evgeny kissin

[elevateme]

i just listened to another kissin cd, and when he's not playing amazingly virtuosic stuff i find his playing surprisingly ordinary. does anyone agree that he might be just a bit overrated?

[jre58591]

i just listened to another kissin cd, and when he's not playing amazingly virtuosic stuff i find his playing surprisingly ordinary. does anyone agree that he might be just a bit overrated?

kissin is definitely overrated and  i absolutely hate his playing. i got really pissed off a week ago when i heard him play (if thats what you want to call it) medtner's sonata reminiscenza on the radio. it sucked so much i couldnt stand two minutes of it. it jsut intensified my dislike of kissin. it had already peaked after hearing his rach 3.

[debussy symbolism]

Greetings.

I love his Rage over a lost penny. Ah, If only I could do it at such a speed.

[stevie]

haaha he is often wikid, and sometimes a bit sheet

depends on the repertoire, but he always has a consistently wikid tech

[jre58591]

haaha he is often wikid, and sometimes a bit sheet

depends on the repertoire, but he always has a consistently wikid tech

agreed. i greatly respect that technique, but its almost useless with a horrible interpretation. also his repertoire isnt anything spectacular either. funny, this statement sounds oddly familiar about another pianist. *ahem* lang lang

[brewtality]

I still think he is a great pianist, because some of his recordings are really fantastic. However, I do think he has dropped the ball a bit; his earliest recordings remain his best imho. He can be a bit bangy at times.

[invictious]

His rach concerto no.3 first mov is so boring and slow that i actually fell asleep

[mike_lang]

His Prokofiev Sonata #6 is is one of my favorites - also, his Abegg variations.  I don't know if any of you have read his "liner notes" on the Carnegie debut, but I find him to be brilliant.

Best,
ML

[quantum]

Some recordings are great, some ok.  In general I tend towords likeing him. 

[pies]

Hate him. Why? Jealousy.

[jre58591]

Hate him. Why? Jealousy.

thats part of it for practically any pianist. but i hate him msotly because of his awful interpretations and mundane repertoire.

[Waldszenen]

His bangs and sudden tempo changes can get very irritating.

[elias89]

Concerning Rach, I like the recording of 2nd PC and the Etudes-Tableaux

[mike_lang]

Anyone else find his Rach 3 opening to be oversentimental trash?

ML

[steve jones]

Hate him. Why? Jealousy.

Agreed. Kissin is amazing, I dont know how any mortal could slate him like this!

When he reaches full maturity, he will be something special.

SJ

[brewtality]

Agreed. Kissin is amazing, I dont know how any mortal could slate him like this!

When he reaches full maturity, he will be something special.

SJ

The problem is that he peaked at age 12 and hasn't been the same since.

[jre58591]

The problem is that he peaked at age 12 and hasn't been the same since.

it must be his rumored autism.

[debussy symbolism]

Why is he believed autistic?

[steve jones]

Why is he believed autistic?

The hair probably 

SJ

[infectedmushroom]

I love his playing.


Especially after seeing "Imagine; being a concert pianist", I respect Kissin even more.

[jre58591]

Why is he believed autistic?

its just a rumor, but its probably true, due to his speech.

[sevencircles]

its just a rumor, but its probably true, due to his speech.

I believe Kissin has got Asperger´s syndrome.

So had Glenn Gould and so has Lang Lang.

[stevie]

hahaha, it may aswell be called genius syndrome 

[brewtality]

hahaha, it may aswell be called genius syndrome 

So what happened to you mate? 

[stevie]

random genius 

[journeyyourmind]

I watched his DVD and was very impressed by most things but some are strange like he seems very anti-social which isnt really a quality that makes one grow in understanding. Concerning his music I can say when I bought his Schubert Sonata in B-flat and listened, I thought it was very beautiful and that he understood the piece very well. Sure I've heard some interpretations that I didn't like too much but overall he must be given credit for his amazing technical accomplishments and even for alot of his recordings which are better interpreted than others(no one can be always perfect in every way). He's obviously very dedicated, and I agree that he may very well become a much more mature pianist as time goes on.

I really don't see why one should hate him that's just being ridiculous. Maybe you dislike his recordings but the whole "hate" thing is definitely jealousy as has been said. Remember he's still a person you don't know(im assuming you don't know him here  )

[houseofblackleaves]

I think that people give Kissin a hard time mostly because of his younger age. 

Is it because he lacks lyricism? 

Maybe.

Could it be jealousy?

 Maybe.

Could it be that there really isn't a reason but people give him crap anyway?

Maybe.


Is it his hair??






Most definitely not.

[sevencircles]

People hate him since he is not a very nice person and his ego is huge as well.

[matt haley]

  Its extremely sad to see so many jelous comments with no backing evidence to even criticise him...

  this man is a genius and beyond anything else a remarkable pianist.....

         
 Just because he has probably the best technique ever doesnt mean he is un musical

          its absoulute nonesense so grow up....

[minnielala2]

how on earth do you know that he has asperger's syndrome?

[jre58591]

how on earth do you know that he has asperger's syndrome?

its probably autism actually.

[da jake]

Kissin's most musical recordings were made when he was a little kid.

Whenever I listen to more recent Kissin recordings, I always get the feeling that behind all the pyrotechnics, he doesn't really have a brain or a soul. 

[brewtality]

Kissin's most musical recordings were made when he was a little kid.

Whenever I listen to more recent Kissin recordings, I always get the feeling that behind all the pyrotechnics, he doesn't really have a brain or a soul. 

Either that or he doesn't use them. It can't be that his great musical instinct just disappeared. His recent recordings aren't all that bad. His 'pictures' was good but all of these pale in comparision with his Chopin concerti imo.

[pies]

its probably autism actually.

Isn't Asperger's a form of autism?

[desordre]

 Please!!!
 Kissin is a good pianist. And that's it. Nothing more nothing less.
 Personally, I really don't enjoy listen to him cause he's so obvious, almost boring.
 By the way, Mr. Matt:

(...)this man is a genius and beyond anything else a remarkable pianist.....
 Just because he has probably the best technique ever doesnt mean he is un musical(...)

  I can respect your opinion, but Mr. Kissin a genius? Best technique ever? Our concepts of both things (geniality and technique) must be very very different... In my humble opinion, he just doesn't make a toe of Mrs. Argerich, for instance.
 Whatever, he's not some Neanderthal but I really agree that he's overrated.
 Best wishes!

[minnielala2]

For those of you who believe Kissin is overrated, have you heard him play live in the concert hall? I too dislike his sometimes-bangy sound (though I must say his technique is phenomenal) but I have never gone to any of his concerts (yet). Those who adore Kissin and hail him as a genius are often those who have heard him in concert. Kissin is my piano teacher's favorite pianist, and she describes him as being extraordinarily "giving" in that he somehow "gives" the music to everyone in the concert hall and allows them to experience every emotion, instead of just "playing at" them or entertaining them.

[franz_]

I read somewhere Kissin has a huge ego. This is defenetly untrue.
I have two dvd's of him (Kissin: the gift of music, and the country called music: Eugene Kissin)
You can watch interviews etc. Of course he has a remarcable way of speaking -indeed, autistic- but in a way I like it. He is also very smart. On the second dvd (which is totally in Russian) he tells a poem by a russian autor, all by hard. (? )
You can see hi playing when he was 15, having lessons with his teacher (who tells us that he can only express himself in the music, but it is very difficult to talk with her pupil).
I like the way he is, gives him something more special, I like the autistic personality. Gives him that 'geniusity'.


And, sorry about my English.

[arbisley]

People hate him since he is not a very nice person and his ego is huge as well.

Hmmm, I think this is the type of argument where there would have to be a long disclaimer by anyone to justify his opinion!
It's easy to conceive superficial hate for a person who has some outstanding quality, but from the scraps of information I have had, he seems to be a very VERY shy person, who is actually rather humble about his playing, for instance, not boasting about technique, but saying how he still lacks the courage for Bach. I absolutely adore his young interpretation of Chopin, and here's a link to something more recent wich shows him in a very good light:

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I have read a type of biography about him too, and it seems to me that he got a condensed "life" in his first twelve years, and now does too much playing to actually be able to express emotions with relevant experience of life. He reads a lot of literature and takes solitary walks, and from there you can't really gain a first-hand knowledge of feelings in certain situations. It would certainly do him good to get out of his sheltered atmosphere for a few months at least, but then he wouldn't be left in peace either. He could very possibly have Asperger syndrome, a type of "genius" autism, which leads him to develop such amazing technique, but I think that most mental illness is just an extended form of extreme psycological characteristics.
It is certainly easy to say he is arrogant because he displays his technique without reserve, but then, that is after all (almost unfortunately!) what most audiences want! Pianists with real "greatness" come from a background where they have lived a life in another composer's skin almost, or at leasr have gained information on how they lived. I think he does this well with Chopin, but as to other composers, he seem rather restricted. In my view one truly great pianist is Badura-Skoda, because he is now able to transmit his understanding to others. In that sense it is right to say that Kissin is "ordinary", because he can't relate to people on another level than the musical. It is the only domain on which he receives understanding, and I believe this is where others get angry at his monopolisation of it! The fact that so many good musicians are around who don't get credit because of a technique which is not awe-inspiring in virtuosity and remarkable flexibility is a very good demonstration of this.
So much said, he is a great entertainer, and certainly knows how to impress with his flying fingers, his weird hair, his funny speech..... I admire him for the qualities he has, but don't envy him because he has achievements particularly in that area. Most people lead our lives in a completely different way, and it is not for us to judge the way another person perceives the world from our restricted point of view. I know that I have other areas of interest that can compensate, in a certain way, for the fact that I don't play with world-renowned orchestras at the age of 16!

I hope some of you will take the time to read this, over to you guys...

[sevencircles]

Isn't Asperger's a form of autism?

A mild form of Autism I believe.

[franz_]

for the fact that I don't play with world-renowned orchestras at the age of 16!

12

[arbisley]

12

I was referring to my age now.....

[pies]

I think he'd be just as successful as a basketball player since he seems to be tall as ***. Either that or he likes being around short people.

[superstition2]

His Rach 2, recorded when he was 14, is bad. It's robotic, and not in an interesting way like Helfgott. So far, I haven't heard a Kissin performance I like. I listened to some of one or two of his discs at a music store years ago, and wasn't impressed.