Piano Concert on TV Aug. 25

[donjuan]

Someone posted a message to tell everyone about a concert on Aug. 25 "Great Performances:  All-Star Piano Extravaganza" playing on PBS at 10:00 Mountain Time.  Since it is tomorrow, I thought I would remind everyone.

I'll be watching...

donjuan

[Bachtopus]

Thanks donjuan i will surely be watching it

John (Fellow FP3 owner)

[Spatula]

Most Interesting, I hope that I'll remember.

[janice]

Most Interesting, I hope that I'll remember.

Me too!!  Thanks for the reminder, Don Juan

[Spatula]

Someone posted a message to tell everyone about a concert on Aug. 25 "Great Performances:  All-Star Piano Extravaganza" playing on PBS at 10:00 Mountain Time.  Since it is tomorrow, I thought I would remind everyone.

I'll be watching...

donjuan

RAISES HAND TO SAY A STUPID QUESTION...

ummm its 10 at night right? like 10 PM?  (blushes with dumbness)

[dlu]

Yes, I believe 10 p.m. I love Great Performances!!!! I think I'm gonna tape it. Can't wait...let's have a discussion on it after it airs, like tommorow.

[bizgirl]

Does anyone know who is performing?

[rph108]

Is mountain time 1 or 2 hours later than central?

[janice]

Is mountain time 1 or 2 hours later than central?

2

[dlu]

Here is a description/synopsis from pbs.org:

In just a decade, Switzerland's annual Verbier Festival has become one of the premier international musical celebrations, attracting a who's who of world-renowned artists to the Swiss countryside, in the shadow of the Alps, for more than two weeks of classical music performances. In celebration of the 10th anniversary of the festival, a group of the world's greatest pianists gathered to play arrangements of classical favorites for four to 16 hands on one to eight pianos. Pianists Leif Ove Andsnes, Nicholas Angelich, Martha Argerich, Emanuel Ax, Claude Frank, Evgeny Kissin, Lang Lang, James Levine, Mikhail Pletnev, and Staffan Scheja perform works by Mozart, Wagner, Rimsky-Korsakov, Smetana, Sousa, and Gottschalk. Also featured is Bach's "Concerto in A Minor" for four pianos, performed with the Verbier Birthday Festival Orchestra: Renaud Capuçon, Sarah Chang, Ilya Gringolts, Gidon Kremer, Vadim Repin, Dmitri Sitkovetsky, Christian Tetzlaff, Nikolaj Znaider, Yuri Bashmet, Nobuko Imai, Mischa Maisky, Boris Pergamenschikow, and Patrick de Los Santos. Michael Kimmelman, chief art critic for THE NEW YORK TIMES, hosts the telecast.

Perhaps Switzerland's tony ski resorts of St. Moritz, Gstaad, and Zermatt are more widely known, but the attractions of Verbier extend beyond skiing to include its annual summer classical music festival. The dream team of pianists performing together on the same stage at Verbier is a rare sight, and one perhaps more common to concerts from past centuries. Learn more about the origins of this type of piano extravaganza in the essay by writer Marc Geelhoed. Meet one of the evening's noted international piano stars, Leif Ove Andsnes, from Norway, in Dialogue. Lastly, see all the works featured in the program in the song list.

[donjuan]

RAISES HAND TO SAY A STUPID QUESTION...

ummm its 10 at night right? like 10 PM?  (blushes with dumbness)

10 PM

(just turn on the TV in.....3.5 hrs!!! )

donjuan

[amanfang]

Awesome!!!  I must say I liked the Stars and Stripes Forever the Best.  And the Bach.  I probably liked the Wagner the least.  But I thought it was quite an enjoyable program.  That must have been a lot of fun for the performers!  

[Nana_Ama]

Does anyone know who is performing?

Leif Ove Andsnes, Nicholas Angelich, Martha Argerich, Emanuel Ax, Claude Frank, Evgeny Kissin, Lang Lang, James Levine, Mikhail Pletnev, and Staffan Scheja

It was interesting... I noticed they played a lot of patriotic American music.  I liked it though

[janice]

Oh shoot!!  I totally forgot!!  Does anybody know if it will be aired again?  If so, please post.  Also, if anybody knows of any sort of piano-thingy that will be airing on PBS, could you please post it?  Thank you so much!!

[bizgirl]

It's on right now (9pm) central time if anyone just happens to be reading this.  Mountain time is is only 1 hour behind central time.

[Nana_Ama]

Oh shoot!!  I totally forgot!!  Does anybody know if it will be aired again?  If so, please post.  Also, if anybody knows of any sort of piano-thingy that will be airing on PBS, could you please post it?  Thank you so much!!

Well, you can go to http://www.pbs.org and buy it on DVD for $19.95, but I don't think it's worth it.  They will probably air it again so dont worry!

[donjuan]

Geez, sounds like everyone here has seen it... I still have to wait an hour and 10 minutes.

[allchopin]

The showing varies from location to location - for instance, it did not come on at all here (11 PM central, which is 1 hour ahead of mountain time) because PBS was broadcasting different programming.  PBS is broadcast nationwide, but not synchronized.

[donjuan]

WOWOWOWOW!!!!! That was one of the most amazing things I have ever seen!  I am so glad I recorded that.  My favorites were the Stars and Stripes forever and Flight of the Bumblebee.  Wagner was ok, but I thought they could have done more than just tremolos with it.  It was so much fun watching Lang Lang play!!  Thunderous hands!

donjuan

[Spatula]

WOWOWOWOW!!!!! That was one of the most amazing things I have ever seen!  I am so glad I recorded that.  My favorites were the Stars and Stripes forever and Flight of the Bumblebee.  Wagner was ok, but I thought they could have done more than just tremolos with it.  It was so much fun watching Lang Lang play!!  Thunderous hands!

donjuan

Now that was impressive.  Even seeing low-profile performers play those pieces would still impress me.  Now that they've thrown in Ev Kissin, Martha Argerich, and Ax, etc it was spectular.  It's also cool to see how they "act " and talk.  I found Lang Lang was the most excited, while Kissin was the most decisive in his playing (nevertheless I bet he still enjoyed it), and James Levine (the dude with the afro) had a solemn but veteran face whilst performing.

I never knew nor heard Kissin speak but he has a SUPER low bass voice for a medium sized man like him.  He kinda speaks like Rowan Atkinson I think in my opinion.

All in all I wish it was a 2 hour spectacle, but then I'd be dead tired for work the next day.

[donjuan]

I never knew nor heard Kissin speak but he has a SUPER low bass voice for a medium sized man like him.  He kinda speaks like Rowan Atkinson I think in my opinion.

You should rent the video/dvd "Great Pianists of the Twentieth Century".  I managed to find it at my local library.

You can hear more of his Rowan Atkinson talk on this video.

[Spatula]

You should rent the video/dvd "Great Pianists of the Twentieth Century".  I managed to find it at my local library.

You can hear more of his Rowan Atkinson talk on this video.

LOOLOLOLOLOLOL will do will do.  I wonder how Horowitz spoke....  

[donjuan]

You have never heard him speak?  Well, you wont find that on the Great Pianist's video.  Try for "Horowitz: The last Romantic" or something like that....

You can also hear him talk in the Moscow concert video.  He has a super deep voice and thick Russian Accent.

[Spatula]

Why not go up a notch and get the DVD of:

“Kissin: The Gift of Music” (a documentary by Christopher Nupen)

Then you can listen not only to his Rowan Atkinson voice, but look at his Eraserhead hairdo and witness his playing as well!

Best wishes,
Bernhard.

I know guys don't say this cause people will think they're like "GAY!" but Kissin's picture on the 1984 Moscow Concert looked super cute.  His super curley hair was so nice when he was like 12.  

um ...yes maybe he still sounded like the BEAN

[donjuan]

I know guys don't say this cause people will think they're like "GAY!" but Kissin's picture on the 1984 Moscow Concert looked super cute.  His super curley hair was so nice when he was like 12.  

um ...yes maybe he still sounded like the BEAN

Hey I remember that picture!  yeah, he was a cutie- now he kind of looks like (and talks like) a frog.

[Spatula]

Martha A still looks like the strict "Gr 5 teacher" even till today.
And I think James Levine looks more like an energetic math professor than a pianist.
Of course I just look like some hot shot jock, which I am really not.

The lesson today, boys and girls, is that looks are deceiving.  

[donjuan]

hey Martha Argerich was pretty hot when she was younger...

[rph108]

crap, I missed it.   I knew I would.

[Spatula]

hey Martha Argerich was pretty hot when she was younger...

I think every (well 70%) of girls look hot when their 18....

But damn Martha can play the piano.  I'd love to be her student (she'd prolly make me do hanon and technique 5 hrs a day)

[Rob47]

NO MORE LANG LANG BASHING!!!

I know a lot of people on this forum thoroughly enjoy Lang's performances, but I know a lot of pianists criticise him as a technician with no meaning to his playing.

I had never seen him before watching last night's "Extravaganza", but wow what an exciting performer!!  He looked crazy playing out there! He's an extermely exciting performer.  Anybody seen any solo concerts of him?  Is he always that into his playing?

your friend

Rob

[DarkWind]

I actually like Lang Lang. He is very into the music and has a very bravura style of playing. Anyways, I think the intro was one of the best. The fact that they all played in perfect unison The Flight of the Bumblebee was just insane. And The Union by Gottschalk was awesome because the parts were more diverse. I loved all the pianists on that! It was a great performance .

[donjuan]

There was a part or two when Yankee doodle was going that Lang Lang was getting all happy!  It's so fun watching him play and then watching the old guys like James Levine with his poker face.

[Spatula]

It's not I don't like Lang Lang, it's just I personally perfer Ev Kissin.  

[benji]

Did anyone else think it looked like Kissin was trying to talk at times, esp. the duet w/ Argerich? I know it's an unconscious thing, but it still was a little distracting...

[Spatula]

Did anyone else think it looked like Kissin was trying to talk at times, esp. the duet w/ Argerich? I know it's an unconscious thing, but it still was a little distracting...

Argerich kept making "fishy fishy" mouth movements like she was a fish or a frog, but I bet especially during the Bach concerto that she was in fact keeping counting physically, the lip movement, and that helps the mental metronome in the noodles.

I saw it more in Kissin's movement in his eyes though...

[stevie]

um, 1 year anniversary

i still havent seen this!

[apion]

um, 1 year anniversary

i still havent seen this!

Why the F _ _ K would you reintroduce this stale thread? 

[stevie]

well, it may appear random, but im wondering if its worth buying the DVD

[BoliverAllmon]

Crap. I read this entire thread. I thought it was recent and was hoping it would air again soon. dang it it is over a year ago.

boliver

[stevie]

hahaha, indeed boliver.

i want to see it too

[donjuan]

haha oh look, Im still here a year after starting the thread!  Yes, it was truly amazing! Imagine..... some of the greatest living pianists playing 8 pianos, playing one big piece together..

[mr. folsom]

I'd recommend it as well. There isn't a particularly standard rep (I know that doesn't concern you), but it's interesting to learn about the engineering involved in coordinating the pianos and plus 8 piano Gottschalk is always a spectacle, but mind you, not merely so.

[stevie]

hahaha yeah it sounds really cool! 

[Alde]

Unfortunately local PBS channel will not air this program.  I live in Windsor, Ontario (across from Detroit, Michigan).

[donjuan]

Unfortunately local PBS channel will not air this program.  I live in Windsor, Ontario (across from Detroit, Michigan).

of course not! it was on a year ago, genius!