Watching the fellow standing there in the middle told you how her music was being received. He barely even moved but when he did it was as if in amazement. This was truly beautiful.
He obviously can't blink. He either forgot, didn't care to, was suppressing the urge to, or he has a medical condition that makes him VERY well-suited for a Valentina Lisitsa recital.
Do you suppose that he was simply overwhelmed with the virtuosity? Enjoying fine music was never considered as being a medical condition in the past, but today - everything is.
This had me in tears. I bet I wasn't the only one whose head was filling in the orchestral parts. There's almost a certain intimacy in hearing the piano solo on it's own - and boy can Valentina Lisitsa convey that. Thank you so much.
The original chordal cadenza…..just when the act is over? ……suddenly a most passionate ‘second wind’ climax…… primeval passion in a Masterpiece. Rachmaninov Genius
To me, Valentina is the greatest Rachmaninoff pianist. Such grace and power in her technique; such inspiration and perfection in her interpretation. I’m moved to tears every time I hear her play this concerto.
I love Valentina too. But there is no need to play Rach 3 so fast that you can barely hear the passage work. It destroys entire sections. Rachmaninoff had to play it fast on HIS recording, due to time limits of the technology of that time. Valentina plays it faster than virtually every artist, and I have heard most. Want to hear a wonderful example? Leif Ove Andsnes. He has a wonderful recording of it on RU-vid. Perfect tempo. sanjosemike
Dude just keeps shaking his head! I would too if I couldn't believe what I was seeing. La Divina Valentina schooling us all with her magnificent gifts. What I would give to be in that room to experience her skill with that instrument. 3 very lucky people.
Five dorks went and downvoted because it's like "derr this is inaccurate." Yes, also she didn't prepare this like it was for a major concert. Plus we've all already heard her play the first movement superbly.
I had the privilege of watching her playing this concert live here in São Paulo, with pictures and autographs after it. Albeit Valentina being an amazing artist, she was extremely sweet, kind and humble to me. I will never forget it…
I hear this now, as raw as it is, and I do not know how the orchestra would sound, really I don't, and I was deeply moved in every way. I do not really like the main theme of the piece but the elaborations by Rachmaninov are wonderful and the expression by the pianist is tremendous, simply breathtaking! I really loved this performance!
First and foremost, this is a wonderful performance, for the fact that in such a closed room you don't really have a very good or efficient sound reflection to produce the grande sound quality you can in a big hall, but very few people have come to realize this... Second, many people are critisizing her impromptu of the cadenza, which can be perceived as "too fast" but it's also what amazes a mere mortal like me in what she does, because 99% of today's pianists are just not capable to produce the sound efficiency she creates with her velocity. Most of the folks (and I listen to this concerto probably more than any other human being on the planet) are really, waaay too slow, waiting for the orchestra or put waay too much length and emotion for something that's not to be interpreted like so and many of today's pianists are not really able to be both fast and precise, at least at her level, which is extremely high!! I think of all the recordings I've heard Yefim Bronfman's cadenzas are the most accurate and precise in terms of dynamic at least for my taste for this concerto, but instead of going to watch him over and over in the big hall, I'd really like it if more people appreciate Valentina's job instead of trying to "massacre" her style or her performance, for she has always been known to be a really dynamical and precise piano player and probably the greatest ambassador of Rachmaninoff and his music!!
tisho91 Very good analysis ! The pretentious, condescending, little amateur trolls think that by "criticizing" such a wonderful artist , it makes them somehow superior to her, which is laughable. It's not like they're just stating a simple personal preference. It's amazing to me how they actually think they have anything to teach one of the world's best pianists, and a Rachmaninoff specialist, anything at all about proper tempo and dynamics and her great passion for his music. Valentina just dismisses the "amateurs" and the "trolls". They're incredibly musically illiterate considering the size of their big mouths. They should really concentrate harder on their kazoo lessons. Have you seen the video documentary of the making of her 2CD Rachmaninoff concertos set, with the London Philharmonic? "Documentary: Valentina Lisitsa's Rachmaninoff Project". Michael Francis, the conductor, has some wonderful things to say about her and also how much the orchestra loved her.
Agree. That's probably a 7 foot piano with its lid open in a contained classroom. And I think it was recorded a bit "hot," so it distorts ever so slightly on some of the louder passages. I loved this performance.
The people that object to Valentina's interpretation have never followed the score nor have they read the many letters Rachmaninoff wrote to Josef Yasser explaining how his music should be played. These letters can be found in the book; Rachmaninoff's Recollections by Oskar Von Riesemann.
This piece has all the in between colours of the rainbow … first time I have heard just the piano without the orchestra … bravo …!!! Pure exquisite excellence ❤
Valentina, You are phenomenal. I have heard this concerto many times and know it by heart. You are the best pianist I've heard ever. You make playing the piano look so easy Bravo!
Valentina's artistry is superb. Like in 11:20 (at the ending of the Ossia Candeza), you hear a hemiola of a simple D major arpeggio inside of the other decorative arpeggio (never heard this way). Beautiful!
I'm amazed that a pianist is able to so fluidly make a given instrument work for them . I kept being struck with an image of her kicking it around and then finally setting it on fire standing atop the piano .
One of the very few pianists that listened carefully to the composers recording and adopts his phrasing and dynamics.A legendary interpretation in the outer movements but as much as I love Valentina, she needs to listen to Nelson Freires benchmark 2nd movement.
Техника на грани фантастики...Мужская хватка !!! 8:43 Сколько мелодических линий она удерживает в своей голове!!!И воплощает это!!!Заставляет нас всех услышать!!!❤❤
is it just me or is rachmaninov simply one of a kind? chopin is nice, convoluted, romantic. many are more complicated, programmatic etc pp but THIS... its like... its got so much depth, so much character, so much story in these piano notes. how is that even possible to think of? its like the guy didnt open his mouth, but ordered at a restaurant using a piano. my god. thank you for the music, sergej! rip
She's one of the few great pianist-evangelists of our age. The only one you're likely to find serenading you while you're eating your sandwich on a bench. That's a great thing
After seeing hundreds of pianists, classical, jazz and ragtime alike, I still have yet to see someone who is faster, more precise, and more expressive than Valentina.
straordinario. la purezza e la bellezza,il romanticismo attraverso una melodia coinvolgente e passionale. Il genio compositivo di Rachmaninov e il talento della pianista Lisitsa.
Line between madness and genius that boils at room temperature. How could he have hoped to have someone play this properly? Surely Valentina would have been gratifying, she plays so true.
Her depth and interpretation are impressive even on a piano that has not been properly prepared! I was glad to view the performance, and to imagine how it would be on the same piano after tuning and voicing. Great photography; thank you for posting for everyone.
Have any of you know-it-all critics ever take the time to hear Rachmaninov himself play this concerto? Because if you have then you would know that the speed here is what he intended when he composed this piece. Of course, there is a huge difference between a setting such as this which is a friendly demonstration for some fellow students and teachers of music and the actual concert. Listen to the full recording of Valentia playing with the London Symphony Orchestra and it is just as quick but more controlled. Anyways, get over the silly criticisms about it being "too fast." It's a meaningless critique when the composer himself intended it to be at a faster speed than what most pianists interpret today.
