When Ts'Ong arrived in Poland and began to study at the State College of Music in Warsaw in 1953, the other students were amazed at 'a Chinese" playing Western music. However it soon became clear that this was a very special 'Chinese'. Ts'ong won the special mazurka prize at the Chopin Competition and after his marriage to Zamira Menuhin he never stopped working. After his divorce from Zamira, the number of engagements fell off. I knew him well during this time. He would phone me up and ask me round, sit me down with a whisky and then show me what he was preparing (I remember a lot of discussion about Bartok 3) and he would often put on a CD of Handel. He much preferred Handel to Bach. Handel was 'pagan' and passion - that's what he said!. I went to all his recitals and concerts in London during the 60s and 70s. I remember a sublime Beethoven op 109, an unforgetable Schubert last Bb sonata, and - of course - miraculous Chopin, Debussy and Mozart. He was a special man and a special musician. RIP
My old professor once said back in the late 70s, Fou Tsong is the ONLY pianist to ever come from China. At that time I've never even heard of this man nor his performances 'till years later I got my first cassette copy of a collection of pieces which he performed. It included his very sublime interpretation of Liszt's Sonetto Del Petrarca 104, an interpretation which I really loved. (However, my cassette suffered irreparable damage and sadly this recording is nowhere to be found here in youtube nor anywhere, I guess). Even with the overflow of outstanding pianists coming from China or individuals of Chinese descent at present, I believe my professor's statement still stands true even today. I take my hat off to Fou Tsong. Mabuhay ka sir Fou Tsong!
"Music knows no boundaries" as they say. Huge loss for the classical music world. R.I.P Fou T'song. May you reunite with your father and mother. God bless your soul and your family.
did a concert with mr fou in the late sixties,in a church,there was no steinway as was promised only a not up to scratch bluebird piano but the gentle mr fou got on with the music,debussy,handel and was a sensation,took his bow and slipped away quietly.a great man,great musician .mw.
Fou Ts'Ong has brokered many legends in the contemporary european classical music industry...he is highly regarded in the classical music circle, but unfortunately not featured often on big labels... He himself is a legend, left China before the commie takeover which took away his parents' lives and later married the daughter of Yehudi Menuhin and had one daughter. It's a shame people don't know him. Talking about art versus commercialization!
it is quite subjective but i'm not always fond with his choices, however he has a magnificent touch. This is great Debussy playing, thank you for the discovery.
5.10.2021 In Tokyo autumn is around the corner the autumn insects are chirping in thin voices , trying to fulfill their fleeting lives. Soon, the ginkgo and maple leaves will fall, creating the gorgeous carpet of yellow and red on the earth. I am lost in thought while listening to these masterpieces From Tokyo of the Land of the Rising Sun 🇯🇵
The comfort of Debussy is irreplaceable My soul lies in Debussy,s this work of the luscious and pensive atmosphere . From effulgent Tokyo in profound Japan
Ha, tiu nostalgia tristeco de la unua Forgesita Bildo! Kiaj riĉaj sonoroj en la parto kun la sep diesoj. Fou Ts'ong estas granda majstro en tiu ĉi repertuaro, kun ekzakte la ĝusta kvanto da "rubato" kaj senlima dolĉeco en la maniero, en kiu li lokas la lastajn etajn notojn pianisime.
Спасибо за публикацию. Очень нравится музыка этого композитора. Вот так бывает- услышишь чье- то произведение и "влюбляешься" в творения композитора на всю жизнь. Дебюсси услышала впервые лет в 15, и вот уже не первое десятие и даже не второе :-) слушаю его музыку. Спасибо за полный сборник: отныне он в списке любимых.
And when today I read in an interview with the winner of the Queen Elisabeth Competition that Asian pianists never will have such a deep insight in European music as Europeans, this nonsense just makes me very very angry.... Of course this guy has never heard of Fou Ts'Ong....
The first half is fantastically good! No doubt about that, but I felt a lack of 'silence between the notes' in the performance of some of the Images. It's probably just my taste
The late Fou Ts-ong was a superb pianist, almost in a class of his own, but because of his subjective and unique approach to music, may not be universally liked. I shall comment on his playing on another occasion, but this comment is about racism. There are at least two kinds of racism; one is a belief in white supremacy. In the 19th century, when European nations colonized the world, there was perhaps an explanation for that illusion (or delusion), but in this day and age, it is untenable. In every sphere, from art, to science and sports, every race excels. The second kind of racism, which is still prevalent and is ''politically incorrect'', is to believe in stereotypes. Just because Fou T'song was born in Shanghai, it is assumed that he could not understand European culture. Unless you are French, Belgian, Luxembourger, Quebecois, or from a French speaking country, you have less connection with French culture than Fou T'song. His father studied art in the University of Paris and was the foremost translator of French literature into Chinese. Before the Second World War, half of Shanghai, the fashionable part, was a French concession. Ironically, it was Nazi Germany that forced the Vichy government to give it up to the Japanese-occupied Shanghai government. To this day, the Frenchness of this part of Shanghai is unmistakable.
