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BBC Young Musician 2018

Stunsworth

pfm Member
Starts tonight on BBC4 - started 15 minutes ago to be accurate.

The musicianship of these young people is always outstanding.
 
The guitarist for me. I was going to say ‘or possibly the cellist’, but as Alison Balsam said there were tuning issues.
 
All great, but I’d have picked the double bass bloke, as much as anything because I had no idea there was much repertoire for it outside of jazz!
 
The 16 year old pianist, Lauren Zhang, who won playing Prokofiev Piano Concerto 2 tonight was just incredible. Really astonishing. Huge top-billing career ahead for that one for sure.
 
Definitely catch it on iPayer. They showed the full four movement concerto (she played last of the three finalists) and to my eyes/ears just nailed it. A phenomenally difficult piece of music which apparently most top pros steer clear of until much later in life, and this 16 year old just made it look easy. No music, all from memory. She knocked it out of the park to such an extent I felt sorry for the other two. From the first movement it was obvious something very special was occuring that was just on another level. If I was a classical record label I’d be trying to sign her right now.
 
Lauren Zhang was on another level entirely from the other two finalists, she completely inhabited Prokofiev's 2nd concerto and made it utterly compelling and coherent, anything less than a great performance in that concerto can render it as a ramshackle mess. Great work from the the CBSO and Mark Wigglesworth too.

Not like 2 years ago where I thought saxophonist Jess Gillam was every bit as good as the winner Sheku Kanneh-Mason, this year it was absolutely clear-cut.
 
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I completely agree with Tony L and alanbeeb. I thought the performance astonishing for someone so young. I am just imagining what we may get to hear in future as her talent develops.
 
I felt it astonishing period. I tend to have Young Musician on whilst I’m browsing eBay or whatever on my iPad, same with The Proms to be honest. Pretty much from Zhang’s first note I’d turned it off and was just staring in disbelief at the TV and sound coming out of the La Scalas. It is not a piece I know well at all, but she totally sold it to me. I guess I need to hunt down Richter, Ashkenazy or whoever playing it for a benchmark, but I had no hint that she wasn’t at that level. I was actually trying to work out where she had left to grow as a musician, I guess she just needs to learn a substantial repertoire, she doesn’t need to play any better!
 
Totally agree with all the comments above about that stellar performance; as has been said, a phenomenally difficult concerto to play and, in some places, to listen to!!
Managed to get the finalists in each section completely wrong....except Ms Zhang! I was beginning to doubt my musical 'prowess' in predicting winners until last night! BUT: they were all excellent, just she was truly AWESOME (to quote the youth!).
 
I haven't really been following this year's competition, but Mrs H has, and she tells me that the consistent advice to the winner was that she needed to 'emote' more, as she was coming across as a bit 'robotic'. Either she followed the advice, or her playing did the emoting for her!
 
I don't think Sviatoslav Richter ever recorded Prokofiev's 2nd concerto. Can't see any recording of it by Martha Argerich either. Many great pianists have avoided it, even if their performances of other Prokofiev piano concertos have been acclaimed.

I can definitely recommend Freddy Kempf's recording with Andrew Litton/Bergen Philharmonic on BiS - And Freddy Kempf was the BBC Young Musician of the Year 1992.
 
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Yes: a bit lacking in the ability to communicate verbally! But musically: wow!
It was really good to see Humphrey Burton and Roy Tipping being interviewed. That brought back memories!
To be fair, the Creston alto sax concerto was an eye-opener as well!
 
I don't think Sviatoslav Richter ever recorded Prokofiev's 2nd concerto. Can't see any recording of it by Martha Argerich either. Many great pianists have avoided it, even if their performances of other Prokofiev piano concertos have been acclaimed.

I can definitely recommend Freddy Kempf's recording with Andrew Litton/Bergen Philharmonic on BiS - And Freddy Kempf was the BBC Young Musician of the Year 1992.
My personal reference performance is Horacio Gutiérrez with Neeme Järvi / Royal Concertgebouw on Chandos. I think it's an excellent performance but it's the only recording with which I am familiar. A matter of personal taste, of course. But I certainly enjoy Freddy Kempf, in general, too.

I think the BBC Young Musician programme, and its follow-up with winners, provides an excellent mechanism to help new talent to emerge and develop.
 
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I haven't really been following this year's competition, but Mrs H has, and she tells me that the consistent advice to the winner was that she needed to 'emote' more, as she was coming across as a bit 'robotic'. Either she followed the advice, or her playing did the emoting for her!

That was Nicola Benedetti in the semi final. Zhang's reply was understated but gave the impression she had no intention of taking the advice - that makes it sound a lot ruder that it actually was.

I have the Ashkenazy/Previn version of the complete piano concertos, though I haven't listened to them for ages. Only £6 for the set from Amazon...

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0000041LA/?tag=pinkfishmedia-21
 
This site contains affiliate links for which pink fish media may be compensated.


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