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Tchaikovsky Competition Round I (Piano): Predictions

Posted by Chris from Lafayette (A) on June 20, 2015 at 11:48:09

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.

Daniel Kharitonov (Russia) - Once again, incredible finish allied to fantastic brilliance in his playing. I feel that his Appassionata, although perhaps not quite foreboding enough at the very opening, was worthy of comparison with such great performances as those by Richter and Moravec!

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!)

Dinara Klinton (Russia) - Another one who goes crazy with the facial expressions, as well as calculated arm motion and body rocking. It's as if she heard some teacher say that "music has to tell a story", so she has completely rehearsed how she's going to act it out - with enough exaggeration so that the idiots in the audience (i.e., you and I) don't miss it! ;-) Nevertheless, she plays very well too, and, more importantly, very imaginatively. I'd d love to see her get to the next round (if the judges aren't too dissuaded by her physical antics!).

Dmitry Onishenko (Russia) - One of these Buddha-looking players who has a way of contorting his face that's also distracting (although not to the extent of Chen and Klinton). He also has this habit of looking out blankly about half way between the stage and the audience. Of the many first-rounders who played Liszt's "Chasse-Neige" Transcendental Etude, I thought Onishenko played with notable definition and expression.

Finally, I still think Maria Mazo (Germany) should make it, even though I've revised my opinion of her performances downward a bit in light of what I heard from the others on subsequent days - especially her Appassionata performance compared to the consummate performance of this work by Kharitonov. She still impressed me with the polish of her playing compared to most of the other competitors.

Some general notes:

• The amount overlapping repertoire (Appassionata, Chasse-neige, Chopin Etudes in octaves and thirds, etc.) was a bit surprising.
• Most of the pianists chose the Steinway to play on, although there were a few who chose the Yamaha (e.g., Onishenko), the Kawai (e.g., Chen), or the Faz (e.g., Mazo).
• There was a surprising lack of babes in the piano section this year. Julia Kociuban (Poland) turned out to be on the pudgy side and didn't play that well in any case. The only real babe IMHO was Marina Yakhlakova (Russia), who also, I thought, didn't play well enough to pass to the next round.
• I wonder if there might be any political pressure to choose competitors from adjoining countries (to show them "Russia is your friend, so get rid of your NATO missiles!"). Under this scenario, someone like Kociuban might indeed be passed to the next round. LOL!

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!

Edits: 06/20/15

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