What's wrong with Lang Lang?

[jonathannyc]

Listening and watching Mr. Lang at Carnegie Hall...

I've lived my entire life in easy walking distance from Carnegie Hall, and that is where I have heard him (and nearly every great pianist you can name in the past 40 years). I have no reason to dislike Lang, even if he is not my man. 

That said, some impressions of observing Mr. Lang in person: excepting Arthur Rubinstein, I have never seen any pianist more self-confident on stage than Lang. His entrance was exceptional: he strode forth, stopped center-stage, raising his right arm out like a Roman emperor with the imperial bearing to match, as if commanding his army of worshippers - quite bold and without a trace of humility or charm. That went on for about 30 seconds.

He has more than enough technique to accomplish his musical goals. But, so do many other pianists. He is capable of playing with considerable grace and beauty, as well as tremendous energy and power. That said, his interpretations of larger works were without architecture, playing in the moment without regard to the previous passage or the next passage to follow. Consequently, at the conclusion of any major work, there was a sense of emptiness, like watching a movie that simply ends abruptly.

Most curious; during one lyrical section, as he was playing, he turned his upper torso around, full-face to the audience (I don't know how he kept playing from that angle) and stared down the audience for a full thirty seconds while he leered at us like he was Frank Sinatra seducing the ladies. I've never seen any pianist, Liberace included, do anything that absurdly melodramatic, and I'm afraid I spontaneously burst out laughing. A terriblefaux pax on my part, and I quickly controlled myself. I just wasn't expecting that.

Every performer draws their own audience, and during the intermission, at least a dozen of Lang's fans climbed up on stage to take selfies on their smartphones in front of the Steinway concert grand, as if it were a beached whale or the Statue of Liberty. Again, I've never seen that behavior before at a 'classical' recital, but that accurately describes the attitude of his audience he draws. The overall atmosphere was that of a football stadium.

Over the years, I have the impression that Mr. Lang is basically a good man, very intelligent, and with amazing natural facility for the keyboard. I wish him all the happiness and success in the world. And, I notice that in recent years, he has enjoyed performing his piano transcriptions of Disney movie tunes. So, there we are...

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[eee-_-]

I do not hate Lang Lang , I just believe that he is not a musician , to me he is a performer . I have yet to come across any recording of his , in fact , any phrase of his , that i found musically extraordinary , he is not a musician , but a performer . There is nothing wrong with that , one has to make a choice of whether they want be a good musician , or a good performer in life , lang lang chose the latter , which is completely fine , entertaining people is no easier than producing good music , and he does an amazing job at entertaining people , its just that for an individual who has the ability to understand good music ( for example , your average joe will be incapable of understanding something like mahler , or the even a lot of bach , also he will be unable to appreciate certain details in phrasing and colour an artist shows ) Lang Lang's concerts are rather boring . If u attend a concert of , say , sokolov , that memory , his tone , his phrasing , would stick with you for life , you will be in awe . But lets say in the same concert , you heard some guy play extraordinarily technical and flashy show off piece , sure you will be amazed while listening to him , but that experience will be short lived , it wont stick with you . Lang Lang's inability to produce anything of depth is what makes his concerts boring for me , again being a performer is also completely fine . Also a lot of people hate him out of envy ,  they just dislike that Lang Lang , is so famous and successful in life .

You can be both a performer and a musician too , for example , horowitz ( i personally dislike horowitz , not because i believe he isnt a genius or he produces bad music , i am just more of a rubinstein guy ) , and rubinstein even , but even these "performers" are not as good entertainers and performers as lang lang , his ability to grab attention of common people ( people who are not educated well in classical music and piano ) , is really amazing , thats what made him so incredibly successful . But people who hate him , cant digest the fact that he is so successful even after not being a pianist who can produce music that has depth , so they just decide to hate him .

Now lang lang is not completely incapable in producing music , he is a decent pianist , its just that most other world class pianists completely outclass him in terms of producing good music ( again take sokolov/rubinstein for example , and i am sure if u asked Lang Lang " Do you believe that sokolov/rubinstein/brendel(and so many more) produced music that has more depth than you ?" , he would say yes in a heartbeat ).

[rachmaninoff_forever]

I do not hate Lang Lang , I just believe that he is not a musician , to me he is a performer . I have yet to come across any recording of his , in fact , any phrase of his , that i found musically extraordinary , he is not a musician , but a performer . There is nothing wrong with that , one has to make a choice of whether they want be a good musician , or a good performer in life , lang lang chose the latter , which is completely fine , entertaining people is no easier than producing good music , and he does an amazing job at entertaining people , its just that for an individual who has the ability to understand good music ( for example , your average joe will be incapable of understanding something like mahler , or the even a lot of bach , also he will be unable to appreciate certain details in phrasing and colour an artist shows ) Lang Lang's concerts are rather boring . If u attend a concert of , say , sokolov , that memory , his tone , his phrasing , would stick with you for life , you will be in awe . But lets say in the same concert , you heard some guy play extraordinarily technical and flashy show off piece , sure you will be amazed while listening to him , but that experience will be short lived , it wont stick with you . Lang Lang's inability to produce anything of depth is what makes his concerts boring for me , again being a performer is also completely fine . Also a lot of people hate him out of envy ,  they just dislike that Lang Lang , is so famous and successful in life .

You can be both a performer and a musician too , for example , horowitz ( i personally dislike horowitz , not because i believe he isnt a genius or he produces bad music , i am just more of a rubinstein guy ) , and rubinstein even , but even these "performers" are not as good entertainers and performers as lang lang , his ability to grab attention of common people ( people who are not educated well in classical music and piano ) , is really amazing , thats what made him so incredibly successful . But people who hate him , cant digest the fact that he is so successful even after not being a pianist who can produce music that has depth , so they just decide to hate him .

Now lang lang is not completely incapable in producing music , he is a decent pianist , its just that most other world class pianists completely outclass him in terms of producing good music ( again take sokolov/rubinstein for example , and i am sure if u asked Lang Lang " Do you believe that sokolov/rubinstein/brendel(and so many more) produced music that has more depth than you ?" , he would say yes in a heartbeat ).

Saying he’s not a musician is crazy work lol.

I didn’t know the qualification to be a musician is to be as good as Sokolov, Brendel, Rubinstein, or any other pantheon great.

Does that mean the rest of the population of pianists in the world besides like 20 people aren’t musicians either?

[the_franzliszt]

I do not hate Lang Lang , I just believe that he is not a musician , to me he is a performer . I have yet to come across any recording of his , in fact , any phrase of his , that i found musically extraordinary , he is not a musician , but a performer . There is nothing wrong with that , one has to make a choice of whether they want be a good musician , or a good performer in life , lang lang chose the latter , which is completely fine , entertaining people is no easier than producing good music , and he does an amazing job at entertaining people , its just that for an individual who has the ability to understand good music ( for example , your average joe will be incapable of understanding something like mahler , or the even a lot of bach , also he will be unable to appreciate certain details in phrasing and colour an artist shows ) Lang Lang's concerts are rather boring . If u attend a concert of , say , sokolov , that memory , his tone , his phrasing , would stick with you for life , you will be in awe . But lets say in the same concert , you heard some guy play extraordinarily technical and flashy show off piece , sure you will be amazed while listening to him , but that experience will be short lived , it wont stick with you . Lang Lang's inability to produce anything of depth is what makes his concerts boring for me , again being a performer is also completely fine . Also a lot of people hate him out of envy ,  they just dislike that Lang Lang , is so famous and successful in life .

You can be both a performer and a musician too , for example , horowitz ( i personally dislike horowitz , not because i believe he isnt a genius or he produces bad music , i am just more of a rubinstein guy ) , and rubinstein even , but even these "performers" are not as good entertainers and performers as lang lang , his ability to grab attention of common people ( people who are not educated well in classical music and piano ) , is really amazing , thats what made him so incredibly successful . But people who hate him , cant digest the fact that he is so successful even after not being a pianist who can produce music that has depth , so they just decide to hate him .

Now lang lang is not completely incapable in producing music , he is a decent pianist , its just that most other world class pianists completely outclass him in terms of producing good music ( again take sokolov/rubinstein for example , and i am sure if u asked Lang Lang " Do you believe that sokolov/rubinstein/brendel(and so many more) produced music that has more depth than you ?" , he would say yes in a heartbeat ).

Absolutely agree and couldn't put it better myself. He's a musician, yes, but acts way more like a performer, over the top and usually in a non-musical manner

[ranjit]

Saying he’s not a musician is crazy work lol.

I didn’t know the qualification to be a musician is to be as good as Sokolov, Brendel, Rubinstein, or any other pantheon great.

Does that mean the rest of the population of pianists in the world besides like 20 people aren’t musicians either?

It's an interesting distinction. I would agree with the OP, but it's a matter of intent and not ability. Lang Lang isn't trying to produce the most musical rendition he can but to work with and entertain the audience.

[thorn]

These types of discussion become more interesting as we define our language further:

Lang Lang isn't trying to produce the most musical rendition he can but to work with and entertain the audience.

"the most musical rendition" = a rendition that is acceptable to the majority of critics, conservatory professors, adjudication panels.

I agree Lang Lang does not aim for the above. But why should he, or anyone else, if they're not playing in an exam/audition/competition? Beyond those contexts should we not all strive to "work with and entertain the audience"? And judging by the general decline of classical music in western society- ageing audiences, struggling concert halls, state school music provision getting more popular/tech focused- I think it's safe to say the majority of people do not share the tastes of critics/professors/adjudicators. And the only hope for classical music going forward is to find out what non-academic audiences like, and to cater more to that.

All that being said, Lang Lang is not to my taste. (I'm being devil's advocate more than anything else)

[rachmaninoff_forever]

It's an interesting distinction. I would agree with the OP, but it's a matter of intent and not ability. Lang Lang isn't trying to produce the most musical rendition he can but to work with and entertain the audience.

Nobody who does 175 concerts a year (in his prime) is trying to produce the most musical rendition every concert

The more concerts you do, the less musically meaningful they are (for the performer) and the more commercial they become (for everyone)

I think it’s unrealistic to expect a tear jerking performance every time when you’re playing the same thing over 100 times in a year, jumping from country to country, eating out every day, jet lagged all the time, etc…

[eee-_-]

Saying he’s not a musician is crazy work lol.

I didn’t know the qualification to be a musician is to be as good as Sokolov, Brendel, Rubinstein, or any other pantheon great.

Does that mean the rest of the population of pianists in the world besides like 20 people aren’t musicians either?
[/quote]

Not what i said , there is no set musicality level to be a musician , i was commenting on the intent , Lang Lang focuses on performing rather than playing music , that dosent mean he isnt a musician , it just means that he is more of a performer than he is a musician , and i never said that that was a bad thing , his main intent is to perform , not to produce music , thats the distinction .

[eee-_-]

It's an interesting distinction. I would agree with the OP, but it's a matter of intent and not ability. Lang Lang isn't trying to produce the most musical rendition he can but to work with and entertain the audience.

Thats what i meant, could have phrased it better , i do not mean that he , if he wishes to , cant do music , its just that he chooses to perform , nothing wrong with that imo .