It's all about the music, dude! Sit down, relax and listen to some tunes.
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Tchaikovsky Competition Round I (Piano): Predictions
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Posted on June 20, 2015 at 11:48:09 | ||
Posts: 26434
Location: SF Bay Area Joined: February 17, 2004 Contributor Since: February 6, 2012 |
OK, I haven't heard all the competitors in the piano division (probably only about 28 of the 36), but that's not going to stop me from predicting who gets in to the second round. Twelve of the 36 competitors in the first round will make it into the second round, and we've got about an hour or two before they're announced. So here are my fearless forecasts (six of them anyway): There are two pianists that I've heard who seem to be head and shoulders above the rest: Lukas Geniusas (Russia/Lithuania) - He placed second in the most recent Chopin Competition and the level of finish in his playing is incredible, not to mention the whirlwind tempo he took in the Chopin A-minor Etude, Op. 10 No. 2! His Liszt Transcendental Etude (Wilde Jagd - Wild Hunt) faltered just a tiny bit, but this guy is for sure the real thing. If Geniusas and Kharitonov don't make it to the next round, it's a scandal IMHO! I make the next few predictions with less certainty, because it's partly a matter of taste. Often, I tend to go for "outside the box" playing, and these next three are kind of "misfits" in one way or another: Moye Chen (China) - This guy has been going to the Lang Lang School of Facial Expressions. Really, he has to be seen to be believed, nowhere moreso than in his opening Bach Prelude and Fugue in F-sharp major (Book II). You look at this guy, and you actually think something may be wrong with him - like he's an idiot savant or something. But the actual playing is imaginative and quite accomplished - a very interesting player, although I thought his Chopin "Aeolian Harp" Etude was a bit too heavy, with the non-melody arpeggios insufficiently subdued. (But I don't want to have to look at him!)Some general notes:
I'm listening to the last competitor right now, Dmitry Masleev (Russia) playing Beethoven's Les Adieux Sonata - very good performance, but possibly a bit too many mistakes and smudges? These big competitions are pressure cookers! |
RE: Judges didn't like my "misfits" - I'm only batting .500, posted on June 20, 2015 at 16:47:44 | |
Is your theory about Julia that the jury is allowing a token pudgy "non-babe" to advance? |
Thanks for posting. Really enjoy reading your thoughts (nt), posted on June 20, 2015 at 18:18:46 | |
Posts: 929
Joined: May 6, 2001 |
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Thanks, krisjan! - it's quite an expenditure of time [nt], posted on June 20, 2015 at 18:42:27 | |
Posts: 26434
Location: SF Bay Area Joined: February 17, 2004 Contributor Since: February 6, 2012 |
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I enjoyed Shino Hidaka, posted on June 20, 2015 at 22:53:30 | |
Posts: 2891
Joined: October 30, 2000 |
and her repertoire |
As in Dame Myra Hess? pic alert..., posted on June 21, 2015 at 15:18:14 | |
Posts: 929
Joined: May 6, 2001 |
This is the first Dame that came to mind... |
Or maybe an earlier pic is more apt..., posted on June 21, 2015 at 15:20:00 | |
Posts: 929
Joined: May 6, 2001 |
Mo' better at least by a little.. |
She looks like a strong, self-confident leader., posted on June 21, 2015 at 17:43:18 | |
Pictures sometimes do tell the true story, I guess. |