Is Dmitri Sgouros the worst pianist ever?

[elevateme]

ok his technique is fabulous -  but his musicality is non-existant

does anyone else agree??

im sure there are videos on youtube of him playing - the liszt sonata is especially bad

ive attached scarbo - the 2nd climax will show you what i mean

I think Rubinstein said he was the best pianist he'd ever heard or something but apparently he was in his nineties at the time?

[opus10no2]

No, he is obviosusly very talented but after his teens it appears he randomly got bored with music.

However during his teens be played with terrifying ferocity and great energy, look up those videos..

[debussy symbolism]

No, he is obviosusly very talented but after his teens it appears he randomly got bored with music.

However during his teens be played with terrifying ferocity and great energy, look up those videos..

Greetings.

What is this about "best" and "worst" pianists threads circling the forum? If they are even somewhat famous and or have their videos available, then they cannot possibly be claimed as the "worst" pianists.

[elevateme]

ok - but hes total crap

[debussy symbolism]

ok

Define "Crap."

[elevateme]

bad, awful, poor, rubbish, you know what crap means right? where are you from?

[csy]

He was a real genius before, performing Rachmaninoff Third Piano Concerto with real power and fire. Arthur Rubinstein even gave his golden watch to this kid. But somehow he turned his attention to composition for a few years.
And obviously he does not play as well as he did 10 or 15 years ago.
I am also shocked to watch some of his videos on youtube.  

[debussy symbolism]

bad, awful, poor, rubbish, you know what crap means right? where are you from?

I didn't mean a literal definition. I meant that calling someone as the "worst crap" is misleading, given that this pianist is definately not bad. Concerning the musical quality of his playing, it is not possible to judge him on that simply because there are good and bad days, and each interpretation is the best in the eye of the beholder. What sounds as "crap" to one may not sound as crap to another.

[elevateme]

what do you think of him?

[csy]

I agree.
But on the general level, Sgorous's performance deteriorated.

I didn't mean a literal definition. I meant that calling someone as the "worst crap" is misleading, given that this pianist is definately not bad. Concerning the musical quality of his playing, it is not possible to judge him on that simply because there are good and bad days, and each interpretation is the best in the eye of the beholder. What sounds as "crap" to one may not sound as crap to another.

[csy]

I think his is at least better than you.... 

what do you think of him?

[elevateme]

lol. but then again im not famous

[musicsdarkangel]

his Rach 3 is pretty great

[etudes]

he was famous also because of his ablity to gain the big repertoire since he was young
i think when he was around 13 he has complete beethoven sonatas,chopin and liszt works
and 50 concertos... which def something for that age

[nanabush]

That seems like a bit of an exagaration...

[nicco]

He was one of those who would sit and listen to a refrigerator, fascinated by its sound.

[tompilk]

He was one of those who would sit and listen to a refrigerator, fascinated by its sound.

like listening to xenakis? interesting for some strange reason?

[kreso]

I listened him in Zagreb last year (2006) when he played Rach 2. It was very stupid interpretation-totally without feelings and music itself... technically good but very boring....

[dnephi]

My puppy is the worse pianist.

[imbetter]

i think personaly lang lang is worse

[kreso]

i think personaly lang lang is worse

Sgouros is 100 times worse. Trust me! I listened them both live...

[jakev2.0]

Sgouros epitomizes the problems with child prodigies.

[mcgillcomposer]

Define "Crap."

The odorous brown substance that comes out of one's anus.  (uncalled for? probably)

[amadeuswebern]

No, Dimitris Sgouros is definitely NOT the worst pianist ever. He used to be a great pianist. I don't know what happened to him afterwards. Listen to this for example (Chopin's Etude op. 25 no. 1 from the 1989 Sydney Opera House concert). It's one of the best.

https://www.soundclick.com/bands/page_songInfo.cfm?bandID=224895&songID=1554830

[point of grace]

mmm i dont think he is worse than bang bang, but i really do not apreciate what he does with the piano (for instance his performance of Prokofieff 3rd piano concerto)

[magio]

He is a great talent !!!! And many great pianists have said that before.And all of you that struggle to blame him you couldn't play even a single note of Rachmaninoff's concer. when you were 12 years of age!Think about that
DIMITRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII
You are the best
GREECE
LOVES U
!!!
 

[annasantora]

I don't believe a "best ever" or "worst ever" pianist exists, as art is so subjective.

The fact that Sgouros continues to perform at major festivals and with high level orchestras (e.g. Beijing Symphony, BBC Symphony) shows that he never withdrew from the concert circuit, as happened to many prodigies citing "burn out".  It is true that his concerts are no longer accompanied by the hoopla and publicity of his prodigy salad days, but this is to be expected, and doesn't make him any less of an artist. 

I personally heard Sgouros play a Rachmaninov Concerto in Luzern back in the 1980s and it has stayed in my mind as a memorable experience.

Fast-forward to 2011 and Sgouros gave the opening recital of the Newport Festival in Rhode Island, on July 8th.  I caught a part of this concert via the live Yamaha webcast!   

(Their streaming of Newport is now over, currently they are broadcasting some IKIF masterclasses... David Dubal is coming up in a few hours)

At Newport, Sgouros programmed Beethoven, Chopin in the first half, and Liszt in the second.  And it was captivating.  He is playing as well as ever - if anything he is even more mature than what I remember in the mid-1980s.  He has kept intact a wondrous dexterity, harnessed to a fine artistic sensibility and musical intelligence.  Moreover his art is frequently a subtle one - witness his stirring performance of Chopin Ballade #4 given at Newport.

A review of the 2011 Newport concert has already been published - https://www.sgourosmp3.com/sgouros_newport_review_2011.html

Very positive.  He apparently also performed Prokofiev's 3rd Concerto with great success in the Ukraine over the past year, the critics remarking on his strong "rhythmic drive".  Similarly glowing notices for his Beethoven Third Concerto and the BBC Symphony under Belohlavek in 2009.

Of course, there are critics and there are critics.... but one can make up one's own mind on these matters and there are plenty of examples of his playing to be found on the internet.

And this leads to the subject of youtube....  I tend to approach youtube clips with some wariness, since I feel they often only "approximate" the sound of an artist in real-life, especially those filmed in the pre-digital age and passed down as 2nd and 3rd generation VHS copies! 

This is especially true of Sgouros, whose playing is characterized by lots of fine gradations, as opposed to the sharp, jarring contrasts you get with some others. 

Pianists with a highly percussive touch tend to come over better on poor quality youtube clips, since they make obvious contrasts that you can't really miss. 

But Sgouros doesn't go for the "obvious" strident effects nor the sudden dynamic swings, and to fully appreciate his playing one ideally needs a good quality recording that mirrors the delicate nuances and modulations of touch.... (Yulianna Avdeeva is another pianist in this category... many people said she didn't deserve to win Chopin Competition... and their judgment was based solely on internet streaming!  I heard most of the webcasts and they don't do justice to her style of playing at all.  The jury who heard her in person - the likes of Argerich, Ts'ong etc. - were duly impressed)

Going back to Sgouros.  There is a very fine recital film from Munich's Philharmonie that is available in high quality from the classicaltv site.  I also downloaded his Chopin Ballade 1 from sgourosmp3.com (in 320kbps mp3) and that interpretation is simply awe-inspiring, and fortunately in very good sound as well.  Here is the link to that one - https://www.sgourosmp3.com/chopinballade1.php

Maybe worthwhile to audition this, without any pre-conception of the "prodigy" or "ex-prodigy" !  This is playing at a very high level, regardless of age or whatever...

Anna

[lelle]

Posts: 1

hmmm

[pianoplayjl]

No, he's not. There are many people out there worse than Sgouros. Take me as an example.