So rich in its brevity and depth of place this short reminiscence holding civilized Man's and Arts' richest values as a enduring and empiracal testament. Thanks so much.
I watch this again and again. I've read CELLIST, and Terry King's biography, for the inspiration. Piatigorsky died at age 73. I started cello at age 74, after most of my life with violin. I've come to prefer the cello.
Hello sir. Glad you have started to learn cello. Casals was asked when he was quite old, why does he still practice. He allegedly answered: Because I feel I am making progress! Cheers :)
Sadly. when his widow Jacqueline Rothschild Piatigorsky, a wonderful sculptor and champion chess player, died in 2012, at age 100, the new owners demolished this beautiful home with complete disregard to the home's historical significance including the music room designed by Frank Lloyd Wright Jr.
@@Jeff-wb3hh Grew-up two doors away and it was heartbreaking to the neighborhood when his house was demolished. My childhood home, is scheduled to be torn down this Spring.
@@karenpomer9891 Oh no. Too many people have too much money and not enough respect for old things. Imagine the cost of buying a home in California and then demolishing it and building a new one? We need to preserve our history, so we can appreciate it and learn from it. My goodness, if the fires don't destroy them the ones that don't appreciate history will. Perhaps a petition to government to declare these homes as National Landmarks so the new generations can't destroy them would help save them.
Why are you worried about that, be glad we had all this music recorded how shallow to worry about philanderer FL wrights room which no one saw. I came here for the music, not the Room in his House
@@mrFalconlem excuse me? Piatigorsky house could of been turned into a museum dedicated to him and the wonderful artists who performed and studied with him. Instead there's a monstrosity of a house built by an indifferent narcissist.
Gregor Piatigorsky had a profound influence on my life. Even though I never got the chance to met him. His music making and teaching shaped who I am today.
Extra Salt Thay is amazing! Thanks for sharing, Terry and Laura are incredible human beings and musicians. I met Kenneth before I met them actually!. I went to high school in Houston and a lot of my friends studied with him!
What an incredible video of an incredible man. I would’ve liked to have an evening to just sit at talk with him, he seems to be brimming with wisdom and perception. One of the best to ever play cello, rest in peace Mr Piatigorsky!
Great man, great artist. What a beautiful film. It somehow reminds me of Bergman's Wild Strawberries. The calm narration, the silent wanderings, the evaluation of one's life and purpose. I wish this was at least 90 minutes long.
Thanks for sharing such a wonderful film. As a cellist this is something far more valuable than gold could ever hope to be. Fun fact, Rapael Wallfisch was my first teacher's teacher :-).
As a pupil of Raphael Wallfisch at the Royal College of Music. I feel very blessed to found and watching this video. I am actually working on Schumann Concerto with him. It gives me huge insight and inspiration. Thank you very much.
Bless your heart, and blessings to your art! I’ve received such pleasure from hearing both Piatigorski and Raphael Wallfisch play, he’s one of my favorite cellists, and I especially love the recordings he made with his father. His mother is a real inspiration, as well. Good luck!
These days I wonder about the depth of the human spirit. When I hear his playing I am reminded of how rarely, especially now, it is, that one can hope to encounter a such an incredible soul. Perhaps it is worth mentioning that Terry King has written a fantastic biography of this great man.
Indeed, he was a profound musician and thinker. But the human spirit hasn't changed all that much - we are all much more complex than we're given credit for, even if it doesn't seem that way! (Though not that many of us can express this so beautifully through music!)
I've watched this for the fourth time in three days...The music is magnificent, but also what he says is so thoughtful and unpretensiously profound. (And what a voice - on the cello and personally!)
No, that was your young teacher playing! I paused for a moment, thought that it was the italian cellist Umberto Clerici, but he is today maybe 40 years old so I thought, is he a vampire maybe...good that I know who it is now :)
My college cello professor had been Evan Drachman's (Piatigorsky's grandson) teacher and one day, at one of our lessons at his home, he happened to have one of Piatigorsky's cellos Evan had let him borrow. "Would you like to try it?" he asked. I must say it had a beautiful tone and handled so well, though, sadly, I think I was too young and inexperienced to realize what I had in my hands. Certainly my playing at the time was not enough to do it justice!
Thank you for sharing this documentary of a passionate master specially after listening to Evan Drachman as well and seeing his grand fathers beautiful Cello in life
thanks for sharing this documentary. My cello teacher, college professor Georg Pedersen was also his student, and its amazing to learn the same method he taught to his students. omgg so magnificent
Dear Mr. Grumette, Thank oh for this marvelous historical document of a beautiful person’s Life, thoughts and feelings. It is stunning and essential to hear Mr. Piatigorsky’s thoughts and attitude to the world in regards to music, teaching, boredom and more!
When Piatigorsky first chose the cello in 1910, it was not considered a viable solo instrument. Very few people played the cello with competence or beauty. Cellists were rarely employed as soloists with symphony orchestras and almost never performed recitals. Audiences couldn’t imagine listening to the cello for an entire evening! But Piatigorsky developed and expanded the technique of the cello making it as facile and expressive as the violin. He also transcribed, arranged, composed and commissioned countless works for the cello thereby increasing its repertoire. His mission was to show the beauty and nobility of the cello’s voice the world over. It is a testament to Gregor Piatigorsky’s career that perhaps the most famous classical instrumentalist today is a cellist, Yo-Yo Ma.
Piatigorsky and Heifetz were very close friends. Whenever there party Heifetz attend Piatigorsky was also. I am sure Heifetz musical taste was influenced by him and also the other way around. Piatigorsky was a heavy smoker and died from it .
Thank you for sharing this gem of human and musical richness... I'd like to add Italian subtitles for my students to enjoy it, could you possibly enable community contribution for that?
@@sgrumette hi much honored thanks. Enjoyed and edified by the mise en scene. Not familiar w that work, will remedy that. Appreciate it & hope alls well -hva a wondrfl summer. -nyc
Steve, are you related to Lina Grumette? I knew her very well through playing chess at her home in the '70s & '80s. She was an important influence in my life. I remember seeing Mrs. Piatigorsky there on several occasions, and at Lina's funeral. I believe they were close friends?
Beautiful! The question came up a few times already, but may I ask again, if you know what solo piece Piatigorsky is playing in the garden in the very beginning? Thank you!
I can't find a date in which the film was produced. Would the 1970s be accurate? Gregor along with several of his chamber music cohorts were all RCA Victor artists. I suspect if we had more videos in which the artist comments on music, his aspirations, his beliefs, more students would take instruction all the more seriously.
Dear Christian, The film was shot on 16mm in 1975 and completed in the Spring of 1976, a few months before Piatigorsky's death on August 6th, 1976. Best wishes, Steve Grumette
Dear Penelope, Is it possible that the intonation errors you detected resulted from the limitations of the 16mm film technology available in the 1970's?
They're just having a lesson. Who knows how far away it is from a performance. Piatigorsky is old so it makes sense. There's ample evidence his pitch and technique are great in his career
