XIV Tchaikovsky competition - my interview

And with this last performance of Alexander Romanovsky (also his last for this competition) we say good-bye to Rachmaninoff and I think everyone in the audience, I know I am, is looking forward to Chopin and Brahms tomorrow. We will hear one more time tomorrow the Tchaikovsky concerto played by Yeol Eum Son.

I enjoyed today’s performances very much, I think Seong Jin Cho played the Tchaikovsky concerto better than his performance of Rachmaninoff, but that’s just my opinion.

I was trying to explain to someone why I picked my favourite. In my view:  

Except for Daniil Trifonov, the other competitors plays absolutely beautiful and with interesting interpretations of the pieces, they all play the poetic, sweet, soft scenarios so emotional with a perfect clear sound that you are tempted to sing along (but then you miss the piano, of course…:). BUT, here and there, at some point they seem to loose the plot a bit and it shows; the fingers looks stiffer and the whole body changes. They get back into it and continue as perfect as before but there was still a disruption. As if the piece was taking control over the pianist and not the other way around. 

And then I listen and watch Daniil plays. Not only that it is so clear to me from his body movements, his face, the way his fingers touches the piano and from the sound, that he is the one in control here, and this does not change between the scenarios. In his way of playing, it doesn’t matter if it is a virtuosic scenario, angry, sweet, naughty, wicked, joyful, sad, poetic, charming, bombastic, or in between, no, it just doesn’t matter. They all seem to be played from the same source and with the same scale of emotions, in kind of calmness (if possible), differentiating the levels of each of these emotions according to the position and the progress of the theme, building it up slowly but surely to high picks of stormy emotions... and now I start to make myself sick from all this gushi mushi emotions propaganda but what can I say, this is what Daniil Trifonov’s performances make me feel. And I loved his Tchaikovsky’s interpretation completely! 

Beautiful colors, beautiful story. Bravissimo!!!

Looking forward to tomorrow!

Coming up next, a short cover of two interviews from this morning's webcast with Ms Idith Zvi, Artistic & managing director of the Arthur Rubinstein competition and Mr Alexander Dimitriev, Conductor of the Russian National Orchestra during the final stage of this competition.

Enjoy!