianist's prowess but musically I find it leaves much to be desired... it just does not seem to make sense (to me) overall.
definitely the fm minor ballade, the polonaise fantaisie, the barcarolle and the 2nd movement of the Chopin e minor concerto. I have listened to Yuja's recordings of Chopin and found the pieces, once again, to be technically dazzling but it did not reveal the poetry. I believe that Chopin said to his students that "an aristocrat never hurries." iI you get a chance listen to Little Known (SHAME) Fabio Bidini s recording the Polonaise Fantasy.....
For gods sake! Quit all that small talk and enjoy the music - or leave, silently. By the way - thank you again for an extremely good performance - miss Wang:)
+Camillo Flaim "Sex sells ...classical music?" Sex sells. Marketing professionals know that, which is why advertisements for everything from cars to beer regularly feature scantily clad women. We live in an age where appearance is more important than ever before; scientific studies suggest that more attractive people get better jobs and are happier. Until recently, classical music was one of the few industries where sex is not usually used to sell the product. Performers often dress within a prescribed fashion, with men wearing dinner suits or tuxedos and women wearing full-length dresses. However, a number of prominent musicians have recently been courting controversy for their appearance. Young Chinese pianist Yuja Wang has received as much coverage about her appearance as her performances recently, with the Los Angeles Times commenting, “Her dress [on] Tuesday was so short and tight that had there been any less of it, the Bowl might have been forced to restrict admission to any music lover under 18 not accompanied by an adult. Had her heels been any higher, walking, to say nothing of her sensitive pedaling, would have been unfeasible.” It’s not just women pushing the envelope, though. American organist Cameron Carpenter, a soloist with this year’s NZSO National Youth Orchestra, has received a great deal of media attention for wearing white stovepipe trousers and bejewelled tops during performances. In an interview with Radio New Zealand’s Kathryn Ryan, Carpenter admitted that he regularly works out at the gym, and opined that a musician’s appearance is “extremely important”. Korean-American violinist Hahn-Bin describes himself as “Viagra to classical music”, and dresses flamboyantly, complete with heavy eyeliner and Mohawk hairstyle.
+Georges Cancan Why do you constantly ramble on and on with your foolish opinions that nobody wants to read? Your undeniable jealous insecurities are so transparent.
Assolutamente lontana da una qualunque concezione che si possa definire anche solo vagamente chopiniana. Inutile parlar male, infatti non solo oggigiorno è impossibile dire la vera verità in cose artistiche, ma soprattutto sarebbe inutile dato che mezzo mondo suona così... Tanti auguri, Musica.
(1) Chopin wrote Polonaise Fantasie (1) and Chopin wrote Polonaise Fantasie (2). As it happens this is Number 1 and that is the more popular of the two. (2) If you Google Arthur Rubinstein Chopin, you will find a collection of 157 performances of works by Chopin and you can find both versions there. It is unfair to compare Arthur (really Artur as can be seen on the cover of each of those 157 performances) Rubinstein, a native Pole who, like Chopin, was steeped in Polish music in his early days and the folk songs from which Chopin quite frequently modified for the piano are a part of Rubinstein's heritage. It's a long way from old Poland to China. However, if you want to hear this played as it should be, only Rubinstein and Hofmann played it at that level, and I'm not sure that Hofmann ever recorded this work. Still, if you compare this to Argerich, who was from Argentina, or Kissin, who was from Russia, you will see that, while Ms. Wang shows potential, this performance never succeeds in sound the way it should. Still, she is young and has many years ahead of her and she will undoubtedly (I hope) improve. Chopin is ideal for Ms. Wang because his works are subtle and don't require the sheer strength that many composers required. Chopin liked to play his works in a sitting room where he would be surrounded by at most twenty people. Therefore sheer sonic projection is not a requirement in most of his compositions. It will be interesting to see if Yuja can improve a lot or a little. Let's hope for a lot.
There is but ONE Polonaise-fantaisie around (original French edition: Brandus et Cie, No. 4610; original German edition: Breitkopf & Härtel, No. 7546 - BOTH published as Op. 61 and BOTH the same work). ''Gerry Rains'' - just another moron roaming the premises, If this is any consolation to you, it appears you're in very good company here.
Gerry Rains You really are obsessed with nationality, aren't you? Polish, Russian, Argentinian, Jewish or Chinese...who cares? A great pianist can be any nationality or race!
My description was a bit superficial. It's difficult to express in english, but a chopinesque rubato sounds perfectly natural like breathing. And Yuja Wang sounds exactly the opposite: Stiff, mechanical and contrived. Listen to the rubato of Bozhanov. Then please listen to the rubato of Sofronitsky (f.e.Mazurkas), Zak (Mazurkas), Hofmann(first concerto), Neuhaus (first concerto), Friedman(op.55,2), Malcuzinsky(everything), Cortot..I have nothing against Yuja, a nice and charming person.
@bagatellissimo voyez vanessa wagner elle joue magnifiquement bien et aussi katia skanavi. en ce moment suis fan de valentina lititsa pas sûr de l'ortho dans la 1 ier sonate de ragmaninov
yet you couldnt listen. Lang Lang is a great person, I actually love how entire China now wants to play the piano. I also believe he has the greatest technique. However his sound,,,,Is this our modern day Richter ? Never ! I´m glad Argerich and Moravec still live
@bloodgrss I AM still waiting, with baited breath, YOUR performance of works by Yuja like this one you decry. As a 'teacher' and 'pianist' with such strong 'convictions'-you surely can demonstrate how this all should be done--with nothing 'missing'?! Why do you delay?
I think she has natural lucozade in her blood! Like Triffy at 20, she at 26 (19 here)...we need not compare...just enjoy their growth...our love or trolls here exist out of real time anyway... But enjoy your time with the 'new' freddie...tho' the old shallow prejudices and superficial cracked trolling logic still remains... Loved the Grigory Sokolov as you did Jason...all the best...
cheerrytime22 You are so darn right. Nothign but a bunch of sactimonious upstarts who probably have never played a piano in their entire lives. I could not have said it better.
Argerich dying? Me too! I have thrown away 4 concert tickets to hear her over the past 18 months, as she has cancelled performances. Now I will probably never hear her. Side by side performances of her and Wang Yuja are not comparable. To me it is the difference between a Ferrari and a Veyron!
"Weak" = "bad" (in my language). Stiff phrasing is Yujas phrasing, it is clumsy, it doesn't breath.. You know exactly what I am talking about. And I did not equal Bozhanov with old masters. He's no comparison to them, but he is still worlds apart from a Yuja Wang. That is what I wanted to demonstrate. Please do not put words in my mouth. And if you criticize my use of language: Nice for you, but it only demonstrates that you cannot criticize what I say.
Formidable! Even better than Maurizio Pollini. I'd like her to release Debussy and Bach (quite intriguing to compare her with Glenn Gould, too - two geniuses).
![Yuja Wang: Chopin Piano Concerto No. 2 in F minor Op. 21 [HD]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/ucEoszfu9_E/mqdefault.jpg)
The world is lucky to have this historical record of the early days of Yuja Wang's career. Her immense talent is already evident. What a treat for the audience that attended her graduation recital - a concert I'm sure they treasure - and by the grace of RUclips a performance that the rest of us can treasure too.
Exquisitely beautiful playing of Chopin. Her technical wonder & romantic heart reveals fully when she's most 'bare' without ensembles. This woman is a genius. I love her.
Even at this age she had such a lovely sense of timing - a very natural and yet heartfelt performance, one of my favourites.
Her personality rules the play and she does a very credible rendition. Excellent, always.
I've seen her live 3 times. Absolutely amazing.
Absolutely beautiful performance. What a young talent!
Simply exquisite technique and emotion - what an amazing talent!
Sounds better every time I listen to it.
Ma questo è prima di tutto uno spettacolo della condizione umana:un poeta dei suoni incanta una ragazza che lo segue con la bravura delle dita a significare le meraviglie della creazione dell'arte..E noi che ne godiamo la presenza ci accorgiamo di quale valore siamo capaci.Altro che delitti e
Beautiful!!!
To my taste it is wonderful.Spontaneous,creative and fantastic timing..Plus a wonderful sound,gentleness,power and clarity.Great bravura and tonal beauty. Brava.
bravo Yuja !!! very nice !!!!!!
Hats off, gentlemen, a genius! I predict this lady will become the premier concert pianist of her generation. Oh wait a minute -- she already did!
Yuja seems to shy away from the larger Chopin works, but you're not going to find many finer interpretations. Maybe Horowitz in his prime or Rubinstein. If there's one thing I would say, it's that she's trying a little hard to be "profound" throughout. It's true there are dozens of profound ideas in this piece, but Chopin didn't see it that way! He had a dozens of profound musical ideas every day of his life.
A little more element of FUN would be welcome. Chopin is exalting in his mastery of "the Grand Style" and you should too, Yuja! Please take this in the spirit it was intended, from someone quite a bit older, who once was known for his Chopin. Of course, I never had your technique or your fame or your repertoire. But then WHO DOES?
And if you miss a note or two in the effort to scale the Grand Style, WHO is going to hold it against you at this point?? Take it to the hilt and have a ball!
I have heard her play the Rach 3 and that is a large work. She played it extremely well. Isn't this Polonaise an example of a larger Chopin work?
Bill Teichman
Yes, this is a larger Chopin work. I will just note that she did it for her graduate recital at Curtis -- possibly an assignment from her famous teacher. I don't think she's done an "official" recording. If you look over the albums listed on her web site, she has the Piano Sonata No.2 in B flat minor (the one with the "Funeral March"), and also the Waltz in C# minor. That's it for Chopin -- while she has an entire album devoted to Rachmaninoff, and much from Scriabin, Brahms, Prokofiev, etc.
I think I'm right in my hunch that she's taking her time to "digest" the grand Chopin style. She made a similar comment about Bach in general. The Bb m. Sonata is nice, but doesn't quite encompass the grandeur of the Ballades, for example, even though they're shorter.
Still, you can find the First Ballade here on RUclips, with a very young Yuja blowing away every other so-called child prodigy on the planet.
Aged well
18 dislikes? Really? What are these people looking for? I know we all have our favorites, but I can't figure out what there is to dislike about this performance?
So, she was 17-18 years of age in this video. Wow! She plays with such maturity, it's incredible!
***** Thanks for the comment, I'll check it out!
+suegha Wow, wow, wow !!! : Sex in advertising
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"Sex in advertising or "sex sells" is the use of sex appeal in
advertising to help sell a particular product or service. Sexually
appealing imagery may or may not pertain to the product or service in
question. Examples of sexually appealing imagery include nudity, pin-up
girls, and muscular men.
The use of sex in advertising can be highly overt or extremely subtle.
It ranges from relatively explicit displays of sexual acts, to the use
of basic cosmetics to enhance attractive features."
ALEXANDER BOOT Author, critic, polemicist
Blogs > Alexander's blog >
Sex sells - all of us short
Submitted by Alexander on 24 June 2013 - 12:59pm
The
other day I listened to something or other on RUclips, and a link to
Chopin’s Fourth Ballade performed by the Georgian pianist Khatia
Buniatishvili came up.
The link was accompanied by a close-up publicity photo of the musician:
sloe bedroom eyes, sensual semi-open lips suggesting a delight that’s
still illegal in Alabama, naked shoulders hinting at the similarly nude
rest of her body regrettably out of shot…
Let me see where my wife is… Good, she isn’t looking over my shoulder,
so I can admit to you that the picture got me excited in ways one
doesn’t normally associate with Chopin’s Fourth Ballade or for that
matter any other classical composition this side of Wagner or perhaps
Ravel’s Bolero.
Searching for a more traditional musical rapture I clicked on the actual
clip and alas found it anticlimactic, as it were. Khatia’s playing,
though competent, is as undeniably so-what as her voluptuous figure
undeniably isn’t. (Yes, I know the photograph I mentioned doesn’t show
much of her figure apart from the luscious shoulders but, the prurient
side of my nature piqued, I did a bit of a web crawl.)
Just for the hell of it I looked at the publicity shots of other
currently active female musicians, such as Yuja Wang, Joanna MacGregor,
Nicola Bendetti, Alison Balsom (nicknamed ‘crumpet with a trumpet’, her
promos more often suggest ‘a strumpet with a trumpet’ instead),
Anne-Sophie Mutter and a few others.
They didn’t disappoint the Peeping Tom lurking under my aging surface.
Just about all the photographs showed the ladies in various stages of
undress, in bed, lying in suggestive poses on top of the piano, playing
in frocks (if any) open to the coccyx in the back and/or to the navel up
front.
This is one thing these musicians have in common. The other is that none
of them is all that good at her day job and some, such as Wang, are
truly awful. Yet this doesn’t really matter either to them or to the
public or, most important, to those who form the public tastes by
writing about music and musicians.
Thus, for example, a tabloid pundit expressing his heartfelt regret that
Nicola Benedetti “won’t be posing for the lads’ mags anytime soon.
Pity, because she looks fit as a fiddle…” Geddit? She’s a violinist,
which is to say fiddler - well, you do get it.
“But Nicola doesn’t always take the bonniest photo,” continues the
writer, “she’s beaky in pics sometimes, which is weird because in the
flesh she’s an absolute knock-out.
“The classical musician is wearing skinny jeans which show off her long
legs. She’s also busty with a washboard flat tummy, tottering around 5ft
10in in her Dune platform wedges.”
How well does she play the violin though? No one cares. Not even critics
writing for our broadsheets, who don’t mind talking about musicians in
terms normally reserved for pole dancers. Thus for instance runs a
review of a piano recital at Queen Elizabeth Hall, one of London’s top
concert venues:
“She is the most photogenic of players: young, pretty, bare-footed; and,
with her long dark hair and exquisite strapless dress of dazzling
white, not only seemed to imply that sexuality itself can make you a
profound musician, but was a perfect visual complement to the sleek
monochrome of a concert grand... [but] there’s more to her than meets
the eye.”
The male reader is clearly expected to get a stiffie trying to imagine
what that might be. To help his imagination along, the piece is
accompanied by a photo of the young lady in question reclining on her
instrument in a pre-coital position with an unmistakable ‘come and get
it’ expression on her face. The ‘monochrome’ piano is actually
bright-red, a colour usually found not in concert halls but in dens of
iniquity.
Nowhere does the review mention the fact obvious to anyone with any
taste for musical performance: the girl is so bad that she should indeed
be playing in a brothel, rather than on the concert platform.
Can you, in the wildest flight of fancy, imagine a reviewer talking in
such terms about sublime women artists of the past, such as Myra Hess,
Maria Yudina, Maria Grinberg, Clara Haskil, Marcelle Meyer, Marguerite
Long, Kathleen Ferrier? Can you see any of them allowing themselves to
be photographed in the style of “lads’ mags”?
I can’t, which raises the inevitable question: what exactly has changed
in the last say 70 years? The short answer is, just about everything.
Concert organisers and impresarios, who used to be in the business
because they loved music first and wanted to make a living second, now
care about nothing but money. Critics, who used to have discernment and
taste, now have nothing but greed and lust for popularity. The public…
well, don’t get me started on that.
The circle is vicious: because tasteless ignoramuses use every available
medium to build up musical nonentities, nonentities is all we get. And
because the musical nonentities have no artistic qualities to write
about, the writing nonentities have to concentrate on the more jutting
attractions, using a vocabulary typically found in “lads’ mags”.
The adage “sex sells” used to be applied first to B-movies, then to
B-novels, and now to real music. From “sex sells” it’s but a short
distance to “only sex sells”. This distance has already been travelled -
and we are all being sold short.
+Georges Cancan Go get psychiatric help!
+suegha This troll has about 4 incarnations on RUclips, the main one being under the name ''Images Oubliees'' A very deranged person indeed.
+suegha I have just noticed Yuja wang had very long hair when she was younger back then, quite short now, easier for her to keep tidy I suppose ?
Always wonderful Yuja, beautiful, bravo!
Beautiful Yuja!
your the best...
the subtle emotions that Chopin (a Polish-French) managed to write down and she (a Chinese) interpretes in a universal way, shows how music is the universal language of the soul. wish those who think of 'refugees' as beings (if at all) from another planet, will become aware of...
no kidding.
+ ma bra : this is the best comment on anything at all on you tube. thanks you.
Yuja Wang came at a time when classical CD industry was in demise ! Her future lies in digital propagation and in live concerts. In the last 5 years, she continued to impress audience with her technical prowness. Let us wait and see in 5-10 years time if her maturity can compel disagreed audience to woo her.
Well it's now eight years later, what do you think? Since your post she has stood her ground as an international superstar pianist who recorded numerous CDs and performed an average 100 to 120 live concerts per year. She also has not back down from the obstinate criticism of her stage satorial choices. In recent years she has delved into compositions by Beethoven and Bramhs and devoted a large portion of her touring schedule to playing chamber music and other onstage collaborations. In addition she's conducted a few master classes. Indeed she has matured and I can hear/see that maturity not only in her musical interpretation and jaunty presentation but also in her exploration in music and in life. Bravo!
Divina creatura!!!!!
....grandiosa Yuja!!!!
In case you don't know, Yuja Wang is probably the world's most important young pianist.
This is from her Curtis graduation recital 4 years ago. She has just ungodly technique but you can see from this video what makes her really special -- delicacy and sensitivity and a tremendous tonal range.
Excelente, has logrado sonido de octavas y acordes no golpeado. Además has mejorado la calidad interpretativa. Felicitaciones.
The Rach Paginini performance was awesome..Thank you.. John Rapp
There is so much passion in her playing
Enchanting! Mesmerizing! Charming girl!
no es una intérprete; ella es la música misma, la levedad del alma, alas del canto.
Wow, Wow, and Wow again... Wow.
At this young age she was an incompearable talent...now she's the greatest! Perfect technique, always good taste in interpretation. Every composer sounds like it should be!
superb... she ownz this seiler masterpiece piano like no-one else
GREAT PIANO PLAYING .VERY ENJOYABLE .I HAVE SOME OF HER CDS THAT I PLAY A LOTS
...Grande Yuja!! *****
...grande Yuja...
Una maravilla, ENCANTADORA, ESTREMECEDORA!!!!!
(Por favor eliminen esos anuncios!)
I am in love!
Well said Bravo ! I saw Lang Lang in Sydney ( Australia ) a few years back . He received a 15 minute standing ovation and played several encore that went for far longer then any other concert pianist I have seen . He has a wicked sense of humour coupled to his somtimes mischievious playing which had us in fits of laughter. He was also interviewed on Radio and a perfect gentleman as well
Pero su inspiración y paso extático se siente de inmediato . Sus dedos realmente cantan las melodías que asoman mudas desde su alma por sus bellos labios.
When I read the earlier expert comments (Not the "Trolls") I remain glad I'm ill-informed about all these arcane subtleties and a simple lover of music - and especially as performed by this magical lady.
Gran interpretación de Chopin de Yuja Wang a pesar de los defectos técnicos de la grabación del sonido.
Yes...and I agree about his sound...but also about his overall quality...
all in line. instagram. Fan since day 1.
Where did I say you should not enjoy this? I am not angry. You are right: It is an harmonically and structurally complex work. Yuja plays this nicely like a walk in the park, no problems, happy and innocent, and if you like Chopin like this, it's nice for you!
it's Chopin masterpiece
Angel of Music
I feel soo inspired to play the piano now..!
WAY TO GO!!!!!
!! you "get it".
'
Even a man who is pure in heart
And practices faithfully by night
May become a wolf when this hot babe plays
And she hits the notes just right
Thumbs Up if you tried closing down the little window that came up at beginning :)
Lang Lang has gotten a lot better in the past few years. I didn't used to like him, now I do. The difference I notice is that his hand position has gotten lower, like Glenn Gould used to play. Yuja Wang also has a low hand position. If you have huge strong fingers, you can do it. But probably not ordinary people.
She was 19 y.o only, at that time! She's just so perfect...
MUECas parte de la interpretación surreales.... de LEYenda...
@krisnaga91 this is a recital. you're supposed to play by memory.
Isn't it mesmerizing or what? It's putting Chopin to sleep as well as I!
Interprétation bouleversante !
I respect this post, even if I disagree with it. My positive reaction to your post rests on the last four words. They make all of the difference in the world!
Piano loves her
I hope she comes to Boston, I would love to hear her live. As for the negative commentator: Can't you just shut it and enjoy a beautiful, extremely talented pianist play in peace?
@ridwanfariz no! GIFTED TALENTED AWESOME
She makes love with the piano
great performance! She is a great pianist! But,for this piece, I still like Ingolf Wunder's more. The one he played in 2010 Chopin Competition is astonished!!!
Well and intelligently said-
Thank you for your angry opinion. You add so much to the world. I agree with you completely: aesthetics in music, especially for a piece as harmonically and structurally complex as Chopin's Polonaise-Fantasie, are best expressed as universal truths rather than opinions, reactions and observations.
I was finding myself really enjoying her performance, but your highly informed opinion made me realize the error of my ways.
I think that we should confine ourselves to making comments on the topic at hand rather than making personal attacks on those who express their opinion. I am not fanatical about any pianist, not even Fabio Bidini. I merely mentioned that I liked his interpretation. As for Horowitz, indeed, I did hear him play the PF in concert on a night when he was not particularly on. But I suppose I have no right to express that opinion because I am a troll. :)
Yuja graduated Curtis in 2008 at age 21. So the 2006 date is not right. Assuming her recital took place the year she graduated, she was 21 in this video.
I heard Ms Wang last night here in Los Angeles. She performed the Tchaikovsky 2 concerto in G major. I must admit that her technique, dexterity and speed are phenomenal. Pletnev conducted the Russian National Orchestra. I love the Polonaise Fantasy and think she does a superb job in this "young" performance. I would like to hear her perform what is my ultimate test for Chopin... the minor ballade.... #4. Has she performed or recorded it? RSVP BTW having heard the 2nd Tchaikovsky, I now understand why it is "on the shelf. It is a lot of banging that shows off the pianist's prowess but musically I find it leaves much to be desired... it just does not seem to make sense (to me) overall.
+TJFNYC212 am glad we do not need to put you 'to the test' - the best shipmen are standing on the quai we say in the Netherlands ;-)
I am also looking for what you called "my ultimate test for Chopin", the minor Ballade #4 from Yuja, but did not find it.
definitely the fm minor ballade, the polonaise fantaisie, the barcarolle and the 2nd movement of the Chopin e minor concerto. I have listened to Yuja's recordings of Chopin and found the pieces, once again, to be technically dazzling but it did not reveal the poetry. I believe that Chopin said to his students that "an aristocrat never hurries." iI you get a chance listen to Little Known (SHAME) Fabio Bidini
s recording the Polonaise Fantasy.....
@fredericfranc Why do I need to write it when you make it so abundantly clear? :-)
For gods sake! Quit all that small talk and enjoy the music - or leave, silently. By the way - thank you again for an extremely good performance - miss Wang:)
We can to write Yuja Wang uber alles ?
+Camillo Flaim I believe, Mr. Shicklgruber won't approve it.
Today i know why !
+Camillo Flaim "Sex sells ...classical music?"
Sex sells. Marketing professionals know that, which is why
advertisements for everything from cars to beer regularly feature
scantily clad women. We live in an age where appearance is more
important than ever before; scientific studies suggest that more
attractive people get better jobs and are happier.
Until recently, classical music was one of the few industries where sex
is not usually used to sell the product. Performers often dress within a
prescribed fashion, with men wearing dinner suits or tuxedos and women
wearing full-length dresses.
However, a number of prominent musicians have recently been courting
controversy for their appearance. Young Chinese pianist Yuja Wang has
received as much coverage about her appearance as her performances
recently, with the Los Angeles Times commenting, “Her dress [on] Tuesday
was so short and tight that had there been any less of it, the Bowl
might have been forced to restrict admission to any music lover under 18
not accompanied by an adult. Had her heels been any higher, walking, to
say nothing of her sensitive pedaling, would have been unfeasible.”
It’s not just women pushing the envelope, though. American organist
Cameron Carpenter, a soloist with this year’s NZSO National Youth
Orchestra, has received a great deal of media attention for wearing
white stovepipe trousers and bejewelled tops during performances. In an
interview with Radio New Zealand’s Kathryn Ryan, Carpenter admitted that
he regularly works out at the gym, and opined that a musician’s
appearance is “extremely important”. Korean-American violinist Hahn-Bin
describes himself as “Viagra to classical music”, and dresses
flamboyantly, complete with heavy eyeliner and Mohawk hairstyle.
+Georges Cancan But Yuja is actually an incredible pianist, unlike Cameron Carpenter
+Georges Cancan Why do you constantly ramble on and on with your foolish opinions that nobody wants to read? Your undeniable jealous insecurities are so transparent.
interressant !!manque la sensibilité de mr tiberghien en finale du concour long thibault
Assolutamente lontana da una qualunque concezione che si possa definire anche solo vagamente chopiniana.
Inutile parlar male, infatti non solo oggigiorno è impossibile dire la vera verità in cose artistiche, ma soprattutto sarebbe inutile dato che mezzo mondo suona così...
Tanti auguri, Musica.
Can someone tell me what the two deep chords at the start are?
In the A-F format? thanks... :/
(1) Chopin wrote Polonaise Fantasie (1) and Chopin wrote Polonaise Fantasie (2). As it happens this is Number 1 and that is the more popular of the two.
(2) If you Google Arthur Rubinstein Chopin, you will find a collection of 157 performances of works by Chopin and you can find both versions there.
It is unfair to compare Arthur (really Artur as can be seen on the cover of each of those 157 performances) Rubinstein, a native Pole who, like Chopin, was steeped in Polish music in his early days and the folk songs from which Chopin quite frequently modified for the piano are a part of Rubinstein's heritage. It's a long way from old Poland to China. However, if you want to hear this played as it should be, only Rubinstein and Hofmann played it at that level, and I'm not sure that Hofmann ever recorded this work.
Still, if you compare this to Argerich, who was from Argentina, or Kissin, who was from Russia, you will see that, while Ms. Wang shows potential, this performance never succeeds in sound the way it should. Still, she is young and has many years ahead of her and she will undoubtedly (I hope) improve. Chopin is ideal for Ms. Wang because his works are subtle and don't require the sheer strength that many composers required. Chopin liked to play his works in a sitting room where he would be surrounded by at most twenty people. Therefore sheer sonic projection is not a requirement in most of his compositions. It will be interesting to see if Yuja can improve a lot or a little. Let's hope for a lot.
They are the same piece.
Different times. He expanded on it. Artur Rubinstein has two different versions.
There is but ONE Polonaise-fantaisie around (original French edition: Brandus et Cie, No. 4610; original German edition: Breitkopf & Härtel, No. 7546 - BOTH published as Op. 61 and BOTH the same work).
''Gerry Rains'' - just another moron roaming the premises, If this is any consolation to you, it appears you're in very good company here.
Gerry Rains You really are obsessed with nationality, aren't you? Polish, Russian, Argentinian, Jewish or Chinese...who cares? A great pianist can be any nationality or race!
My description was a bit superficial. It's difficult to express in english, but a chopinesque rubato sounds perfectly natural like breathing. And Yuja Wang sounds exactly the opposite: Stiff, mechanical and contrived. Listen to the rubato of Bozhanov. Then please listen to the rubato of Sofronitsky (f.e.Mazurkas), Zak (Mazurkas), Hofmann(first concerto), Neuhaus (first concerto), Friedman(op.55,2), Malcuzinsky(everything), Cortot..I have nothing against Yuja, a nice and charming person.
@bagatellissimo voyez vanessa wagner elle joue magnifiquement bien et aussi katia skanavi. en ce moment suis fan de valentina lititsa pas sûr de l'ortho dans la 1 ier sonate de ragmaninov
yet you couldnt listen. Lang Lang is a great person, I actually love how entire China now wants to play the piano. I also believe he has the greatest technique. However his sound,,,,Is this our modern day Richter ? Never ! I´m glad Argerich and Moravec still live
Can you give me an example of pomposity in her playing of this piece? Be specific please.
Her Teacher(s) are not mentioned enough!
Her teachers can only take credit for about 10% of her performance. The other 90% is her natural genius and only she can take credit for that.
bill Bloggs poor thinking
我还以为再也听不到能让人静下来听的op61了呢~
listen to cd of Cedric Thiberghien one of the best version at the competition Marguerite long jacque thibaud
2006, when she was 19 years old? not yet the level...
I keep waiting for you to do so...;-]
De la soupe. Un ennui mortel. Bien formatée. Elle rentre dans les cases. C est bien
@fastben2010
ah !!! puisque vous le dîtes !!!!
If you want to find out how she compares against her age group try "Young pianists attempt Chopin, Op. 61" compilation video, put up by "705JRC".
Myślę , że sam polski mistrz Chopin biłby brawo.
@bloodgrss I AM still waiting, with baited breath, YOUR performance of works by Yuja like this one you decry. As a 'teacher' and 'pianist' with such strong 'convictions'-you surely can demonstrate how this all should be done--with nothing 'missing'?! Why do you delay?
I think she has natural lucozade in her blood!
Like Triffy at 20, she at 26 (19 here)...we need not compare...just enjoy their growth...our love or trolls here exist out of real time anyway...
But enjoy your time with the 'new' freddie...tho' the old shallow prejudices and superficial cracked trolling logic still remains...
Loved the Grigory Sokolov as you did Jason...all the best...
Cointreau tonic
ブラボー！
Michelangeli ?
cheerrytime22 You are so darn right. Nothign but a bunch of sactimonious upstarts who probably have never played a piano in their entire lives. I could not have said it better.
HOT HOT HOT
Nice piano!!!!!
Argerich dying? Me too! I have thrown away 4 concert tickets to hear her over the past 18 months, as she has cancelled performances. Now I will probably never hear her. Side by side performances of her and Wang Yuja are not comparable. To me it is the difference between a Ferrari and a Veyron!
"Weak" = "bad" (in my language). Stiff phrasing is Yujas phrasing, it is clumsy, it doesn't breath.. You know exactly what I am talking about. And I did not equal Bozhanov with old masters. He's no comparison to them, but he is still worlds apart from a Yuja Wang. That is what I wanted to demonstrate. Please do not put words in my mouth. And if you criticize my use of language: Nice for you, but it only demonstrates that you cannot criticize what I say.
Formidable!
Even better than Maurizio Pollini.
I'd like her to release Debussy and Bach (quite intriguing to compare her with Glenn Gould, too - two geniuses).
Eine wunderbare Gesamterscheinung ....
I've got to admit. You made me laugh with your retort :)
Graduation Recital??
We all seem to forget the composer in all of this.