The last ten minutes of the third movement of the Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No. 3 performed by Olga Kern at the 11th Van Cliburn International Piano Competition.
I was THERE sitting in the box directly above Kern and she was AMAZING! You can probably hear me screaming Bravo! at the end! LOL Van Cliburn's playing of this will stand for all eternity as the very best in my book, Kern's was one of the best I've hear in 62 years.She plays this at a slower pace, as did Cliburn, which reveals all its lyricism and colors.(She listened to Van's recordings growing up & it shows!) I clapped & screamed so loud when she finished I was hoarse for days after!
In 25 years of going to the symphony, I never leapt out of my seat to give an artist a standing ovation, until I witnessed Olga Kern do Rach 3, wow!!!!
Never have I cried so much over a performance of music of such calibre and passion. I can't describe this with the right adjective or say any more of the affect that it had on me. A tremendous effort. Olga Kern should feel so thoroughly proud of herself.
I love the clarity and transparency of her playing. No fuss, no muzz, but still intense and passionate. I think I need to listen to more of Kern's playing!
You should see and hear her in person!! I heard and saw Olga in person about 1 and a half years ago, and I was totally blown away by her sheer virtuosity, her dazzling, flawless technique, and her impeccable professionalism. She truly is an exceptionally-great pianist, and I hope I can see her again!!! I'd be right there in the front row!
It's like a musical symbiosis between herself and the piano...I LOVE the way she just EXPLODED off the piano at the very end! And it's like a roller coaster for my ears!!
I saw Olga Kern play the Rach 3 in Morristown, NJ a couple of years ago. Thrilling! This piece is difficult for a man to play much less for a woman...Rachmaninoff had very large hands and a wide span. Olga Kern was wonderful to watch and hear.
NOBODY can play Rach3 quite like Olga Kern, I should know, because I heard and saw her in person back in April 2007. She TOTALLY BLEW ME AWAY, I was literally on the edge of my seat!! She has a DAZZLING virtuosity, she owns this Piano Concerto!!
Darn right she won the thing. Saw her about a week ago in Toronto. She is even better now and played every piece to perfection. What a thrill it was to watch her.
Wow, there are 73 thumbs down...I mean, who doesn't dream and aspire to be like charismatic Olga Kern wearing a stunning red dress and playing Rachmaninoff with absolute perfection, and of course winning gold. Even if you don't like her interpretation, you can at least acknowledge the dedication. To the 73 people, go back to your mediocrity.
Rachmaninoff knew how to make love with music. He knows when to breathe, when to build, when to hold back, when to simmer. . . I'd be estatic to write ONE piece at that level. OMG. . . I never tire of hearing this.
I just want to say that piece took my breath away. Bravo Olga, you are the best. What brought me here today, Aug 28, 2011, is the critical remarks made about a Chinese pianist who came to the Hollywood ball, wearing a beautiful, tight and very short dress (she had the body and legs for it) and played this Third Concerto , and I am sure she was sensational. Do not understand why people have to criticize. I wish I had been there in the audience and enjoy this beautiful music. HAGD all/.
Saw Olga play this concerto in Detroit last weekend. She has such a feel for Rachmaninoff's music and played the piece superbly and perfectly. Brava, Olga.
This is my favorite DVD of all times and I have listened to it so many times. Olga Kern is truly the best. What a great and outstanding performance. The music is so beautiful.
Olga just played all 4 Rach concertos, the Variations on a theme by Paganini and much more as part of a 2 weekend Rach Festival with The Colorado Symphony. The night she played the 4th concerto, she first came on stage alone and played the 20 minute, 3 movement 2nd sonata, before changing gowns and returning to blaze through the 4th concerto, ending with two encores....all in all, four incredible Rachmaninov performances BEFORE INTERMISSION! Olga truly RACHS!
I had the pleasure of attending her performance of Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto #3 last Thursday in Nashville. As marvelous as she was during the Cliburn competition, she's even better today. When sharing a few brief words with her after the performance I found her to be so modest. I told her "That was incredible". She actually seemed a bit embarrassed to be called incredible. She's lovely, talented, humble, and so charming. Everyone must see he perform this concerto if possible.
GOD..!!! how can she actually memorize not only a 10 min piano concerto, but a Rachmaninoff, on top of that she plays it exquisitely and I have a hard time remembering phone numbers....
Note the finish... pianist perfectly in unison with the orchestra. That’s rare in Rach 3 renditions!! I‘m no musician, just a passionate music lover and regular visitor of concert performances. I‘ve heard dozens of Rach 3 interpretions, but however astonishing the pianist is, I vote the performances by the collaboration (don‘t know a better word- sorry) with the orchestra. Even Horowitz himself messes up the finale in terms of finishing together with the orchestra in his recording. I guess the audience during this performance felt the energy of the finale, that was absolutely nailed by Olga AND the orchestra. The standing ovation says it all, everyone jumped from their seats. Wow, just wow!! PS: my other favourite performance is the recent one by Alexander Malofeev, also here on YT. I recommend everyone who loves Rachmaninoff to check it out.
all these comments sounds like heaven , thank you god that there are so many rachmaninoff lovers out there , me i must confess i am a fanatic too much in love with his music and olga,, oh what can be said she says it all,,,
she is amazing, She gve a master class today at CU and it was amazing. Her joy and passion fill the room. its my second time in a master class with her, so great.
To the people who critise this performance: Do you know what it feels like to be able to play this piece in the privacy of your own home? Do you know what it takes to be able to play this piece live in front of an audience and cameras? Do you know how how it feels to be able to play this piece AT ALL? I uncheck those three boxes for you all.
Olga I Love you. This is the best performance in this piece. I have never heard any interpretation best than this. I love you for ever, Thanks for ever. Jorge
I've heard at least 100 interpretations of Rach 3, and would put Olga Kern's in my top 3. It's a stunning performance. Find it hard to believe some of the garbage posted here about posture, hand position, blah blah. Who cares about that? It's the SOUND that comes out that matters. She lives and breathes this piece. Her performance is sincere and heartfelt. I think some people think it's clever to criticize a great performance as if they know something we don't. Ignore them, sit back and enjoy.
My guess is those who criticize......are those who have never tried to play this.....I'd like to see those who criticize try......put your hands on the keyboard and you do it!
I hope your comment was satirical, otherwise it was distasteful and without any music ical judgmnet. This I believe the best performance of the 3rd concerto i have ever heard.
Kudos also to James Conlon, the conductor. He was phenomenal during the 2001 Competition. He is very, very expressive and beautiful hands when conducting. He was a joy to watch.
I can truly understand why you say this. I was lucky enough to have been in the NJPAC audience last year when Olga performed Rach 2accompanied by National Philharmonic of Russia. Frankly, I was in tears much of the time, so moved was I by the beauty of her playing and the depth of emotion that was behind the performance. Ms. Kern is a gracious performer as well, one who is willing to chat with and and sign autographs for her fans. I hope she returns to the NYC area soon!
I can feel her passion... this is magnificent. Olga takes musicianship to the next level, almost segueing a path between reality and the place that very few musicians reach let alone portray. Incredible.
Olga played Rach 3 with our New Mexico Symphony Orchestra(NMSO) when I saw and heard her in person almost 2 years ago, and I was totally blown away by her dazzling virtuosity, her raw passion for this majestic piano concerto!! Even if you don't like the piano, she MAKES you like the piano through the depth of emotion that she puts into it! It makes me want to learn how to play the piano!! But I play the violin, so it would be great to accompany her on my violin.
This is my favourite performance on youtube! The quality of the video is awesome and Olga is so beautiful and has such charisma and the ending is just perfect. I am speechless.
@ferocel It's a symptom of the idea that attacking someone else's accomplishments can somehow make [them] feel less intimidated, less threatened, less "insignificant" by comparison. This performance of Rach 3 in many ways is the best I've ever seen-heard. Yes, I can play it, but you'll never see me do so in public; I have students who execute Rachmaninov better than I do. Olga's combination of technique, phrase, dynamics, inner voicing and pure brilliance adds up to MASTERWORK. Beautifiul!!!
@ferocel I agree - people who argue against how powerful her performance is here are in no way capable of judging the tremendous force and skill required to execute this piece. Oh, also idiots: she became the first woman in over thirty years to receive the Nancy Lee and Perry R. Bass Gold Medal for this performance that you're watching. She is a laureate of eleven international competitions.
