Is he playing this without the sheet music in front of him? Impressive! Also, I'm glad that he's not performing the "Hurky Jerky" moves that most of these players do when performing. Only negative I have, is that the orchestra overpowered him at times. This is by far, my favorite version of the Fantasia.
Virtually all concerto performances in the history of concerto performances are done "without the sheet music." (Not to sound snarky, just clarifying for any young readers of the forum.)
WRONG!!! Take the time to look at some of these concertos. Many are done by reading the sheet music!!! James Barger, Steven Bryant ,Kenneth Tse, "Mystic Quest" Saxophone Concerto by Satoshi Yagisawa (reading the sheet music) and so so so many more!!!!!
In the face of such an even-tempered and well thought out comment, I was obliged to sample the videos you so kindly suggested. Well done, you are absolutely correct--sheet music abound. In the interest of restating more clearly the relevant point, however, I point out these looked to be mostly, if not all, student orchestras--albeit university students. But more salient is that any evaluation thereof is hardly done on the basis of any use of sheet music. (An idea I learned personally from Mr. Tse.) I appreciate your enthusiasm; in future though, may I suggest an ample use of emojis to supplement your punctuation.
Pepper Williams I disagree... he took down the most emotional part of this song by an octave. I don’t blame him, but it leaves a lot to be desired for the whole performance. He got some well deserved applause, but taking that down an octave was a bit unprofessional.
