I personally believe the Handel variations to be one of the most perfect piano compositions ever written. It is extremely tuneful, most variations are very melodically memorable and expressive, making it easy to grasp the beauty thereof after only a few listening experiences. The Handel Variations has easily become my favorite composition for piano forte, Brahms is absolutely amazing. I've had the pleasure of listening to many versions of this work, among my favorites are the Richter and Schiff versions.
What a performance! Great style! Fantastic command and imagination. Right up there with Arrau, Richter! I never heard of him before, but he's now on the radar of every Brahms lover!
Interprétation pleine de belles idées : notamment l'absence de pédale sur certaines variations, le caractère rhapsodique donnée par la main gauche, c'est un piano qui chante merveilleusement ; cela parait incroyable de pouvoir sortir un tel niveau pour un concours dans cette oeuvre si difficile. C'est mieux que la version livrée par Goeffroy Couteau dans son intègrale en cd et presque quasiment aussi beau que celle d'Yves Nat.
La "creatividad "haëndeliana recalificada por Brahms e interpretada por este VIRTUOSO,se convierte en un PAROXISMO DE BELLEZA SUPREMA!!! APLAUSOS!!!!!!!!!
Bravo à cet *excellent* artiste. [Même si pour ma part je trouve la sonorité de l'instrument un peu dure. Peut-être est-ce dû à l'absence d'auditeurs ou au trac de la 1/2 finale ? ;-) ] Des interprétations comme celle de Murray Perraya me semblent (subjectivement) plus sensibles, riches en nuances et animées davantage de respirations, de souffle poétique.
Alas, the version by Sokolov has very poor audio. Solomon is arguably the best in some variations, especially #23. Serkin and Katchen are particularly good. Pletnev, as usual, has revelatory aspects. What a glorious masterwork by Brahms! By the way, if you go back to Handel, and listen to the original - it’s markedly good!
I don't know whose performance is the gold standard for the Brahms piece. However, one can always rely on Kempff's aesthetic, his clear approach, his lack of mannerisms and wild gestures (see: Horowitz). Here is an excellent performance by Kempff: ruclips.net/video/dfEMLQhF670/видео.html
One has to remember it's based on a theme by Haendel...hence the attack (touch) on the keys...should it reflect more H's style, or JBrahms'. .a real question I'm not qualified to answer, myself !!!
Effectivement Le Steinway sonne assez durement pour cette oeuvre...Un Bösendorfer aurait été plus indiqué. Interprétation onirique et envoûtante vertigineuse et emportée. Trop emportée cependant puisqu'à trop vouloir convaincre un parterre de juges les erreurs s'accumulent dans les passages virtuoses qui n'auraient sûrement pas dû exister pour ce pianiste époustouflant, et impérial. Un prince du piano est né qui devra lutter contre sa propre fougue pour égaler les plus anciens. Mais quel incroyable musicien cependant. Quand à Brahms, égal à lui-même il parvient à rendre quasi ennuyeux Haendel, un champion je vous dit!
Con todo el respeto que se merece este pianista, me da la impresión de que puedo sin temor a equivocarme hacer click en cualquier tiempo de este video, y siempre se escucha la misma melodía y cadencia... Eso me parece pobre en composición, pero sigue siendo apreciado por muchas personas al parecer...
At the risk of being pilloried for my views, I must disagree with the over-enthusiastic comments. On par with Arrau or Richter? That's just nuts. So, the artist has a solid technique. But, for this piece he seemed to have no sense whatsoever of the poetry as it interplays with the drama. He sounded far too mechanical for me. I found very few moments of insight. He sounds like an artist still in the formative stages who could benefit from taking private lessons from the likes of Sir Andras Schiff or the old guy, Seymour Bernstein. Overall I disliked the performance all the way through. It felt forced, nervous and brittle. Brahms is very demanding and difficult to play. I know this piece, it is a big mountain and one of his best themes and variations. This artist would do well to refine his emotional connections to the music.
Hi, Fred. I haven't listened to Arrau or Richter in this great piece (I didn't even know they'd recorded it!), but I will now, thanks. My favourite recording is by Emanuel Ax (with Solomon second) and in comparison with that, this performance is somewhat sketchy. I don't find Fournel mechanical or brittle, though he does have a tendency to rush (the fugue is miles too fast), which causes a lot of fluffs. More significantly for me, there is a lack of warmth and "poetry" in his playing, though the variation at 18:30 (score not to hand) is beautifully done (the next one, however, is trivialised). Once senses that he doesn't love the piece but loves playing it (perhaps that's what you mean by "forced"?). But then that applies to an awful lot of (young) pianists today. Ah, the old days ...
Hi again. Well, I've now listened to both Richter and Arrau and they are, of course, both sui generis: Richter ultra-austere and Arrau ultra-passionate. One simply can't 'compare' any other performance with theirs, which you either love or hate (I hated most of Arrau's and quite a bit of Richter's!). But then isn't that the mark of a great artist? People love Glenn Gould. I can't abide him. So, by dividing opinion so radically, maybe this young man has the makings of being a great artist? On verra ...
Lord what shall we do. How shall our ears survive the dreadful assault of two missed notes in Variation 1? How can we be expected to weather this storm with such leaky vessels as the human consciousness, susceptible as it is to great damage at even the slightest imperfection? How shall we have the forest if each pine needle does not survive? The apocalypse surely is a pianist-driven event. Again.
Hello, if you are a Catholic organist in CT, you may know my cousin Aymeric Dupré Latour who sadly passed away at 53 in a tragic car accident last June. A service was held on June 8 at At Theresa parish Trumbull CT for the sake of his soul. His ashes now rest in his family's grave in France, Valence.
I personally believe the Handel variations to be one of the most perfect piano compositions ever written. It is extremely tuneful, most variations are very melodically memorable and expressive, making it easy to grasp the beauty thereof after only a few listening experiences. The Handel Variations has easily become my favorite composition for piano forte, Brahms is absolutely amazing. I've had the pleasure of listening to many versions of this work, among my favorites are the Richter and Schiff versions.
That piano sounds crystal clear.
What a performance! Great style! Fantastic command and imagination. Right up there with Arrau, Richter! I never heard of him before, but he's now on the radar of every Brahms lover!
beautiful pianist LOVED his energy and what he brought to this magnificent piece
Époustouflant..... incroyable prestation ! Celle d’un grand artiste !!!
je suis bien d'accord avec toi Olivier ; faire cela dans le cadre d'un aussi grand concours est d'autant plus impressionnant!
Interprétation pleine de belles idées : notamment l'absence de pédale sur certaines variations, le caractère rhapsodique donnée par la main gauche, c'est un piano qui chante merveilleusement ; cela parait incroyable de pouvoir sortir un tel niveau pour un concours dans cette oeuvre si difficile. C'est mieux que la version livrée par Goeffroy Couteau dans son intègrale en cd et presque quasiment aussi beau que celle d'Yves Nat.
Wonderful playing. So glad I found this video by sheer chance.
Un pianista excepcional. Magistral interpretación de esta obra del gran Brahms.
브람스를 이렇게 음악적으로 표현하다니....정말 대단하다 최고👍
I keep coming back to listen. Mesmerized, time after time! Awesome performance!
Chrystal clear, balanced, relaxed, just about perfect execution down to the most minute details. Winning persona. Very appealing!
Superb performance ! Two thumbs up ! Rivals thé bests !
Superb interpretation, without excess pedal.
Son toucher effleure le piano tout en produisant des sons tellement nuancés .Quel plaisir de l’ entendre🙌🤲🎶🎵👏
Paradigm of efficient technique.
Very beautiful, moving and captivating performance! Thank you very much!
I love his playing!
La "creatividad "haëndeliana recalificada por Brahms e interpretada por este VIRTUOSO,se convierte en un PAROXISMO DE BELLEZA SUPREMA!!!
APLAUSOS!!!!!!!!!
Bravo Bravo!!!
Bravo! Monsieur Fournel!✨votre interpretation de Brahams m’a fait l’impression d’etre tres viritement et merveilleusement!💐
Best
Solide, tendre et très intense!.
Indrukwekkend! 🧡
This performance is what made him the winner...not the final.
Oui certainement.
Ou plutôt l ensemble de son oeuvre, depuis le début des épreuves.
Je l ai trouvé particulièrement brillant dans le 18 ème de Mozart.
Exactly
Hilarious face pulling. The piece is rubbish
Grandiose variazioni. Non per tutti, né da suonare né da ascoltare.
@@ciararespect4296hilarious indeed 😮😊🙂🙁😐😯😑😬🙃
*Great* musician
Fantastic, wonder performance.
Beautiful playing, really.
Superb. Thank you!
Brilliant.
I love his music 🎹🎼
BRAVO !!!! Perfection
So impressive!
21:54
He is an extraordinary for an brahms
Bravo!👏👏👏
I hope he won, damn.
Masterful reading of this masterpiece...
It's a performance. Not a reading.
@@djmotise I beg your pardon.... a "reading" is used for a performance and means interpretation.
@@djmotise TJFNYC212 is right, by the way.
@@djmotise
You're probably conflating the term with *sight-reading*; perfectly understandable....
Yeah "reading" has long been a synonym of interpretation.
so very enjoyable!
Brillante!!!
leggermente asettico
Very delicate
Why is the piano not masked ???
Aber haltet sich Brahms in diesem Werk nich in der Nähe der Barockwelt mit den Preiffen Nummern? Etwas biederer? Die Fuge geduldiger?
Why was Brahms not masked when he composed this ???
Bravo à cet *excellent* artiste. [Même si pour ma part je trouve la sonorité de l'instrument un peu dure. Peut-être est-ce dû à l'absence d'auditeurs ou au trac de la 1/2 finale ? ;-) ]
Des interprétations comme celle de Murray Perraya me semblent (subjectivement) plus sensibles, riches en nuances et animées davantage de respirations, de souffle poétique.
Alas, the version by Sokolov has very poor audio. Solomon is arguably the best in some variations, especially #23. Serkin and Katchen are particularly good. Pletnev, as usual, has revelatory aspects. What a glorious masterwork by Brahms! By the way, if you go back to Handel, and listen to the original - it’s markedly good!
Check out Alexandra Dovgan playing this piece at Verbier.
@@watutman Thank you for the suggestion.
@@Oldman808 yw. It was Sokolov who recommended Alexandra Dovgan to the Verbier Festival. Here is the link. ruclips.net/video/mpZGuIpU8KA/видео.html
I don't know whose performance is the gold standard for the Brahms piece. However, one can always rely on Kempff's aesthetic, his clear approach, his lack of mannerisms and wild gestures (see: Horowitz). Here is an excellent performance by Kempff:
ruclips.net/video/dfEMLQhF670/видео.html
Er desavouiert in keinem Moment die traditionellen Deutungen, erfüllt sie aber mit mehr Innbrunst.
An unsightly, metallic-sounding touch, played too fast, he doesn't take his time. Lovers of the work should listen to G. Sokolov!
One has to remember it's based on a theme by Haendel...hence the attack (touch) on the keys...should it reflect more H's style, or JBrahms'. .a real question I'm not qualified to answer, myself !!!
😅
For a young performer quite an admirable tour de force !!@
Effectivement Le Steinway sonne assez durement pour cette oeuvre...Un Bösendorfer aurait été plus indiqué. Interprétation onirique et envoûtante vertigineuse et emportée. Trop emportée cependant puisqu'à trop vouloir convaincre un parterre de juges les erreurs s'accumulent dans les passages virtuoses qui n'auraient sûrement pas dû exister pour ce pianiste époustouflant, et impérial. Un prince du piano est né qui devra lutter contre sa propre fougue pour égaler les plus anciens. Mais quel incroyable musicien cependant. Quand à Brahms, égal à lui-même il parvient à rendre quasi ennuyeux Haendel, un champion je vous dit!
Where. Are. The. Freaking. People. ????. !!!!.
Co.Ro.Na.
Um, Covid?
Haha yeah, remember when so many people thought the pandemic was real?
Con todo el respeto que se merece este pianista, me da la impresión de que puedo sin temor a equivocarme hacer click en cualquier tiempo de este video, y siempre se escucha la misma melodía y cadencia... Eso me parece pobre en composición, pero sigue siendo apreciado por muchas personas al parecer...
Son varaciones sobre un tema...
Naive piano students believe that Rachmaninov learnt and memorized this collosal set in tree days... What a joke!!
So what if he did ... or didn't?
Meg ne bolonduljál ám bazzzmeg
He is talking to his imaginary friend while playing the piano
At the risk of being pilloried for my views, I must disagree with the over-enthusiastic comments. On par with Arrau or Richter? That's just nuts. So, the artist has a solid technique. But, for this piece he seemed to have no sense whatsoever of the poetry as it interplays with the drama. He sounded far too mechanical for me. I found very few moments of insight. He sounds like an artist still in the formative stages who could benefit from taking private lessons from the likes of Sir Andras Schiff or the old guy, Seymour Bernstein. Overall I disliked the performance all the way through. It felt forced, nervous and brittle. Brahms is very demanding and difficult to play. I know this piece, it is a big mountain and one of his best themes and variations. This artist would do well to refine his emotional connections to the music.
Hi, Fred. I haven't listened to Arrau or Richter in this great piece (I didn't even know they'd recorded it!), but I will now, thanks. My favourite recording is by Emanuel Ax (with Solomon second) and in comparison with that, this performance is somewhat sketchy. I don't find Fournel mechanical or brittle, though he does have a tendency to rush (the fugue is miles too fast), which causes a lot of fluffs. More significantly for me, there is a lack of warmth and "poetry" in his playing, though the variation at 18:30 (score not to hand) is beautifully done (the next one, however, is trivialised). Once senses that he doesn't love the piece but loves playing it (perhaps that's what you mean by "forced"?). But then that applies to an awful lot of (young) pianists today. Ah, the old days ...
Hi again. Well, I've now listened to both Richter and Arrau and they are, of course, both sui generis: Richter ultra-austere and Arrau ultra-passionate. One simply can't 'compare' any other performance with theirs, which you either love or hate (I hated most of Arrau's and quite a bit of Richter's!). But then isn't that the mark of a great artist? People love Glenn Gould. I can't abide him. So, by dividing opinion so radically, maybe this young man has the makings of being a great artist? On verra ...
@@josephlaredo5272Check out Alexandra Dovgan a 16 yr old playing this piece at Verbier.
Pretentious much?
@@mairzyd that's the best response you can come up with? Come on, give it a few more words. You can do it.
Again. Another pianist playing the opening too fast. And then missing notes in the next variation because of it.
Lord what shall we do. How shall our ears survive the dreadful assault of two missed notes in Variation 1? How can we be expected to weather this storm with such leaky vessels as the human consciousness, susceptible as it is to great damage at even the slightest imperfection? How shall we have the forest if each pine needle does not survive? The apocalypse surely is a pianist-driven event. Again.
Hello, if you are a Catholic organist in CT, you may know my cousin Aymeric Dupré Latour who sadly passed away at 53 in a tragic car accident last June. A service was held on June 8 at At Theresa parish Trumbull CT for the sake of his soul. His ashes now rest in his family's grave in France, Valence.
Can u say where he missed the notes !!!!?🙏
Funny faces and boring music i like piano but this sounds too stuffy 😢