The Winners of the 13th Van Cliburn International Piano Competition
Gold: Haochen Zhang, Nobuyuki Tsujii
Silver: Yeol Eum Son
Crystal: not awarded
Steven De Groote Memorial Award for the Best Performance(s) of Chamber Music: Evgeni Bozhanov, Yeol Eum Son
Beverley Taylor Smith Award for the Best Performance of a New Work: Nobuyuki Tsujii
Jury Discretionary Awards: Alessandro Deljavan, Lukas Vondracek, Eduard Kunz
Audience vote: Mariangela Vacatello
June 7th, 2009 at 6:02 pm
I am so glad Nobuyuki won
June 7th, 2009 at 6:03 pm
Fantastic result for Zhang - 19 years old, winning the Gold. What a career - indeed, what a life - awaits this young boy.
June 7th, 2009 at 6:03 pm
A very fitting final result. I doubt there was a dry eye anywhere.
June 7th, 2009 at 6:04 pm
Why?
June 7th, 2009 at 6:04 pm
Thank you, Thank you web gurus, jade simmons and buddy bray, blog moderators and fellow bloglodytes for making these last 2 and half weeks an awesome experience … See everyone at the amateurs in two years!
June 7th, 2009 at 6:04 pm
Tsujii’s Gold medal sounds more like an honorary award to me.
June 7th, 2009 at 6:04 pm
YES !!! ..SO deserved !! Thanks to these wonderful musicians for maintaining my devotion and love of “MUSIC” !!
June 7th, 2009 at 6:04 pm
Congats to the winners. Wow! So much for the predicts that the women would take the top spots. As I said in the other thread, how utterly appropriate that Vacatello got to join the medalists on the stage with the online vote award.
This has been a truly HISTORIC Van Cliburn. Congrats to ALL who have produced this most accessible and interactive of ALL piano competitions.
June 7th, 2009 at 6:05 pm
They got it all wrong.
June 7th, 2009 at 6:05 pm
This was a travesty. I can’t believe I watched all these hours to get this result.
June 7th, 2009 at 6:05 pm
Bozhanov nothing. Shame on them. Scandalous
June 7th, 2009 at 6:06 pm
i am surprised of the no awarded 3rd prize
June 7th, 2009 at 6:06 pm
I put Vacatello for gold. but the element of the SENSATIONAL along with PERFECTION took over……..
June 7th, 2009 at 6:06 pm
Wow, I cried at Nobu’s victory. How wonderful!! I don’t think however that they should make mention of the audience vote and have that person come back up on stage. Surely many of the online viewers did not watch the competition in its entirety and therefore one has to question how comprehensive the assessment of that vote is.
June 7th, 2009 at 6:07 pm
I’m happy with the awards and I’m so happy for all of them. Nobuyuki Tsujii impressed me in the preliminaries and I had no doubt that he could, and would, make it so far.
June 7th, 2009 at 6:07 pm
I have to disagree to Mike, Nobu creates an amazing tone quality that so far none of the other players are able to. It’s not something that everyone appreciates or able to hear easily, but it makes a world of differences. Other than that, the results were fairly predictable.
June 7th, 2009 at 6:07 pm
I really feel the jury did the right thing!!!! Nobu, Haocheng and Yeol Eum were definitely my top three artists. I listened to mainly the internet stream after the fact, while doing my work, and it was each of those three that made me stop and take notice. I cried every time I heard Nobu play — he represents the triumph of the human spirit and is a true inspiration. Haocheng too –from his performer portrait, he struck me as someone who is painfully introverted — except when he can express himself musically and let his personality shine through. And Yeol Eum’s playing was like lyric poetry. She definitely made me stop and listen to the music in a way that the three remaining candidates did not.
Congratulations to the winners!!!
June 7th, 2009 at 6:07 pm
Congratulations to all of the participants in this wonderful competition!
June 7th, 2009 at 6:08 pm
Thank you, Jurors!!!
June 7th, 2009 at 6:08 pm
The jury chose well.
June 7th, 2009 at 6:09 pm
“Youth” MUST be served !! Zhang is MOST worthy !!
June 7th, 2009 at 6:10 pm
I agree with mike on this…Tsuji’s gold medal is more like honorary achievement award to me too. It was moving and tearful when he got awarded tho.
June 7th, 2009 at 6:10 pm
Great choices by the jurors.
June 7th, 2009 at 6:10 pm
@nate: agreed, but can’t carp since I predicted he’d medal. Except for the recording contract and international exposure, which are big, the top three prizes are about equal. In time, it will sort itself out. I feel that Son was the cream of the crop, am thrilled that she got Silver, in what should never be a competition to begin with, and hope I’m lucky enough to hear her in person one day.
June 7th, 2009 at 6:11 pm
Mike, I was having trouble wrapping my head around that one also. The newspaper reviews on his work have not been all that stellar whereas those on others much better.
Zhang’s performance quartet was amazing.
June 7th, 2009 at 6:12 pm
WONDERFUL!!! I’m so glad Tsujii won. I’m in tears! WONDERFUL……. I am so happy.
June 7th, 2009 at 6:13 pm
Mike is right in some ways and wrong in others. I agree that Nobu, while he plays beautifully, was not the best absolute pianist. But it’s also true that there is an intent behind the Gold medal as explained beore awarding it. They are looking for who can make those performances consistently and draw audiences and make headlines, and Tsujii, with his inspiring story, can certainly do that. Hence the gold medal makes perfect sense.
June 7th, 2009 at 6:15 pm
The jurors did a great job. What a marvelous few weeks!
June 7th, 2009 at 6:18 pm
It will be interesting to see in the next several years who has the most successful career. What a commentary on the jury’s results vs. the audience’s favorite if Vacatello outshines them all.
June 7th, 2009 at 6:18 pm
Congratulations to the winners!
I’m sorry for Vacatello, who impressed me as a monster pianist throughout. I wanted her to get a big push from this. 6th place is disappointing to me, but I’m also behind on the archives, having been away over the weekend.
I don’t like split awards, though I recognize the intent to be fair. The person it really benefits is Son, who becomes the Silver winner instead of the Crystal winner.
June 7th, 2009 at 6:18 pm
Agree with Lena, Nobu has the best tone quality and music. He deserved to won the gold medal alone!
Zhang’s music is ordinary good but nothing special in his performance, to me he sounds like a backup for Nobu in case Nobu cannot tour over the world.
Nobu is no doubt the BEST in this competition!
June 7th, 2009 at 6:18 pm
Well done Nobu! Your career path is assured, and the world will flock to hear you perform. I’ll never forget the semi-finals Hammerklavier & Musto.
I somehow fear for Haochen Zhang, so talented yet just too young. Will the critics tear into you like they did with Sultanov (bless his soul)? Please continue to work with Graffman - you’re too good to be another Langster!
June 7th, 2009 at 6:19 pm
I add my agreement- Thank you jurors. You did not let any mishap in the Rach 2 concerto between Conlon and Tsujii to sway you against Nobu. He is simply put- An extraordinary musician and fully deserves the GOLD medal on the merits of the pure music he brought us. Zhang is completely deserving also, but let us face the reality-
Tsujii is going to get the HEADLINES!! And that is just fine with me. This is historic and well it should be. My heart was with Di Wu, but it was not to be here. We all take away our joys and disappointments. But the music itself WON!! May I and all of us rejoice in IT getting all the visibility that it can. Whether it be Baroque, Classical period, Romantic, Impressionistic or Modern……may I please be forgiven my bias and say that it IS utterly superior to the passing fad of hip-hop and rap and etc… that will end up on the trash heap of music history while what we have heard this past two weeks will live on into eternity.
Congrats to all the fantastic pianists, composers both dead and living and to all involved in this great “festival” as Van Cliburn put it. What a glorious celebration of some of the finest ART the world has ever seen.
June 7th, 2009 at 6:20 pm
I am very happy with the results. I believe the medalists will bring great inspirations to people: musician, non-musician, young and old. Thank you so much Cliburn Foundation for bringing such an wonderful experience to me.
June 7th, 2009 at 6:22 pm
The best moment was seeing Tsujii hugging Van Cliburn.
There could have been lots worse decisions than the way this came down.
I still feel it would have been better for Zhang to wait a bit longer but I do hope the Foundation will NURTURE his wonderful abilities and not push him too hard too soon!
Tsujii touched us in such a phenomenal way, and gave us THE Beethoven - he deserves it. I hope this prize means the best kind of exposure for him.
And I felt it was a wonderful decision to give Son the Silver and leave Crystal vacant.
Good too that EB did get the chamber music prize; not my personal choice, but I am glad for him. Glad AND sad at the same time, knowing how much more he could have won here.
All other prizes imo also very good.
Now it’s over - back to reality and I’m sure a period of withdrawal. It’s been great having this blog and chatting with all of you. I’ve had an incredible time. Last and certainly not least thank you so much Cliburn Admin. for giving us this webcast and this phenomenal opportunity to be there, listen, see, cheer, suffer, cry, be exalted and inspired by such wonderful young people and the great music we’ve heard. See you in 2013!
June 7th, 2009 at 6:23 pm
You forgot Kunz and Vondracek won a discretionary award too.
I was soo happy for Tsujii. I think we’ll be hearing much more from him in the near future.
And a happy birthday to Haochen, and a fitting birthday present indeed.
June 7th, 2009 at 6:28 pm
Fair result, amazing honours for Zhang and Tsuji, just a little disappointed Vacatello didnt medal. Congrats all round.
June 7th, 2009 at 6:31 pm
Of the six finalists, a word of commiseration for Di Wu - who I think was the only one to get no award other than the one that all losing finalists get for getting that far.
Big prizes to Zhang, Tsujii and Son. New Music to Tsujii. Chamber to EB and Son. Audience Prize, Vacatello. Jury prizes to Semifinalists (Kunz, Deljavan).
But for Di Wu nothing except “being a finalist”. That’s not bad in itself of course. But she was better than even that, and finished the music part of the competition today in fine style.
Congratulations to all of them. Outstanding talent; gracious performers (even the wilder ones!). A joy to experience.
AGB
June 7th, 2009 at 6:32 pm
I really applaud Mr. Tsujii for the beautiful musicality he exhibited, and I believe Mr. Zhang has a fine career ahead of him. His playing was masterful and very well executed, and at age 19, he will, I hope, offer us many years of beautiful classical music. I sincerely thank both Gold-place winners, along with the other finalists, for the gifts they offered us during Finals.
June 7th, 2009 at 6:32 pm
Well put Dave and Maestra. Thanks for this webcast and I hope to see more of Jade
June 7th, 2009 at 6:33 pm
@John P. Son was my favorite too and the jury hasn’t shaken me from that. I’m gratified that she’ll get $20K, a CD, orchestra and recital gigs. We’ve seen that she’s got the endurance of an ox, range and sophistication.
I’m most gratified though that there’s passionate debate here about pianism and musicianship.
I was a late believer in Tsujii, but he deserved that medal. I just would have shared it with Son. The Cliburn foundation will be able to share the concerto gigs in a way that doesn’t strain either Nobu or Haochen. The competition has done its job: finding new talent and maybe even uncovering an artist or two.
June 7th, 2009 at 6:33 pm
Congratulations to everyone…
June 7th, 2009 at 6:33 pm
A says:
“For some reason Son’s chamber music award is the most offensive to me somehow.”
Why? Please explain.
June 7th, 2009 at 6:34 pm
I like the results in general. But I still think Di Wu should medal with her preliminary Haydn, Ravel, Lizst, her chamber music, innovative programming in semi and final recital, and a wonderfully performed Rach 3.
June 7th, 2009 at 6:39 pm
The average age of the 3 medalists is less than 21. Wow!!
June 7th, 2009 at 6:39 pm
Bravo to all concerned. What an experance!
June 7th, 2009 at 6:39 pm
word is out that img wants bozhanov too
June 7th, 2009 at 6:41 pm
@Varda: why? Because Bozhanov made even the mediocre piece that is the Franck quintet sound like the most magical and profound creation, while Son made Brahms sounds like something Franck would be embarrassed to have written. Therefore, I think it’s unfair that they are placed in a comparable category.
June 7th, 2009 at 6:48 pm
I was thrilled with the techonogy used this year to make the performances available on the internet.
I thoght yhe sound was good on headphones or a large decent speaker system. The camera when covering the soloist was the usual combinations of short and long shots. When viewing the orchestra I’m afraid the camera director was rather unable to distingush where the camer should be aimed for the current musical center of attention.
But honestly, I find all the pianists to be such mechanical practice room virtuosos with gestures hyped for effect as if performance were the aural equivalent of a costume assumed for an effect.
June 7th, 2009 at 6:52 pm
In the end I agree with the result. I find it hard to distinguish between the apples and oranges of Son versus Zhang, Zhang however was cleaner and in some ways to me more ethereal, whereas Son was more showy. Both inspired me. There is something though about Zhang that just draws me in a little more personally.
I think that given that there will be a big split for the golds’ concert opportunities, that this result is really ideal - give Nobuyuki more solo venues and Zhang more concerti (but don’t exclude them from the other by any means).
Nobuyuki is sure to inspire too - and Zhang will bring us into another world. I think they got it right for once here. To me the two knockout performances of the whole competition were Nobuyuki’s Hammerklavier and the Zhang Mozart d minor concerto.
June 7th, 2009 at 6:52 pm
fabulous drama.
surprises everywhere.
Thanks so much for this webcast. It’s a boon to classical music world-wide.
June 7th, 2009 at 6:53 pm
I think an introductory comment that the winners were selected in part because they are ready right now for the stage. They are not looking ahead but in the moment and who can bring glory (and attention) to the Cliburn and based on this, these are good choices. Bozhanov is for “those who know” and not for a general audience and not for something in the future. They are all good pianists and I’m content.
June 7th, 2009 at 6:54 pm
These “Jury Discretionary Prizes” - what are they for?
I’m guessing that they’re for an outstanding single performance, or something like. Anyone know?
AGB
June 7th, 2009 at 6:54 pm
@AGB: my heart goes out to Di Wu, who deserved much better at the hands of this jury. If the criterion for medaling, as repeatedly stated, is readiness to perform on the world stage now, then it might be argued the two gold winners are the least qualified of the six finalists, for different reasons, of course. I don’t mean to be unkind. Di has her limitations, too, as the Rach 3 perhaps showed. But that was the only chink I heard in an otherwise sterling display, and some even thought that playing wonderful.
June 7th, 2009 at 6:56 pm
Whatever my feelings about who won what and what should have been different, I am glad for all the exposure that these 6 finalists got. Many opportunities await all of them. May I please join in and agree about Di Wu. I so wanted her to get an award and definitely a medal. Please, if she comes to your area- GO, GO see her. She is an extraordinary artist well worth your time and money.
June 7th, 2009 at 6:56 pm
I felt the result didn’t fulfill the jury’s mandate: who is the most ready for the grueling demands of a concert career, and instead went the way of pulling on heartstrings. All the finalists played beautifully and showed different gifts, but to me, it’s Vacatello who consistently demonstrated that she has what it takes for a longterm concert career, beginning tomorrow. Her Ravel and Prokofiev were both absolutely riveting and memorable. Strangely, on the basis of artistry combined with intelligence, creativity, staying power and maturity my top three would have been the reverse of the judges’ picks: 1) Vacatello, 2) Di Wu, and 3) Bozhanov.
June 7th, 2009 at 7:00 pm
Di Wu, if you read this, you are a very gifted musician. I love your color, tone, and poetry. I would have medaled you. You have a wonderful performance career waiting for you!
Thanks to the Cliburn Foundation, Ft. Worth Symphony Orchestra, Pianists, and all involved for bring this beauiful music into my home. Jade Simmons and Buddy Bray, great job!
June 7th, 2009 at 7:04 pm
I am shocked that Bozhanov did not medal. I thought he is the one with most color and musicianship. I would award Kunz, Lifits, or Bozhanov for the “best Chamber Performance award”. Also, I thought Zhang’s performance of the “White Lies for Lomax” was the best…
June 7th, 2009 at 7:10 pm
So what about concerts that promised in advance to have the Cliburn Gold winner performing?
We have tickets to see the Cliburn Gold medalist play a recital in January in Illinois, and a friend has tickets to see the Gold winner play with their orchestra in Rochester, New York.
I wonder when they’ll let us know which one of the Gold winners we’ll be getting to hear…
I haven’t had a chance to catch up with all the performances online, but we never warmed to Zhang after his Beethoven Op. 110, so I guess I prefer to have Nobu play our concert. I was expecting Vacatello, or Bozhanov, or Wu…maybe Son…to be the person we heard play in January. So I guess I was really off!
I think Bozhanov and Wu were our favorites of the concerts we got to watch (of people who advanced, that is. I really did like Sakamoto’s refined and intellectual prelim recital). We’ve gradually grown to like Vacatello’s performing over the competition (reminds us Pompa-Badi’s freaky rhythmic precision when we heard him play the Emperor Concerto here with the WV Symphony…).
Anyway, it’s been a wonderful experience hearing so much music and an education in the variety of piano repertoire and interpretation!
-Mona
(the we = opinions shared with my spouse who has been sucked into this madness along with me).
June 7th, 2009 at 7:10 pm
Let it suffice to say, I was not on the jury.
Outcome of the competition? Am pleased with all the winners but disappointed that DI WU didn’t come away with some of the laurels. She is another comsumate artist among them and one of the very, very best.
June 7th, 2009 at 7:17 pm
Inspiring job by the jurors. I only thought that Nobu was going to get the Gold, being too conservative myself. However, now having Zhang in the picture, things seem to make better sense — This competition is about creating super stars (something the Cliburn competition hasn’t really been able to do in a while). While other are accomplished pianists, Nobu with his blindness and Zhang with young age both showed that they are extraordinary. Are they masterful pianists yet? No. But among the six, they have the best chance of becoming one, and that’s what I believe the jurors saw.
Personally though, I thought that Zhang’s music is sincere (coming from his own heart) but somewhat synthetic (haven’t master the true language/spirit of the classical music in its most spontaneous/organic form). Nobu, on the other had, always has something spontaneously special in his music. The rest of the finalists are simply well-trained seasoned pianists who failed to either inspire me like Nobu did or impress me like Zhang did.
June 7th, 2009 at 7:24 pm
I was there! It was sensational, I’m so happy for Zhang Haochen, my fav from the prelims! The most consistent and deep pianist, his Prok 2 today was phenomenal but I think he won it with the Mozart. The juries got it right all around this time I think.
June 7th, 2009 at 7:25 pm
TO LENA AND K S,
Please describe this “amazing” tone that Nobu has. (Others, please chime in). If you closed your eyes and listen carefully, you will realize that Nobu is not that unique. Yes, decent sound and tone but the attention to feeling and nuance is never any more than an excellent student. Zhang and Vacatello, on the other hand…so much nuance and interest. Any responses?
June 7th, 2009 at 7:26 pm
I think these results speak volumes of today’s common trend - accuracy and consistency becoming more relevant elements to establish who can face a career. Indeed, just for the task that all these finalists (and probably many more among the contestants) had to face, all of them are able to sustain a career - if getting through the competition without major catastrophies means just that.
Were the goals of this competition different - namely, that it is the artist of promise to be rewarded, and not the one who demonstrates consistency in the competition, as Rodzinsky announced in his speech - the Van Cliburn would finally identify a pianist who will remain in our memory. This competition is infamous for awarding First Prize (with the exception of a couple of instances) to pianists who do not develop major careers. Sadly, the 2009 competition will remain memorable for awarding First Prize to a blind pianist, and to… who? Was there a tie? Hmmm… not sure… yes, I think there was. A Chinese? Yes, I think so.
My question then comes from observing the situation from the other side: “how can someone so boring sustain a career?” Will people be interested in Zhang or Tsujii, after they’ll figure that they went to a concert and not to a circus act, or that excitement and imagination produce more interesting outcomes in art than proper and well-prepared executions?
Here is a message I just received from one of my wonderful students - an extremely promising teenager who, I believe, will go very far. I had no idea she was watching the competition:
Have you seen the results of the competition???
Ahhhhh that makes me sad.
I DON’T think that Japanese plays that well…
he has no musicality at all…
I think Bozhanov should have definitely been a prize….. his Chopin concerto and sonata were great..
And I like Wu Di,
I think the Korean is just ok, I
don’t like her Chopin 2 concerto.
Zhang was pretty good,
but too calculated.
Pretty accurate assessment. Interestingly, it echoes similar comments I made in precious threads about Bozhanov. Bozhanov’s exclusion from a prize is singlehandedly the biggest miscalculation in the 2009 competition - actually, in the history of the competition. It might not matter whether he got a prize, since this event gave him the opportunity to stand out and be noticed by managers and presenters. However, my impression is that preventing him to gain immediate recognition was simply a waste of time - just give him the gold: we’ll see him on major stages worldwide soon anyway. The others… oh well… just ordinary musicians. Certainly talented, but who wants to hear talent? All these people are talented, aren’t they? We want GENIUS!
June 7th, 2009 at 7:32 pm
Way to go Tsujii and Zhang and Son! I’m so proud of you. The world is so proud of you. Nobu, you inspired the world the way no others can. Zhang, keep your cool, your humility, your intellectual quest, your Dharma-inspired outlook on life, and most of all your true heart for the art as a service to mankind. And finally, thank you The Cliburn!
June 7th, 2009 at 7:35 pm
Interestingly, the jurors went with reliability, not necessarily artistry. A large group of jurors tend to go with the consistent, reliable, in the middle pianist over a pianist who veers in one direction or the other. A Bozahnov is going to have lovers and haters on the jury, but a Son doesn’t elicit that kind of response. That’s not to say that the winners aren’t immensely talented, but in my mind, not one of them spoke to me. I suspect that if we heard them play everything from the competition tomorrow, it would sound pretty much the way it did when they played the first time. Zhang and Tsujii are already artists and they have incredible potential, especially Zhang, but I would much prefer the spontaneity of a Wu or a Vacatello.
June 7th, 2009 at 7:35 pm
Bozhanov with Noboyuki Tsujii were the undidcutable
Gold Medalist
June 7th, 2009 at 7:35 pm
I completely agree with the jury - though would have given Nobu first, Haochen 2nd, Yeol Eum 3rd rather than splitting the gold.
I see no issue with Haochen’s age. Nobu is 1 year older, and no one thinks he’s too young. Is that 1 extra year really that significant?
June 7th, 2009 at 7:39 pm
I thought the choices were good, but I am puzzled by the shared gold prize. Was the decision based on who did best at the competition or a compromise based on who best can handle a demanding schedule in upcoming contract performances? I thought that Tsujii was the better of the two in the competition itself.
Congratulations to the Cliburn organization on a job well done!
June 7th, 2009 at 7:46 pm
I spoke to a juror afterward and he said there was no discussion, Nobu’s blindness was not even a smidgen of a factor, he and Zhang were simply superior.
June 7th, 2009 at 7:47 pm
I had the blessing of sitting on the 2nd row just below the piano when Nobu played Rach 2. I’m more a drummer than pianist, but could tell the orchestra was racing ahead of poor Nobu who was playing as fast as he could but couldn’t catch up for a number of measures. He never changed expression during this scary time, but once back on track his look was angelic for the balance of the piece. It was so emotional—I totally lost it in the foyer afterwards. He will bring a new energy and attention to classical music and classical piano. What we have witnessed and heard is not of this world. Only the jaded will not understand.
June 7th, 2009 at 7:49 pm
I didn’t hear any mention tonight of the contribution of the Takas Quartet to the competition.
June 7th, 2009 at 7:51 pm
Nobu’s articulation was over the top! After all the showmanship is set aside, this young man made the best music.
June 7th, 2009 at 7:53 pm
Nobu was nothing short of miraculous - a combination of maturity, musicality, technical perfection, and that is all before one realises his blindness since birth. I was totally in tears as Van Cliburn hugged him - and that smile on his face told the whole story.
June 7th, 2009 at 7:57 pm
I’m so happy that Nobu won gold - the look on his face as he hugged Van Cliburn told the whole story - and moved me to tears. What a miracle this kid is - maturity, musicality, technical prowess, notwithstanding the fact that he’s been totally blind since birth. Truly amazing - I hope his career goes far!
June 7th, 2009 at 7:58 pm
Congratulations to ALL finalists! You all gave us an incredible 2+ weeks of music. I wish you all the best in your future careers. You are so young and have a whole lot of years ahead of you to carve your niche in the world of classical music. I look forward to hearing you in person in New York in the coming years. Thank you so much!!
June 7th, 2009 at 8:04 pm
Well, congratulations to all contestants. We have heard memorable performances from many new artists. If it is meant to be, some who did not medal here will compete to win in other competitions, or benefit from the career exposure of not winning. Both have happened before.
Many thanks to the Cliburn foundation for the outstanding webcasts, blog, exciting world class competition. It was an excellent opportunity for the music community to connect, and lets hope we are developing new audiences for all of these pianists.
June 7th, 2009 at 8:06 pm
I like how everyone says Haochen is “too young” but that Nobu TOTALLY deserves it even though he’s only ONE year older than Haochen.
I think Cliburn should open up honorary awards instead.
But anyhow, the competition was awesome and I’m so proud of Haochen, he is an amazing pianist and his sound, tone was beautiful and magical. His music touches me and warms my heart :]
June 7th, 2009 at 8:16 pm
The string continues. Here is a little list for you of what should have been:
2009: Wu Gold, Vacatello and Son silver
2005: Cabassi Gold, Yang silver
2001: Pompa Baldi Gold, Kern silver, Andrew Russo bronze
1997: Reicher Gold, Nakamatsu silver
etc.
I like the direction the Richter competition seems to be going. No upper age limit, no jury. Let us just listen to these wonderfully talented artist and make up our mind after we get a chance to hear them out fully.
I’ll have to work hard to find Vondracek playing Dvorak’s quintet.
As for Nobu and Haochan Zhang, I don’t have any Yundi Li recordings, and will not have any of theirs either. Wu’s though, I shall buy as soon as they come out. What a superb artist.
June 7th, 2009 at 8:28 pm
Congratulations everyone!!
I really enjoyed everyone’s playing.
Especially, Ms. Son’s playing^.^*
She communiates with audiences very well.
I was so glad to go Bass Hall every time rather than looking at the screeing in my desk.
How great she is!! She is so talented.
I wish she could get gold metal, but…..
I am sure she will delivery her insight about music to others in the future.
Thank you so much, Ms. Son!!
June 7th, 2009 at 8:29 pm
Not all is lost. Everyone, even non-medalists have had an amazing platform to perform on, and enormous career boost. Not only will the Cliburn concert engagements significantly help open doors, but the sheer association with the name will forever be a plus.
In case you’re interested, many of this year’s Cliburn competitors will be at it together again at several other major competitions this year, including the Honens Competition in Canada, which preliminary audition list itself already reads like a Who’s Who in the piano world. These people make the rounds. I’m finally understanding the term “serious professional competitor”, which is why Tsujii’s triumph is so poignant (little competition history, no traditional “famous” teachers), no matter what individuals may think about his playing.
June 7th, 2009 at 8:30 pm
WHY DI WU IS NOT ONE OF THE FINALISTS???????
WHY?
WHY?
WHY?
I agreed with the jury about the rest, except DI WU is not one of the medalists…!!!!
June 7th, 2009 at 8:35 pm
I just now forced myself to read all the reviews and comments of not only the final blogs but also the “Notes from the Cliburn” of the official media reports.
http://startelegram.typepad.com/notes_from_the_cliburn/
Btw- I noticed that the reviewer [Chris Shull] got the jury decision completely wrong in his prediction of Vacatello for Gold, Wu for Silver and Bozhanov for Crystal. Oh well, most all of us, including me go t some part of our predictions wrong.
I wanted to respond to what tomac said about Nobu and his music making and ability not being of this world. Despite the fact that like all of you I had my favorites, I cannot escape the reality that the pure musical accomplishment and achievement of Tsujii is THE story of the entire competition for me. It has many worthy rivals and perhaps it is painfully unfair to higlight any of these pianists over another. But for the sake of clarity and singularity I risk saying that Nobu sharing in the Gold medal is THE most notable news of the entire 13th Cliburn.
In saying this I am TORN. The deep passion and feelings that so many of the pianists birthed w/in me are inexplicable. Son simply floored and moved me. Di stole my heart. Zhang impressed me. Vacatello made me deeply respect her. Bozhanov nearly broke my heart for the collision of his amazing talent and yet near disaster in performance of the Rach 2. But in the end…..it is Tsujii that utterly confounds and blows me away with his pure music making that is beyond ALL understanding and definition.
This is truly a story for the ages.
June 7th, 2009 at 8:37 pm
it is funny the anonymous competitor sounds like Evgeni himself.
June 7th, 2009 at 8:42 pm
Congratulations to Nobu! Read this wonderful story about him while staying with his host family and about their dog who has become attached to the young pianist here:
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/ent/performingarts/stories/052609dnmetblindpianist.455d8a9.html
June 7th, 2009 at 8:50 pm
@anonymous competitor:
“excitement and imagination produce more interesting outcomes in art than proper and well-prepared executions”
“Bozhanov’s exclusion from a prize is singlehandedly the biggest miscalculation in the 2009 competition”
Thank you for your comment.
I spend much of my listening time on pre-homogenization pianists from the grand era of high individuality, before the mass-production of music recordings made everyone sound pretty much the same except for highly refined differences in touch and conception. Those old-timers wouldn’t get past the first screening round of the modern Cliburn. Even late Horowitz wouldn’t stand a chance. I’m not comparing Bozhanov to anyone in particular. But I know that as I continue to enjoy the archives, it is Bozhanov’s high-wire tolerance for risk, and daring imagination, that I’ll turn to again and again.
Most of the blog complaints about Bozhanov fall into two buckets: 1) he sounds too different, and 2) he lacks strict textual fidelity. Well, welcome to the 19th century sensibility — when most of this music was actually written.
June 7th, 2009 at 8:56 pm
Hey anonymous competitor:
You lost. Your favorite contestant lost. Deal with it and get over yourself.
June 7th, 2009 at 9:00 pm
Just now I checked my email and clicked on the most recent one I received from the Van Cliburn. Interestingly in their official email results to the World they list Tsujii’s name 1st in the announcement of the tie for the Gold medal. When I combine that with him winning the Beverly Taylor Smith Award for Best Performance of a New Work which carries the highest $ individual non-medal award, I consider that makes Nobu THE biggest story of the entire 13th Cliburn even over the much and equally deserving Zhang.
June 7th, 2009 at 9:00 pm
All I can say is THANK YOU…the Competition was riveting, and reading the blogs, terrific fun. What is more miraculous, all the music we enjoyed?…or the fact that I can sit in my home in Cuernavaca, Mexico and feel a part of the event?
June 7th, 2009 at 9:16 pm
For the jury discretionary awards, I am guessing that they went to the #7 semifinalist and the #13 from preliminary. Don’t know this, but would like to think those on the bubble deserve recognition.
June 7th, 2009 at 9:19 pm
“too young” means perfection.
When people can’t find anything wrong with a pianist, and if that pianist is not on their favorite list, then age might be used to play the magic.
“he is too young”
“he needs time to grow”
“he can come back in 2013, 2017″
“he is only a student”
“he doesn’t have depth”
You need a genius to find genius in music. And most of us are not genius. Haha …
June 7th, 2009 at 9:42 pm
Thanks to all you bloggers and to all the people responsible for the webcasts.. I think that the 1st prizes were well-deserved but all 6 players deserved to medal, since most people believed that the competition was not a runaway for any one of them. As an addendum, I would sooner buy a recording of Vacatello performing the Prokofiev 3rd Piano Concerto (or go to see her perform either that piece or a solo concert) than I would for any of the other players.
June 7th, 2009 at 9:55 pm
I am so happy that Nobu-kun won the gold medal. I saw a Japanese TV show where he competed in the Chopin Competition in 2005 and was totally astounded at that time, so this outcome didn’t surprise me much. I am just so glad that he will get a lot more exposure.
Congratulations to all contestants!!! And thanks so much, the Cliburn foundation, for providing us such wonderful opportunity to enjoy the entire competition online!
June 7th, 2009 at 10:08 pm
As I commented before there was practically impossible for anyone to top Zhang in this competition. I also said my heart was having Tsujii in the medals but my mind said no because no one heard any of his performance in Bach, Haydn or Mozart. I guess my mind and my heart both won regardless. What can one say about Zhang! This young man probably had his first music lesson when his mom first conceived him in her womb. With Zhang, the sky is the limit in his future career. China should be very proud that there are now two world class pianists in Haochen Zhang and Yundi Li. My last word in this competition is to encourage everyone to contribute to the Cliburn Foundation. We had been treated to outstanding free recitals and concerts in these couple of weeks. It’s time that we should all pay a little back!
June 7th, 2009 at 10:21 pm
I agree with Brad Hill that artistic expression and individuallity should be promoted by competitions instead of the more academic interpretations of these top prizewinners. I still can imagine that Bozhanov will have the greatest success of all the finalists in the long run. However, the Cliburn webcast tv coverage was fantastic. It’s a thousand times better than what we got in 2005. The Cliburn Foundation really knows what it’s doing and I thank them for the wonderfully successful presentation.
June 7th, 2009 at 10:32 pm
Bravo to Nobu, a wonderful musician!
Good luck to Vacatello and Bozhanov, the two other pianists besides Nobu whom I would pay to hear play.
And good luck to Son and the miraculous Zhang. If the latter ever stops sighing over every phrase as if it were Rachmaninoff’s most heart-melting melody, he may yet become an interesting musician. (Assignment: Play the first four bars of Debussy’s “cinq doigts” without lifting your eyes to heaven.
)
June 7th, 2009 at 10:34 pm
The netcasts have been incredible. I’m still trying to fathom the stated “reasons” for the awards with the winners. Zhang and Nobu are judged most suited for an immediate career? I don’t see it. Their playing was awesome (Zhang) and pure (Nobu) but neither was inspiring.
Pity poor Vacatello who seemed destined to lose from the start - what a technician. Bozhanov, the one who could instantly draw crowds, had no chance in a contest that valued uniformity and conformity over all else. The inability/unwillingness to expand beyond a very narrow repertoire is disappointing. Oh well, beautiful music lingers.
June 7th, 2009 at 11:10 pm
Well, that was certainly an interesting finish — and a fascinating competition all round. They jury surely spoke in a particular way by ending the competition the way they did.
It is really a new day for communication and the exchange of information. I wish both Tsujii and Zhang ALL the best. We might be in an era, though, where the “community buzz” about some pianists (and artists) is much stronger than the jury’s “learned” findings. Twitter, Facebook, Myspace, and other sites, will be the real opinion setters, I think. That will change the nature of competitions forever.
Further, if none of the winners medal in European competitions, or are able to establish careers overseas, it might say something very strong about the Cliburn. I have no idea which way it will go, but the PROCESS will be interesting to watch.
My final two thoughts: Di Wu will have an important career indeed. She will take the Cliburn next time, or some other competition in Europe, and have a very successful career.
Lastly, I really miss the Russians. I mean of the quality of Nikolai Petrov, Radu Lupu, Shtarkman, etc. All of those pianists who trained, from birth (!), in the Russian system played at the highest qualities and with the most solid “school.” Rashkovskiy came close with that school this time. More Olga Kerns, please.
All the best to EVERYONE here.
June 7th, 2009 at 11:36 pm
I thought the discretionary prizes for Vondarcek and Kunz were fascinating insights into the jury process - it sounds like they were the ones who lost out to a mjority verdict, Whatever, as this blog demonstrates, they were greatly deserving of the prizes, which strike me as far from insignifcant to a career, and earned a “special” status despite getting eliminated. Vondracek got his on the basis of one recital!
June 7th, 2009 at 11:47 pm
PatsyWatsy, I could not agree with you more sitting here in Hong Kong. The webcast was wonderful. Thank you!
June 7th, 2009 at 11:51 pm
Dave: I think Tsujii’s name coming before Zhang’s simply has to do with T coming before Z in the alphabet.
June 8th, 2009 at 12:16 am
I have to say that I’m really disappointed with this year’s results. I have to admit that it’s amazing to see what Tsujii has accomplished with the piano but I don’t believe he deserved to tie for the Gold medal. He was good, but was he really one of the best pianists there? This competition is supposed to help launch the career of the most talented, and musical pianist and not the pianists who’ll grab the most headlines. All competitors should be judged equally regardless of their circumstance. Can someone tell me how Zhang managed to tie for the gold? I listened through all of his archives and not once did I ever think he did anything other than play the correct notes. His performances were completely bland and uninspired. It’s obvious that he doesn’t understand the music, which I don’t really expect from a 19 year old.
June 8th, 2009 at 12:20 am
Exclusive Van Cliburn video is on http://www.DFWReporting.com
Make sure to not forget the people behind the scenes that made the competition flourish at the 2009 Van Cliburn Piano Competition.
DFWReporting.com has an exclusive video of a behind the scenes look from Bass Hall where all the performers played. It’s on the homepage of DFWReporting.com you can’t miss it on the homepage
June 8th, 2009 at 1:17 am
Re: anonymous competitor, and
Re: Brad Hill
Thank you both for your courageous comments. I couldn’t agree more.
Bozhanov is bold and exciting, and sooo pasionate - and this should be much more important than accuracy and sticking to a formula. Why the greatest pianists became the greatest? Because they were bold, exciting, and passionate - and all their inaccuracies were forgiven.
Well, we’ll see in 10-20 years who people will love and remember: Bozhanov or Zhang.
June 8th, 2009 at 4:05 am
I have to begin by saying that the results are just amazing and, quite frankly, very moving. The fact that a blind and 19-year-old pianist can triumph over so much to win gold medals at the Van Cliburn competition is simply wonderful and made for a moving evening in Fort Worth.
That being said, I just have to get it out and say that those boys were two of the most boring musicians at the entire competition. Their playing, though textbook perfect, was just that. Zhang played like a student, and while he has incredible potential that we can’t yet predict, he did not play like the sort of pianist that one imagines winning the Cliburn. And it’s difficult to say anything negative against Nobu, for obvious reasons. What he does at the piano is something we can’t even begin to comprehend, nor should it be taken lightly or be belittled in any manner. But after being in Bass for this entire competition, I feel I can say that his music making was boring and naive. One would imagine that, being blind, his color palette would be off the charts, but it simply wasn’t. (I will say, however, that this naivety really worked for Berceuse, which is usually ruined by way too much affectation) It was dry, limited, and I felt like I heard the same character through every piece for the duration of this competition. It was good playing. But it was not Cliburn playing.
It’s difficult, of course, to offer any sort of alternative. This was probably one of the fuzziest and uncertain outcomes of any competition, and you could feel it here in the halls. Nobody knew! And I can hardly imagine the task the jury had ahead of them because the initial and potential hope for a clear winner went out the window with such performances as the Rachmaninov 2nd by Boshanov (what happened to him???).
But this outcome has managed to move me while leaving a bitter and ‘gimmicky’ taste in my mouth. Those boys have incredible potential, but, like Rodzinski said, this is about who is ready NOW. We have to keep in mind that these boys will be representing not just the Cliburn competition as an institution, but piano itself, for the next three years. I almost cringe to think that this is the standard of music-making that the Cliburn will represent. Nobu will certainly have a great impact on piano because who the heck doesn’t want to see a blind guy play Chopin etudes? I don’t doubt for a second he will do much for piano. But are they both really ready to be ambassadors for piano? We must keep in mind that classical music is in desperate need of audiences, and we need personalities both at and away from the instrument that can bring them in! Olga Kern is a perfect example. You can complain for days that she is too affected in her music, perhaps too much a diva, or whatever else you’d like to say, but you can’t deny that who she was, who she has become, and her incredible sense of music has brought people to classical piano music that would otherwise have looked the other way. I fear that with a choice like Zhang, we have nothing more than another Kobrin; a boring, studious, and calculated musician with little personality and magnetism. And though the Cliburn is an incredible foundation that will do much to nurture them, I worry that they (especially Zhang) will be burned out when all is said and done. Even Ms. Kern, with her massive repertoire and incredible energy, has spoken of just how universally taxing the time following the competition is.
Regardless of who is happy about the outcome or who is not at all, there are some things to remember. First off, we heard Bob Schieffer and Van Cliburn speak in one evening, both of whom had all of us on the edge of our seats. They were RIVETING, and I think their words were absolutely more moving than many of the performances at this competition. What a treat!
But what is most wonderful is that this competition has engendered such lively debate, excitement, controversy, and dialogue for so many for so long. We must remember that this is a piano competition. When you sit and actually think through that, it’s almost silly to consider! For two whole weeks, what happened in Fort Worth managed to capture thousands and thousands of people around the globe, and for that sort of accomplishment, we will forever be indebted to Mr. Cliburn himself. So at the end of the day, for those of you happy about the results, congratulations. And for those of you not, let’s just be thankful for the great and unbelievable impact this competition has and will forever have on classical music.
June 8th, 2009 at 4:05 am
Sydney International Competition also had online viewing and listening. It is addicting, and a great way to bring classical music into the homes of those who cannot afford or travel to the venues. Too bad these events aren’t live on TV, like sports events. It certainly is a marathon for the players. Next time advertise the webcast more!
As was the case with Sydney, the online comments seem very supportive of Mariangela. This will be a boost to her career, as will Nobu be a boost to interest in classical music. Great event!
June 8th, 2009 at 4:24 am
I am elated that the Jury whose artists who did not abuse the piano itself nor the composer’s work in order to gain audience appeal. They got it right!
June 8th, 2009 at 4:41 am
Well deserved winner, Nobu and Zhang. I can say that Nobu and Zhang are much superior pianists than anybody there. It is so much easier to camouflage lack of their techniques by banging the piano and using arms and facial expression. It is definitely easy to camouflage difficulty of playing by overpedaling. I will never buy concert tickets or CD to listen to ugly and forced sound of piano. (well, with CD it is much easier to hide it, but in the concert, they can not.) In this visual world, I understand why some can be mislead to believe that excitement and passion have to be seen rather than to be heard.Nobu and Zhang, you are the true pianists. By all means, you are the most talented and musical pianist there.
June 8th, 2009 at 4:43 am
This was a choice who valued the teaching more than the individual artistry.
I am congratulating the Van Cliburn for having such great pianists performing at the competition again, and for this fantastic webcast which allowed viewers from allover the world to follow the event.
About the results, I believe they are in line with the history of the competition - with one only exception - Radu Lupu - the winners do not have a carrear.
After the exclusion of the “one of a king” Vondracek, I was expecting to see the excelency and individuality of Kunz, Bozhanov and Vacatello, rewarded, and also the outsanding performing personality of Wu.
Those were my choices.
Nevertheless, I respect the decision of the jury - it is a criteria among many others, but I believe that will not make the competition one of the big ones in terms of future carrears.
Hope to follow next edition, congratulations to all the performers, to Mr. Van Cliburn, the foundation and specially the team of the webcast and the bloggers who made this a true enjoyable edition.
Congratulations
June 8th, 2009 at 4:50 am
Perhaps you may think Zhang’s artistic personality is not as impressive as others, whereas he showed his elastic musical tension and delicate illustrations of phrases, as well as perfection and virtuosity through the whole competition.
In this era of “creativity” and “personality”, what we need is not only idiosyncrasy but an emphasis on spontaneity and classic spirits. Zhang’s performance has no doubt set a great paradigm for all the piano players. Not to imitate his style,but to think of his sincere and noble feelings for music.
June 8th, 2009 at 4:59 am
Son deserves the Gold Medal. Period.
I sense so much politics with the results.
An amazing pianist who is ‘blind’ and a Curtis student.
Someone pushed the button for Zhang and it’s the Cliburn Competition’s fame points for Nobuyuki.
First major competition ever to award the 1st prize for a blind pianist and, well, Curtis…let’s face it, we’ve seen this before.
They both deserved to be a prize winner but Son deserved the Gold.
June 8th, 2009 at 5:19 am
What to say? For me the decision of the jury is a big disappointment. Zhang didn´t captivate me during the whole competition. Tsujii is a great pianist, but yes - there are problems with his blindness, it´s amazing how he plays, but there were better ones: Vacatello, Bozhanouv.
And one more question about Tsujii: is he only blind, or is his disablement more complex? He reminds me of Rainman if you know what I want to say…. Did he really win because he was the best?
June 8th, 2009 at 5:37 am
Discretionary Awards
can someone explain the exact meaning and if they work as individual choices of members of the jury?
The best performers (in my opinion, of course) in the competition got these awards!
June 8th, 2009 at 5:41 am
@theProject- Yes, of course you are right about the alphabetical listing of Tsujii and Zhang. I was mostly noting to myself outloud that b/c of the historic nature of Tsujii’s win, the “world” or media will surely pick up on it and make more headlines about Nobu than the equally [some would say "more"] deserving Zhang.
@Marcus Cato- I appreciated all the insightful comments you made. Particularly about the how piano competitions may be changed forever by the increasing electronic communication factor and what you said about Di Wu. I too believe she will have a very important & successful career, and can forsee her winning future competitions. As a footnote on her- I know someone stated their opinion that even though two [is that right?] jurors had to abstain from voting for her that it would not affect the results in any way. I just wonder…………if that is or ended up being completely true. I pretty much assume so, but still ponder the matter. I think her musical skills may have actually made her the most “ready to receive” the opportunities this competition set out for the medalists. She can do it all imo, is such an engaging and outgoing personality and so consistent. I think she would have been an excellent choice for the gold medal even if she is not perhaps the best pianist of the 29 who came to compete. I laugh at myself in the above statement, as I compare the idea of who of the 29 is the BEST pianist to what of 29 flavors is the BEST ice cream. As if such a distinction could ever be agreed upon or ever should.
June 8th, 2009 at 6:14 am
still disappointed vacatello didn’t medal…best wishes for her
I’d want to listen to Kunz, the american pianist (not beus),bozanov and Zhang in concerts.
June 8th, 2009 at 6:30 am
FANTASTIC!!!! What a wonderful competition. Congratulations to all of the finalists. But also congratulations to ALL of the competitors. To even make this competition is an achievement.
Thank you to the bloggers: Mike H., Mike W., James, and Ken. I appreciate your continuous efforts, historical tidbits, and musical perspective.
Thank you to the “commentariat”. Especially the mainstays who offered descriptive and colorful, vivid posts: Brad Hill, Maestra, Marcus, gnwelch, nate, roger t., dave, scarlatti l., and many others. Eric Z. thanks for your perspective and candid thoughts. Very educational for me.
Thanks to the Cliburn for allowing this forum and for the wonderful streaming feed. Also thanks to the many individuals who helped with the tech details–including Emily at Cliburn admin.
Looking forward to Amateurs in 2 years!!
June 8th, 2009 at 6:34 am
Strange that someone said Zhang will burn out soon. I just read that Zhang first performed publicly at 5 and played the Mozart K.456 Concerto at 6 with an orchestra. He placed first in every competition he entered including the China International Competition when he just made the minimum age limit at 17. If he’s the type who’s going to burn out soon, he would have clashed and burned years back. Judging from his appearance in this Cliburn competition, he certainly didn’t look like he would burn out at anytime which is for certain. He was cooler than a cucumber after each round with his boyish, innocent and humble look.
June 8th, 2009 at 7:28 am
i’m very happy for the nobujuki win.
He’s really a great man and plays also very well.
I hope that I’m going to see him many times
June 8th, 2009 at 7:37 am
So are we going to have a tie for 1st place every other Cliburn competition? A tie is such a give up by the judges. I can’t help but think that Nobuyuki Tsujii got the nod because he’s blind. I know he’s great, but was he really the best? And since the judges knew some of us would fee this way, they decided to have Haochen Zhang share in the gold. I’m glad I didn’t attend in person this time.
June 8th, 2009 at 7:39 am
@Rui
No one is sure… Some are saying that were the 13th of the 12 semifinalists and the 7th of the finalists. We just don`t know…
I agree with you 100% about the technic over music wisdom. Do you belive any of theese contestants could win Viana da Mota competition? No first prize since along time…
I think Cliburn should be about wisdom…
Now that i sleeped over this, i think they just hired two “yes man” Kids, who don`t have a ego, and will make them do concerts until they fisically can. An older competitor can easily start to say “NO” to madness concert tour, playing Brahms 2nd concerto in Beiging and next day New York like i`ve seen in Helene Grimaud`s site agenda!
Did everyone eared Vladimir Viardo in this issue?
He said “Cut your concert engaigments in 50% and learn more new repertoir!”.
I also eared Andrea Lam in the Chamber music prize award, but then Son came up on stage. Did any one noticed anything about that?
June 8th, 2009 at 8:32 am
Zhang - a well-deserved gold medalist
Tsujii - a political throw-in winner
Son - lucky silver medalist
Wu - too mature to get anything
Vacatello - liked by everybody
Bozhanov - a weird facial expression that the judges didn’t like.
June 8th, 2009 at 8:38 am
I’ve been reflecting on the amazing journey we have traveled over the past three weeks. I have read the blogs and refrained from comment up to this point. And although I was disappointed in decision regarding the gold medalists, my comment is more a suggestion regarding the Cliburn blog.
I wonder if the next time around, it might be possible to have two separate blog streams: one for participants who wish to constantly comment, criticize performances, criticize other bloggers, and banter back and forth DURING the performance and another for those who prefer to listen to the ENTIRE performance, reflect, and then comment?
While I often find myself multi-tasking in my daily life, I wonder how it is truly possible for one to become immersed in the music, the musicality, and the magic of a performer’s work while constantly reading and typing? Instead, I chose to purposely avoid looking at any blog comments during any performance that I watched while not in the hall. I feel as if I experienced each performance on a vastly different level, as a result.
This second “dream stream” of mine would avoid, I believe, so many of the superficial and often mean-spirited comments evidenced in the existing blogs, while still offering an outlet in the other stream to those who desire to engage in that type of sport.
That said, many thanks to all who have made the competition, the live-stream performances, and the blogs possible. Most of all, thanks to the performers for enlightening, enlivening, provoking, inspiring, and delighting!
June 8th, 2009 at 9:51 am
I’m disappointed with the results. I stand by my favorites: Vacatello, Boshanov, Zhang, and certainly Di Wu deserved something.
June 8th, 2009 at 10:21 am
Hi Everyone - hopefully someone can anwer my question because something is puzzling me in regards to the awards presentation.
It went rather fast without much explanation of each award. Sometime in the middle, Vacatello was called onstage and I “thought” awarded a monetary cash award. I’m not talking about the internet vote appearance.
Does anyone remember seeing her come on stage and get a large check? If so, what was it for?? The other 3 bottom finalists were not called up so I can’t figure out what this was all about.
Please someone clear this up for me. Thanks!
June 8th, 2009 at 10:49 am
If all of these finalists were together in town, giving conserts six days in a row, I would have gone to EB at least 5 times :-). He is what romantic virtuoso piano style entails + suspense and unpredictabiliy……. therefore I did not even think to place him among medalists in my prediction - contemporary competition scoring system does not settle with it……..
Nobu…… he DID NOT get a honorary gold. This was a GOLD well deserved. If you ask question whether Nobu’s unsightedness limits the range of his repertoire - probably the answer is YES. But, for the competition, he chose the repertoire completely consistent with the requirements of the competition, very well thought to fit his method of playing, at the same time quite formidable and what is most important, he played it beautifully…….. This is NOT the honorary award……………
Zhang……. look at the guy! 19 yo and already so focused! He is perfectionist! His playing was Michelangelian in that respect…… Hard to find 19-year old this disciplined. In other words, excellent “pianistic material” and at the same time very stable “investment material” for the foundation.
What remains is to follow, wait and see how these guys evlove in the future……….
June 8th, 2009 at 11:28 am
Vacatello was my First.
A deep admiration to Nobu - he is a true Hero.
Everything else was screwed. One should not trust competitions - its all wrong!…
June 8th, 2009 at 11:49 am
@hm: Your thoughtful and sincere post says it all for me. I feel a combination of disappointment and fulfillment. Most of all, gratitude and tremendous satisfaction for having participated in this amazing event.
June 8th, 2009 at 12:04 pm
@Cathy M, @Lily, @Gemdandy
I’ve been in the online community business for 17 years, and I have some insight of the challenges faced by VCF when providing community space. The first thing is to be grateful that they do! (As I know we all are.)
The blog had comment moderation in place on the first day. Several people complained, and to the admins’ credit, it was removed (or somehow quickened). Removing or quickening moderation is a risky business in more ways than one, and I applaud the admins’ willingness and responsiveness. (The moderation seems to have been reapplied sometime over the weekend.)
Non-automated forms of community moderation are possible, but you have to be very careful about mandating too much structure, or even oversight. When a community space starts to feel like it doesn’t belong to the people, it becomes unattractive and participants search for another solution. Also: rules and structural divisions are confusing. You can easily end up with more chaos and complaints than by simply leaving the big, undivided space alone.
One issue I would want to discuss if this were my business, is that the official bloggers are lost in the noise. With a community this large and talkative, they cannot possibly fulfill their roles as discussion leaders. It might be worth considering a separation of the official bloggers, who could act as journalists, from the commentariat. It might be feasible to open a Cliburn message board for conversation. A threaded board lends graphical coherence to the noise, making it easier to see your favorite commenters, or your friends, and jump into that part of the overall discussion. The community and admin tools are better than in a blog, and the user experience is better too. The blog could be given over more completely to the official bloggers, whose work would shine forth unhindered.
At any rate, this has been a fantastic experience, and even if the Cliburn makes no changes whatsoever for 2013, I’ll give my life over to it again.
June 8th, 2009 at 1:15 pm
Anyone else notice that the awards were given out in age order? The older the contestant, the further they got from the gold. The classical soloist world is obsessed with the demonstration of genius by youthful accomplishment.
June 8th, 2009 at 2:32 pm
Brad. Amen!
June 8th, 2009 at 3:18 pm
Watching the whole compitition was such a pleasure. It was a great experience…all but the final awards. Wu’s Ravel was miles above Zhang’s. It was like comparing a rainbow to a gray day. I wouldn’t have given Vacatello the gold but I would have placed her above Tsujii.
My results would have been:
Gold Wu
Silver Son
Crystal Vacatello & Bozhanov
other prizes Zhang
Tsujii
They still love those young ones that hit every note (even if that’s just about all they do). Reminds me of Tchaikovsky 1990 when all the complaints startted about the jury. However, it was still great to see it all. Next year I’ll watch everything but the Awards Ceremony.
June 8th, 2009 at 4:29 pm
Will anyone be following Leeds where many of our finalists will be competing there as well?
June 8th, 2009 at 5:32 pm
@Mike : totally agree with you
June 8th, 2009 at 5:41 pm
I don’t know anymore, but even though I said I wouldn’t, one can’t help getting caught up in the excitement of such events and the intrigue and speculation that occurs.
We can all disagree vehemently with the judges and criticize them severely, or agree with them and pat ourselves on the backs for having our own choices validated by the professionals. In the end, no matter how posh and prestigious the Cliburn, it is just eleven people’s opinions. Another 10-11 jurors will be doing the same thing at another competition, although given how some jurors are so popular and get invited everywhere, it’s likely that some personnel will be the same. This might explain the successes of certain pianists who do the competition circuit. Ultimately, it’s all a question of personal taste and preference. Of course assuming that everyone plays well.
We can also bemoan the political side of things, who studies with whom, who likes whom… but
let’s face it, we all are guilty of succumbing to likes and dislikes. Just a brief survey of this blog will reveal that.
Sometimes, preferences have musical validation (though still subjective), but other times, it’s just plain bias, for no reason. Friends will support friends, just as some can do no wrong in the eyes of their supporters. I myself have liked very much the playing of a certain finalist here, but still am not 100% sold because of a personality trait that I feel carries over into the playing, which my rational side tells me is just ridiculous. Then there are issues of personal experience causing us to react in certain ways to someone, or personal perception that leads us to read people a certain way, which may be off-target.
Likewise, even though jurors recuse themselves when they have students participating, would those students not already have an edge having learned from authorities in the competition field, especially repeat jurors in the same competition? I’m not referring to the playing-in-the-middle-to-win mentality, but more how one listens, and perceives music and performance.
On the other side, even though they cannot vote for their own, could those same jurors subconsciously or deliberately vote less for the other contestants, which would help. I say subconsciously because, the other contestants may not play in a style that a particular juror likes, whereas, the contestant that studies with him/her will have assimilated similar tastes or at least reached mutual understanding.
The youth that won are certainly worthy, but
yes, as a dinosaur who has experienced it, there is age discrimination in the field, whether acknowledged or not.
June 8th, 2009 at 7:43 pm
I am so fortunate to have been able to attend all of the semifinal performances. I watched all of the final performances via webcast. It was good to get the different perspectives. Even while in Bass Hall I sat in different seats for many of the semifinal performances, and doing this also gave me a different “feel” (than did the other seating arrangements). All this to say, everyone’s opinion of the competitors is so subjective probably due to a variety of factors. Hearing one of the commentators talk about what the jurors look for when deciding rankings, I learned that they consider all factors - current performances, probable future potential, how a competitor would represent the Cliburn, and even possibly if their rankings will be newsworthy in the distant future. Personally I would rather see just the competition performances taken into account, but I am not a juror and each juror has a right to their subjective choice. One of my favorites from the semi’s, Andrea Lam from Australia, had the most gorgeous sound. Maybe it was due to my seat location at that time. My absolute favorite from the semi’s, as I was seated on about the 8th row in the orchestra, was Son’s performance of impressionist and modern composers. She gave the sometimes atonal music a musicality and beauty few pianists can achieve. Her completely relaxed state, almost trance-like, seemed to put her even more inside the music. Her ferocity (and likely competitiveness) in the Prokofiev final was almost too much yet I found it immensely enjoyable and thoroughly demonstrative of the piece. She was absolutely as ease and in tune with the conductor and the orchestra. So, Cliburn jurors, workers and competitors, a huge congratulations to you all for the overall event, the very successful audio/video and webcast, and the final rankings. After 2+ long weeks of following the competition I am thoroughly spent and thoroughly thrilled by the 2009 Cliburn. Bravo and brava!! Looking forward to 2013.
June 8th, 2009 at 10:43 pm
Anyone still thinks Zhang is too young to win the gold? In this coming Leeds Competition, there are 13 Chinese competitors accepted out of about 75. There is one Chinese competitor aged 15, a couple at 16, a couple at 17 and astonishingly, there is one at 14. Apparently, this 14 year old whiz kid had already won a medal in an international competition in Germany at the age of 13. Haochen may be close to “retirement” age according to the Chinese pianistic longevity standard!
June 8th, 2009 at 10:54 pm
What a thrill it was to see Vondracek recognized. Many thanks to the Jury for its discretionary award that Lukas received last night. What extraordinary talent, what presence! He is to be watched closely for his is a rare gift, in my opinion. He came to the Cliburn to make music and that he did. The pity is that he was not moved on to the semi finals. What he performed in the prelims was pure magic. Rui, I could not agree more. Let’s see what happens June 13-19 when he performs in the international piano competition in Norway. Lukas, your fans are behind you and celebrate with you. We could not agree more with the incredible review written by Mike Winter after your prelim performance.
June 8th, 2009 at 11:00 pm
I definitely think Wu should have medaled at least. I loved her finals performance and her Rachmaninoff concerto.
For me, it would’ve been:
Gold - Di Wu, Haochen Zhang
Silver - Yeol Eum Son, Nobuyuki Tsujii
I’m happy for everyone though! I hope I get to see the gold winners when they come through Colorado for a performance with the Colorado Symphony Orchestra!
June 8th, 2009 at 11:28 pm
In 2001, I believe two golds were awarded as well as two silvers. There is a limit of four medals according to the Cliburn website. The decision not to award a Crystal could mean: (1) none of the remaining competitors was worthy, or (2) they could not really be differentiated amongst in terms of one being the best of the three.
In art there are no absolutes and it’s quite ironic that my own favorites are almost exactly the opposite of the jury’s: Wu/Vacatello -> Boz -> Kim -> Zhang -> Tsujii. I expect that Wu, Vacatello and Boz will all have great careers.
June 9th, 2009 at 12:31 am
@Cathy M- You make an excellent point about how can we multi-task while trying to fully take in and immerse ourselves in each performance. I often fought with myself concerning this issue. There were many times I also would not allow myself to even click on the blog during a performance, but others when either something extraordinarily GOOD or disastrous happened that I just had to hit the blog mid-performance to share and see what other knowledgeable folks were saying. I did try to not be distracted from the performer in concertos when they were playing but confess that I took the orch. only opportunities to glace at blog comments and post if I had something to add. In the recitals I tried to chose my moments wisely if that is possible, lol.
Having said this, I was thankful to have keen viewers posting in the midst of performances b/c they actually could enrich the whole experience at times and make me listen even more or differently than I might be stuck doing on my own. And b/c if the work being performed was particularly LONG- I could remember important points about the performance that I simply would not have fully remembered to note or relate to long after the piece and the entire series of recitals was over. OK, and YES- it did get a little addictive, lol.
I will say, reading and posting on the blog reminded me a bit of my time doing live reports from Staples center in LA for the World figure skating championships, where several would engage in running commentary amongst themselves right in the middle of performances. This of course irritates many purists who find it both completely disrespectful to those around, the performer and the music being played. And as you point out- How can one fully immerse themselves in the performance when doing other things, and for figure skating you miss a lot when you look away. Concerning the Cliburn, I am thankful we have the archives to go back watch with out any distractions as I possibly should have done more of during the live broadcasts.
Finally let me say that while I myself asked for civility on the blogs, I believe the vast a majority of all the comments were thoughtful, insightful, sincere and for me very helpful. And there was a lot of good natured humor going along too. That for me is always an essential ingredient as long it is not mean-spirited and destructive.
June 9th, 2009 at 6:30 am
Benjamin says:
June 8th, 2009 at 4:50 am
Well said
June 9th, 2009 at 8:17 am
@joey c - What you say is quite true. He has accomplished quite a lot for somebody his age, and throughout the competition, he was calm, collected, and sane, which is more than can be said for some of the people that were eight years his senior. But regardless of what preparation you might have before winning the Cliburn, there is precious little that could prepare you for what is to come. The Cliburn is unlike any other competition in the world. Suddenly you are expected to spend three years where your life is hardly your own; you travel so constantly that I imagine you wake up in the middle of the night and have no clue where you are. You give masterclasses, interviews, solo recitals, and concerti recitals, many times on very limited notice. I have listened to previous gold medalists tell stories of having had to learn Rach 3 in six days or Rach 4 in two. I could go on for days giving scenarios and anecdotes, but suffice to say that it is a sort of three-year career that few can begin to comprehend; fun and thrilling, no doubt, but grueling. He very well could be prepared and handle it well despite all the pressure. I was simply conjecturing that it’s possible he won’t, because no amount of performances at the age of 5 or competition winning at 17 can prepare a 19 year old for what is expected of a Cliburn winner musically, physically, socially, and intellectually. Those are things that come from life in all its guises.
June 9th, 2009 at 10:25 am
To all the contestants: THANK YOU for two weeks of great music. THANK YOU Jurors for a perfect result: Tsuji is an inspiration to the world and Haochen is a gift to the world of piano. Humble, expressive without exaggerations, a pure delivery. We have witnessed a rare prodigy. How fortunate to be alive and see it all!!
June 9th, 2009 at 10:47 am
@hm
anyone of the participants has the “possibility” of not being able to withstand the “pressures”. Age should not be the main factor but more on the person’s upbringing, personality and character. i have friends that got burned out at age 25 and some at age 30. Zhang is raised in a very disciplined culture. i strongly believe he will be able to face anything. But who knows, we don’t know him personally. i hope everyone will just wish all the winners the best and not be pessimistic of what they “might” not be able to do. i’m very pleased with all the bloggers that encourage and not “threat” the winners. let’s not be a “sour loser”.
btw, my favorites did not even get to the semi.
June 9th, 2009 at 12:26 pm
# A says:
June 7th, 2009 at 6:41 pm
@Varda: why? Because Bozhanov made even the mediocre piece that is the Franck quintet sound like the most magical and profound creation, while Son made Brahms sounds like something Franck would be embarrassed to have written. Therefore, I think it’s unfair that they are placed in a comparable category.
**********************
Regardless of what each pianist “sounded” like, it seems that you prefer Franck’s music over Brahms’.
Nothing wrong with that, although I don’t think a contest between the two for compositional worth, skill, and universal popularity, conducted from the mid-19th century to our present 21st would yield Franck the ‘better’ of the two. [Just for the record, I love a great deal of Franck’s music.]
Brahms - the master architect, the ardent polyphonist who weaves the most poignant, intimate themes into a classically correct framework - found a sympathetic interpreter in Son’s intellectually driven but also musically responsive hands.
I heard a Brahms Quintet that I think the composer would have been very proud of, especially from the piano’s role.
June 9th, 2009 at 1:08 pm
I realize nobody is reading anymore, but now that I’m caught up on the Finals archives, I’m going to indulge in one final critique.
My disappointment in the results has been sharpened by three performances: Tsujii (solo recital and Rach 2) and Son (Prok 2).
My misgivings about Tsujii’s relatively flat, and sometimes unarticulated playing was borne out in his recital and the concerto. He plays with hands close on the keys, probably out of necessity, and that might be why I don’t hear enough dynamic range during the course of a 50-minute recital. He attains good colors within his range, but that Hungarian Rhap. #2 was definitely not world-class caliber in this age of super-virtuosos. I’m guessing that half the preliminary players could give a more uplifting and cathartic reading.
Son’s Silver medal is more outrageous to me, when Vacatello and Bozhanov are going home without any hardware. Me perception from the start that she doesn’t have a professional-level forte was painfully demonstrated in the Prok 2. Oh my, that 1st-movement cadenza; how she desperately struggled to get on top of that thing, no dynamic resources to draw on, leveraging up from the bench futilely, pushing beyond her technique to get volume and playing cascading smears of wrong notes that would have embarrassed Bozhanov.
Then she whipped into the coda at a bizarrely vivace pace — not sure what happened here but the orchestra was caught flat-footed and the two parties played to the end of the movement *measures* off from each other. It was an absolute catastrophic train wreck. If I had heard this performance with a major orchestra I would think to myself, “When word gets around, this young woman will never be engaged again.” It was that bad (IMO). I’ll just say it one more final time: Yeol Eum Son cannot market the big pieces. She doesn’t have the power.
Just had to put down my final two cents. Still love the Cliburn, and had a blast following the competition!
June 9th, 2009 at 3:45 pm
What is this fixation with Wu? She was lucky to get to the second round, as far as I’m concerned. Her prelims were nothing spectacular. Beus, for one, could easily have been picked over her. Tsujii is a huge inspiration - not exactly a riveting musical personality, but since when has that been needed to win big competitions
Anyways, we shouldn’t be too worried about the performers who may have been snubbed. This competition may make careers, but I don’t think it’s going to break many. If they are truly gifted enough, they will be noticed, they will do well in other competitions, and they will have careers. Getting back to Tsujii, if he is able to attract a large number of people to classical music who wouldn’t otherwise have cared, then perhaps he is a wise choice after all. We’ll see…
June 9th, 2009 at 5:22 pm
To Piano Teacher: I guess you and I were on the same trend of thought in this competition. I’m not a teacher. I was in the classical music management field for decades. I’m now retired. My opinion regarding the winners: No question Zhang will have a good future in his career because he is versatile and extraordinarily gifted. Versatility counts a lot in the classical music industry because there is a limit to how many Chopins or Lizsts one can sell before the market gets saturated. He’ll get bookings in concerts and recordings in the coming half a dozen years at least if he works hard and not succumb to distractions common to young people of his age. Son & Wu will also do well because there is a renaissance of western classical music in the east. Vocatello will have a harder time because there is tremendous competition already amongst European musicians. Boshanov is an unknown. There appears to be a general loss of interest in Russian & Eastern Bloc musicians in the music industry in recent years and it’s continuing. The one I worry the most is Tsujii. No doubt he’s a very fine musician and an artist but his handicap may work to his disadvantage because in people’s minds, he will always be looked upon as a novelty and a curiosity. Once this wears off and as Tsujii gets older, his ability to attract audience and attention may diminish accordingly. Whether we like it or not and I certainly don’t, music will always remain an industry and a business in our society. Musicians will always be valued in terms of their ability to generate revenue by the recording industry and in terms of their ability to sell tickets in the concert halls. Due to receding interests in classical music here in the west, when a classical music recording is proposed to an executive in the recording industry, the first question asked is not how good is the artist but how many records will it sell to break-even. It’s all cold cash that counts, nothing more and nothing less!
June 9th, 2009 at 7:51 pm
@ Brad Hill Re: “Yeol Eum Son cannot market the big pieces. She doesn’t have the power.”
Which, and how many, ‘big pieces’ are usually programmed by regional and community orchestras? How many Prokoviev 2 or 3?
She’s got plenty of “power”, IMHO, for just about anything that
crosses her pianist past.
June 9th, 2009 at 8:07 pm
Brad Hill says:
June 9th, 2009 at 1:08 pm
“I realize nobody is reading anymore, but now that I’m caught up on the Finals archives, I’m going to indulge in one final critique.
Me perception from the start that she doesn’t have a professional-level forte was painfully demonstrated in the Prok 2. Oh my, that 1st-movement cadenza; how she desperately struggled to get on top of that thing, no dynamic resources to draw on, leveraging up from the bench futilely, pushing beyond her technique to get volume and playing cascading smears of wrong notes that would have embarrassed Bozhanov.”
END QUOTE
I thought I was doing final ‘reading’ to see if they published my last post, but coming upon yours, let’s hope this will be the last.
You are certainly entitled to your blistering critique of Yeol Eum Son’s playing, and I’ m going to exercize mine. You said she lacked a “professional level forte”? “…leveraging up from the bench futilely, pushing beyond her technique to get volume and playing cascading smears of wrong notes that would have embarrassed Bozhanov.”
The one who should be embarrassed is not either pianist mentioned. Having listened intently to 27 of the 29 preliminary recitals (and marginally to the other two), I’m not going to mince words: I know what I heard, and Son’s full volume, resonant fortissimos were the first facets of her playing that impressed me, secondarily, her near-impeccable technical apparatus. There are quite a few who did not like her interpretations, and even went so far as calling her “unmusical.” That’s fine too. Except it’s totally incorrect. Her finely tuned shades of mature musicality/musicianship would not be ones to ‘reward’ superficial listening, the kind that hears only an occasional ‘quirky’ turn of phrase, or some sentimental lingering on climactic passages. But, if these things have to be pointed out for what they are (and occasionally we heard them in the otherwise superlative pianism of Bozhanov), then courses in Piano Performance Appreciation should be offered before the Cliburn begins.
For me, the measured crescendos, the resonant carillon-like fortissimos that Son projected (and which I heard clearly on top-shelf, expensive computer speakers) in her Liszt Spanish Rhapsody, The Godowsky Paraphrase, AND the Prokofiev PC #2 were some of the most powerful “sounds” I heard in the entire competition. And if it required lifting her 105-110 lbs off the bench as a catalyst to her achievement of these reverberant sounds, then all the more compliment to her knowing WHEN and HOW to do it.
The cadenza? It was accurate AND thrilling. Were you following with score? I’d really like you to point out to me where you heard ALL the wrong notes. Answer this and I’ll send you my e-mail address. Btw, I heard her rehearsal of this just **4** hours before the performance – a killing happenstance - and I have always said it was measurably better than the performance Also, she was the only participant who had to play all three of her Finals on successive days and with barely 17 hours difference between them. If you are just 1/3rd of a pianist, that should make some kind of dent.
There’s much more that I would like to say about this fascinating, VERY professional pianist, but I too want this to be published before this Blog is shut down.
June 10th, 2009 at 12:37 am
@Brad Hill- You wrote- “I realize nobody is reading anymore, but now that I’m caught up on the Finals archives, I’m going to indulge in one final critique.”
I’m glad you did, that was most interesting to consider. And, actually…… I think people are still reading here and I hope you and many others will come back with further insights and observations to share as the competition and music world moves on and we possible gain more perspective on what went down here compared to what happens elsewhere in the coming months.
For those who ARE still reading & posting here- Now that the 13th Cliburn is over how do you again see its place in the world of piano competitions and the classical music business? What conclusions can we draw about what should change for the 2013 Cliburn? Even though its called the biggest or most important of all piano competitions in the world right now, it is REALLY? Have the results and particularly the musical standard of the concerto round improved or slightly diminished its gold standard reputation among competitions as a result of this latest competition and its results?
Here’s some of what I prematurely think: The general performance standard of the 29 in recital was very high and for the most part very admirable. The decisions made by the jury in who not to move on to the semis may have been the worst decisions of ALL rounds. The Quintet round provided some top notch ensemble performances, along with some less that stellar and even “tired” performances. Major changes should be considered for the 2013 Cliburn: Provide TWO string ensembles to handle the marathon performances. BAN the Piano Quintet for next time- make it either the Piano Quartet or Trio repertoire. Just a thought.
The Concerto Round: Has the Cliburn truly bit off more than it can successfully chew? Is it not time for the finalists to play only ONE concerto, IF they are also going to have to still play a 3rd recital and IF there is only going to be ONE orchestra and ONE conductor used?? With a few excerptions, I think some of the mishaps and poor coordination and play between the Orchestra and soloist was a major embarrassment and reputation-killer in this Cliburn. I know it may not be fair to compare the Ft. Worth Orchestra and the MN. Orch, but when I went to the last MN Intl. E-competition [which starts June 29th] the ensemble playing and performance standard in the Concerto round generally put what I heard and saw at the Cliburn to utter & complete shame. And this is just not right. Something needs to be done and rethought about some of the fiascos we witnessed this time, so that it doesn’t happen again.
Finally- how does the Cliburn really compare to other competitions? For me it truly was the most visible and accessible of ALL the world’s piano competitions. The entry level was HIGH, and I think it admirably achieved the goal of exposing a number of great pianists to the world and getting the repertoire heard, and putting unprecedented attention on all of this. Does it produce the most world-wide stars or launch the greatest careers? Imo-no. If we look at the Chopin competition for example its Gold or silver medallists have brought the world such stars as Argerich, Askenazy, Li, Ohlsson, Pollini, Uchida, Zimerman and others. The Cliburn has brought us Lupu and many other important careers, but may not always have the agenda in focus to produce the next great world-wide stars. And that is probably fine on several levels. As always, it will be fascinating for us to track the short and long-term career development that not only the 2009 Cliburn finalists end up having, but also those who did not make the finals or semis.
PS- Anyone going in person to the MN Intl. e-competition? Leeds? Others of the most important one’s coming up? The MN Intl Piano e-Competition will have ALL competition performances streamed LIVE on the web. [What's New ]
Hope to see many of those who commented here on the forums commenting on this coming competition. Cheers!
June 10th, 2009 at 4:29 pm
A number of people have thanked the Cliburn Foundation here for making this available not only Live and in good definition but also for keeping the performers’ sets available to us for awhile. I saw that the chamber music is back.
To show our support for the Foundation — and for our favorite pianists from this event — we can click on the “Shop Competition Store” at the http://cliburn.tv page and buy the competition DVDs that we can watch on our tv’s in likely better resolution.
That’s good for us, great way to show support for the pianists we enjoyed most (and they do count the number of discs sold), and it gives something back to the Cliburn folks for taking a chance (and spending $$$money) on this great technology.
Before the final days they had counted 45,000 unique accesses to the video page.
So I did buy a good number of discs. Also used the “Email to a Performer” option at far right, top, to thank them and to say why their music affected me.
Thanks to all, I couldn’t be around for the last couple of days for this but got mostly caught up today and it was a great read !
June 10th, 2009 at 4:55 pm
An added thanks to the 4 blog leaders and to Emily for keeping this running so smoothly. It was a huge asset during this event.
It has to do with ’sharing’ some unusually inspiring sounds, and even the ‘uninspiring’ ones were a positive because they came from such an excellent group of pianists, overall.
Some of us also have been riveted and discussing what we heard together, in small private groups too.
It really took over our lives for the last 2+ weeks and it remains a real boon while those excellent archives are here.
(I hope the one-on-one rehearsals come back. I remember the wisdom of the Don Giovanni type advisory. A lot to learn about the performers and what is considered while trying to coordinate the orchestra with the soloist.)
June 10th, 2009 at 8:34 pm
I’m still listening to the archived performances. But I do not watch the video; I just listen to it. I’m surprised (shocked, actually) how different my perceptions are of each pianist from when I watched them during the competition. I hear much more clearly their tonalities, colors, phrasing and interpretations when I shut out the visuals. Most surprising of all is to hear the clarity in Tsujii’s music. I can’t explain why. I urge you to try it, if you haven’t. I think Tsujii makes beautiful, heartfelt music. His tone is pure, his intonation is natural and unforced. Reading the blogs after each of his performance, it’s clear that many, many people were truly moved by him.
joey c. expressed his concern re: public interest in Tsujii’ fading with time. It may be true. People are fickle.
I read an article in Japanese newspaper (Asahi Shinbun) re: Tsujii’s triumph at Cliburn. It reports that he enjoys music compositions, first of which he wrote when he was six years old. He wants to write the kind of music people would enjoy for many years, like those of Chopin and Beethoven. I know one of his well-known piece (in Japan) is called “Whispers of the River,” which he wrote after his father took him to the Sumida River. When his performance days are over, he may indeed focus on music composition. In closing, the article quotes him saying “The challenges I will face in the future will not be born out of my handicap but tackling the work of great composers.” You’ve gotta love his attitude no matter what your personal opinion of his musicality may be.
I, too, enjoyed reading all you bloggers’ comments. Your knowledge and insight made my experience so much richer. Thank you all.
June 11th, 2009 at 1:14 am
I’d be more willing to believe that fatigue was factor in the orchestra and chamber performances if Zhang, Tsujii, and Son’s concerts weren’t so good.
Zhang was nearly flawless. Good for him; it evidences his experience and cooperation. He never seemed to be fighting his partners, even though he had one of the last concerto performances.
Tsujii had only one big glitch — the beginning of the Rach 2, and I suspect his blindness was a factor; Conlon seemed to forget that he couldn’t visually cue his soloist. The situation is unusual, I think all can be easily forgiven.
Son was spot-on except for a touch of rough ensemble in the Prokofiev; Conlon had the same problem, in the same place, with Zhang.
The other difficulties are best explained as nerves, or selfishness, from the competitors. Vacatello raced ahead of Conlon, Wu also repeatedly tried outrunning the orchestra, Bozhanov was markedly different than rehearsals, etc. Okay, you want to win, so what? How about serving the music? My observation, as a performer, is that the scrappiness we heard was often the fault of the contestants, and helps explain why they didn’t medal.
The greatest part of being a professional is to have empathy for your collaborators. The contestants knew the parameters of the competition ahead of time; it is unreasonable to assume that other musicians will follow you with the speed of thought during marathon concerts after little practice. If you want the music to sound well, you must play with the limitations, not at them. This is concert life.
I think that the quartet and symphony did a marvelous job under the circumstances — that is, that they had to accompany some scared, unpredictable, ambitious kids under short notice, with scant rehearsal.
June 11th, 2009 at 10:59 am
Brad Hill, I find your discussion of Yeol Eum Son’s lack of power interesting. Anthony Tommasini made the same criticism of Joyce Yang when she performed the Rach 2 with the NY Philharmonic last year. “[H]er playing lacked the power this piece demands,” he wrote. “There are balance problems built into the score.”
I also remember Stanislav Ioudenitch in 2005 begging James Conlon during rehearsal to lower the orchestra’s volume at the beginning of the Tchaikovsky 1, so he could be heard (see the Van Cliburn documentary). During the actual performance he flailed away and, indeed, briefly got out of sync with the orchestra.
This is probably not the place to discuss these issues, but still: Have we put a premium on speed and accuracy of execution (impelled by competition and recording pressures) at the expense of power and color? How often have I heard a pianist play swiftly and accurately within a sadly limited sonic range? How many times have I heard a lion on recordings turn out to be a mouse in person?
I have heard at least one great pianist from an older generation criticized for his “slow” recordings, but in person, that pianist played with a thrilling orchestral range practically unheard of in today’s playing — with colors and layers of sound, true ppp to fff, trills played as if each note were hitting the bed of the keyboard, etc. Who are the pianists who can play like that today?
Power isn’t everything, or the only thing. But it seems to be lacking in many pianists at the Van Cliburn. Power is one reason Olga Kern made such an indelible impression four years ago.
June 11th, 2009 at 11:42 am
To my above post, I’d like to add that while we are discussing this year’s Cliburn contestants, I have also heard a number of underpowered (and frequently unsatisfying) pianists from older generations who managed to have successful careers.
June 11th, 2009 at 12:24 pm
Tsujii in my opinion did not compete at the same level as some of the others in terms of difficulty of music, command of the keyboard, dynamics, emotion, and stage artistry. While he has accomplished much in his life to get where he is (and I applaud him for this) the competition is supposed to be about selecting the best pianist and stage performer who will become a success while playing at concert halls around the world. I’m sure that some of the other performers like Vacatello and Bozhanov are having a difficult time with the jury’s decision making process. However, the “world vote” did get it right.
There has been a lot of emotional comments and tears about Tsujii and his successes. However, a competition is a competition and the mastery of the keyboard, ability to play difficult and intricate music, showmanship, music dynamics, etc. are all essential qualities that a competitor must possess to win the gold. If one starts to take into consideration extenuating circumstances into the decision making process then the true talent will often be left behind in these kinds of competitions. While I wish Tsujii much success my heart also goes out to the other deserving winners of this competition.
June 12th, 2009 at 12:50 pm
I much agree that both the Takacs Quartet and FWSO did a great job- “under the circustances”. Its the under the circumstances that I might wish to see thoughtful improvement considered in the future. Whether it be schedule adjustment, or in the case of the chamber round a 2nd ensemble to share the load.
And IF there simply must be 12 concerti played back2back2back by the contestants, maybe then eliminate the 3rd recital as I saw many others suggest.
As it seems folks are still stopping by to read and post- for those who did not keep checking Scott Cantrell’s Arts blog, there’s some post-competition fall-out discussed. 1st that nasty Wall Street Journal article, which Cantrell nicely took Benjamin Ivry to task for-
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124458728669699751.html
Hmm Mr. Ivry’s article reminds me of the nature of many judging-rant articles that attended the 2009 Ice Dance competition at the ISU Worlds. ;-). The following excerpt surely would have sparked a highly passionate & spirited response had it appeared here the moment the medals were announced-
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Cantrell’s comments on the article-
http://artsblog.guidelive.com/archives/van-cliburn/
Whatever debate one might have on Tsujii winning gold [I'm personally thrilled he did] and the jury results going back to the prelims, I thought the final sentence of Ivry’s was truly uncalled for.
Of interest also is the contrary view by Bettie Downing on the Music Braille Code that Scott posted. Unfortunately she seemed to have her own slight dig at Tsujii as well writing-
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Ending on a positive note, if I am blessed to have any of the 6 finalists come to our area I will gladly pay to hear any one of them perform. Whether it was most aptly demonstrated in the prelims, semis, finals or thruout, each had their defining moments of brilliance and are amazing pianists.
June 12th, 2009 at 10:31 pm
I disagree with Bob that there was anything wrong with Tsujii’s programming, as far as level of difficulty. I mean, he played Chopin op. 10, Hammerklavier, Appassionata, and two of the most difficult concertos in the repertoire (not that the other competitors’ concertos weren’t just as difficult.) It may not have been the most breathtakingly original solo programs, but I don’t think that lack of difficulty was an issue. I have only watched the first round so far, but from what I can tell, his command of the keyboard was just fine as well. What is lacking for me, at least from what I’ve heard so far, is a strikingly individual voice. He seems to have all of the necessary elements - great technique, nice sound, solid understanding of the music. I just don’t find his playing particularly interesting. He sounds like a nice, solid pianist - but the winner of the Cliburn? I remember that several years back there were a lot of complaints about the “boring” Nakamatsu. I didn’t hear much of that competition, nor do I know his playing since then, but many people felt he was so middle of the road. That type of playing tends to do very well in competitions more often than not. Is this such a case? I don’t know. Anyways, I can’t help but feel happy for him. It seems almost a miracle to have achieved what he has in life. The world is not going to come to an end if the most deserving pianist doesn’t win this particular piano competition (if you happen to feel that is the case). I wish him great success.