The best talent now days... His imagination goes straight to realisation, no technical barrier... I played with him in Beijing, Ravel Tzigane, it was fantastic full of colors and emotions yet perfectly in style... Just open your ears and don't judge what you see.
Yes totally totally agreed...i attended his concerts before and even witnessed his practice in Hong Kong Academic of Performing arts when i studied music. His talent is way too good to be appreciated...people just mocked him back then. Now we can only be rewinding all his performance available online sadly....since he’s facing mental breakdown these years and not much of his appearance can be seen. we can’t afford to lose talent like this. I hope he would reach out and find someone to help him out and be back soon
this guy is a real genius, he does what paganini did in his era: something completely different from the common, he makes the other internation top class violinists look like a bunch of repeated copycats
He didn't mess up! He took a classic caprice, and improvised at the end, making it contemporary. He just has a quirky stage presence. But a lot of artistically gifted people are like that. And he is really gifted! He just sails through very difficult stuff. The people are laughing because he really went outside of the lines in his variations. And then the jazz version was nothing like they'd ever heard.
He really can play the original version. Just look at any of the other videos of him. He's one of the most talented violinists alive. Moreover, the way he plays here is much harder than the original. It's not "awful" but outstanding.
This is what people mean when they say the violin is just an extension of his body. Everything is so natural and flexible. Always great to watch him play.
as a classic violinist myself, im sick of all the recordings of the same pieces. 24 has been done by every pro violinist under the sun, and to the average listener they all sound the same. imo, this is way better than any recording of pag 24, sure it strays like crazy from the original, but this to me is 100000000X better
He is a great artist, I think he suffers quite a lot under the chinese mentality. Most chinese people are so stereotype in their thinking and in society money counts more than creative ideas and artistry. He should go to New York and form a crossover band or just be a Jazz violinist right out. If someone could give gratitude towards Stephane Grapelli, it is this guy. I really hope, that he grabs his violin and emigrates.
Simon Streuff Violin-Education Simon Streuff Violin-Education It’s not just because he’s in China though, I mean, whenever someone tries to reinterpret the best classics of classical music, there’s always a lot of critiques, just because those pieces are classics already, difficult to make them sound even better. Also, I think.. he’s not as great as Grapelli :D but worth the try, perhaps
I very much like his rendition..he stays true to himself and to hell with what others think...People like this need our support so that we don't have cookie cutter musicians....
I like the fact that he is incorporating some elements of jazz or blues into his version especially at the end. It shows us that musical styles do not necessarily have to be rigidly if they are seamlessly matched and done in a tasteful manner.
Might I also add that those who know Li, know he is incredibly humble and will never own up to being good himself. He always calls himself the bottom of the pile and is constantly working to catch up with the others.
I love this,i love his playing,everything he does!People are tired of listening the same 24 caprice 500 times,finally somebody does something new! And what he does is extremely difficult, first you have to have the finest ear and then you must have perfect technique,imagination and talent!He is a rare talent you should now to recognize it and not criticize.
I don't understand why people have to criticize his creativity. What he is doing is amazing. Paganini composed this piece to be flashy and difficult. Chuanyun is just elaborating, He is just as creative as Paganini. If you look at his other videos, you can see his control of the violin. I havent seen anyone play with the freedom he does. He is a true musician, the next paganini even. Watch his other creations, they are magnificent as well.
Can't say for the others, (I have seen videos of Menuhin when he was young, truly amazing) but Bell went to a promotional concert of Li's. At the end of it, Bell went to Li and basically acknowledged the fact that Li was a better "technical" violinist. Ricci not very long ago gave a masterclass with Li as the "student". Afterwards, Ricci also acknowledged Li as having the best technique he has ever seen. Aged 11, he beat all at the Wienawski by UNANIMOUS verdict!
@Drizzletron Agreed, most people just don't have a clue about this sort of thing. Past violinists have always done what Li is doing here; Milstein, for example, yet I don't see anyone bagging on him for Paganiniana.
Yooo this guy is like a real live virtuoso...he isnot only playing at a ridiculous speed but also creating his own harmonies etc etc u kno...like this is what paganini was doing..sarsate...like he is killing shiiiiit daaaammmnnn
i totally agree with you! i'm a purist in music i guess, when i hear people frig with 'artistic interpretation' it bothers me. it would be one thing for him to play the original and juxtapose it with a 'variation' of his own. oww.. my ears hurt..
@apaw19 Although he acts like a kid, his purity and integrity to music is no doubt. And these two are the most important element of a real musician, an true artist!
ROCK ON FOR BEING UNIQUE! I hate the "purist" interpretation of music. It's -music- for a reason, it's expressive, it's flowing, it's individual in nature. How would one feel if I took a paintbrush and everyone said I had to paint like Leonardo Da Vinci or Michaelangelo? That would be almost insutling because I'm NOT that person, I am me. So for all those people saying "ZOMGZ u needz ta play dis n de orijinul whey", please stop and think about what you're doing! This man played music...PERIOD!
Li seriously should have become a jazz violinist rather than a classical one, much more room for his improvisation and his own interpretations, as that’s what he enjoys the most.
He doesnt act. He suffers from severe problems with lack of confidence in himself even though if you have grown up with him like I have you know that he is literally the best there is, technically.
Haha, I know I've done that when I'm improvising something. There's an almost sick joy in being able to pull it off well. :P But, I'm an amateur violinist; for a professional there should definitely be less of that. x_x Not sure if that made sense; I'm half-alive. :P
Temple, most of the time I would agree with you, but I think Paganini himself would've had a ball with this. Were this, say, the Glazunov concerto, or Massenet's "Thais" meditation, I'd agree with you, but the original point of this caprice was to show the hell off, and it's obvious that this violinist can play the original backwards and forwards. He just added a few new variations and twists. Plus, he was using the caprice as an encore, so it wasn't like it was part of the program.
it doesnt have to be heifetz. heifetz is dead hes underground. live in the present. remmeber hefetz's greatness but don't compare him to what's happening now in the present use him as a referance tho. if ud like ofcourse.
Immense talent, not a fan of the end product, but their was some genius alterations to the original caprice... in my humble opinion, Kavakos is the best biologists around
now, because i will likely receive criticism for my comments, allow me to clarify - i an not saying that i don't think this guy has talent - he clearly does. I am just saying that i prefer my classical music to be played as it was originally written. There's nothing wrong with artistic interpretation.. but don't say you're playing paganini's caprice and then play something that you've written. it's a bit of a disgrace and i would think insulting to the composer
let's just say the notes are the paintbrush and colors while the interpretation/musicality are the "flowing," "individual" part that you describe. music isnt is notes.
yeah, i feel the same about the 2:00 and so on.. nevertheles i think he's one of the best violin players nowadays. i was shocked when i listened his interpretation of the "red violin" from the beginning of the video called "Crazy violinist Chuanyun Li（疯狂传韵）" especially 1:29 - 1:32 when he literaly fell off i guess from excitment/mental orgasm
@apaw19 Do you think it's fair to criticize Vincent van Gogh's paintings by his mental illness? Why can't we focus on the music itself instead of someone's personal behavior? When we regard Josef Hassid as one of the greatest violinists of the last century based on his half LP album only, Li has already left so much valuable recordings to prove himself as well.
i agree with. this is a classic which shouldnt be messed around like that. i mean, i cant play as well but as a person who knows violin, it is too much...
its a new wave of musicians, researching new ways to play old things... and... i agree, he really waste some time... but is the noise a part of music and sound? if silence is music, noise can be too
