Pianists that make it look easy

[revanyoda777]

Name some pianists who's playing looks effortless, and who seem at ease when playing the piano. I've always thought Rubinstein had the most fluid effortless motions when playing. You can name pianists who do the opposite as well if you like Thoughts?

[p2u_]

Rubinstein

Horowitz, Michelangeli, Katsaris.
One of the most remarkable feats that comes to mind in this respect is Katsaris Beethoven Pastoral Symphony 4th Mov (storm). Poor neighbors...
Nice faces at 0:30 and at 1:48, by the way, but it's just theater, of course; nothing really difficult there.

Paul

[49410enrique]

she looks like she could go on for hours and hours, her playing looks so natural and well 'effortless'....
love watching this chick

[ionian_tinnear]

George Shearing.  Always seemed completely effortless.  Amazing.

[adari]

Hamelin, of course. The man always looks completely at ease, no matter what he's playing. I had the fortune of seeing him in concert, a few weeks ago .

Also, Lennie Tristano (of course, being blind may have helped to alleviate any stage fright ):

[black_keys]

Hamelin, of course.

I agree with you and especially his liszt 2nd hungarian rhapsody

[ceapaire]

Horowitz for sure! I saw an informal, home-video once of him playing Vers La Flamme by Scriabin, and at the end of it he laughs and says, "It's very difficult!". I was like: 

Paul Lewis also looks very at ease and reposed while playing.

[landru]

For pianists I've seen in person - Radu Lapu was the most efficient I've ever seen - like a rock no matter what is coming out of the piano. Though that is what makes a virtuoso what they are - they have made things so effortless through practice and study that it is not a burden. That is what I try to do in every piece I approach - "how am I going to make this easy in the end?"

On the other part of the spectrum, Lang Lang makes everything seem outlandish. I've seen him twice, a great Prokofiev third concerto and, later, a Chopin concerto where I think he didn't really understand the music.

[pts1]

I think you're all wrong!

This is the most natural one of the lot!

[piano_vs_science]

 

[kalirren]

Arcadi Volodos all the way.  He has some of the most minimal technique I've ever seen.  Hardly any extraneous movements at all.

Except for his face...oh, his face...

[piano_vs_science]

Valentina Lisitsa!!!
she makes it look so easy that i tried to play like her
but i failed

[lousyplayer]

My first teacher was a skinny small little woman, her fingers floated through the keyboard no matter what she was playing. best pianist teacher I had (most teachers are good at teaching but are bad concert pianists).

[ceapaire]

Valentina Lisitsa!!!
she makes it look so easy that i tried to play like her
but i failed

I think she makes it look unnecessarily awkward the way she hunches over the keyboard  Nice player though!

[p2u_]

If we're not talking classical music, then Oscar Peterson is one of those.
Here's a lesson from the master himself, showing some tricks of the trade invented by some of his colleagues. I can watch that stuff for hours on end. Enjoy!

Paul

[marik1]

If we're not talking classical music, then Oscar Peterson is one of those.

Yeah, but if we are talking of effortless then Peterson is not anywhere close to Art Tatum who is still the king:

Adam Makowicz is quite phenomenal, as well:

From classical pianists I don't know most economical apparatus than that of V. Rudenko. Not that I am impressed with the qualities of his general music making, but the effortless is quite unique and amazing:

 Best, M

[p2u_]

Yeah, but if we are talking of effortless then Peterson is not anywhere close to Art Tatum who is still the king

I agree, but he is "selling" something else. I understood this topic as an outward kind of virtuosity (make it look easy, not necessarily with anything deeper), while the art of Art Tatum seems more internalized, spiritual, I don't know how to say that. What I love about Peterson is that he can show in a very relaxed way how others obtain their effects. Katsaris, for example, also knows how to do this with classical "material" and formulas, although he is not my favorite musician.

Paul

[lousyplayer]

[/quote]

I hate asians, they make me feel disabled! I'VE GOT DISABLED HANDS! I sound like an idiot when playing! aarggggh

[49410enrique]

I hate asians, they make me feel disabled! I'VE GOT DISABLED HANDS! I sound like an idiot when playing! aarggggh

ms yeol eum son is a damn fine, no amazing and incredible pianist , that you feel like that from watching her only makes you normal.  i get the same thing but ilove watching and listening o her , she's tops in my book, i think she should have taken 1st at that thing, 2nd is a good place to be but i'm wating for her to come out on top of one these big ones soon.  i think it's silly little yuja gets so much more press than her. wang is good and all but i prefer this gal's style and sound more. especially her kapustin , it's beyond description how great her variations op 41 are!

she played them at the 2011 comp too

&feature=related

but i think this perf was better, i honestly think on a different day, either she had a bad day or the judges were just feeling or had a crush on another contestant, she would have taken 1st.
my fav yt viddy of thise so far

it's worth bumping the res to 720p and full screening this

[piano_vs_science]

I think she makes it look unnecessarily awkward the way she hunches over the keyboard   Nice player though!

hunching as in schroeder???

that's what i do!

guess i might be the next lisitsa after all

the problem is i'm naturally good at piano but i'm a noob

[hfmadopter]

To me Valentina Lisista makes it look easy and she has such flow in her movements when performing. Here she is speaking about her choice in piano in an interview but some passages tend to show what I mean too:

&feature=related

There are many youtube performances to view of Valentina. She seems to have it all, power, grace, speed, accuracy, transmits feel for the music.

[hfmadopter]

To me Valentina Lisista makes it look easy and she has such flow in her movements when performing. Here she is speaking about her choice in piano in an interview but some passages tend to show what I mean too:

&feature=related

There are many youtube performances to view of Valentina. She seems to have it all, power, grace, speed, accuracy, transmits feel for the music.

I just noticed some others don't feel the same way I do. Oh well. At any rate, she is one heck of a pianist, IMO..

[piano_vs_science]

She seems to have it all, power, grace, speed, accuracy, transmits feel for the music.

yeah... i guess she doesn't really have any other interests or talents besides piano, since she's so good

[hfmadopter]

yeah... i guess she doesn't really have any other interests or talents besides piano, since she's so good

I don't know what her other interests or talents are. I just recently have been watching some of her youtube performances and interviews which are all about piano. I feel she fits the title of this thread in that regard. I had not heard of her till I started looking around online since picking back up on piano work after a long time away.

I wouldn't try to emulate her playing however. I do like it, how she does it though. There is a lot of young talent out there other than Valentina as well that I also was not aware of. I think that's wonderful !!

[wildman]

Yeah, but if we are talking of effortless then Peterson is not anywhere close to Art Tatum who is still the king:

Seconded.

I personally think I will never enjoy any pianist as much as Art Tatum. I do love Horowitz and Rubinstein but being an actual composer on the instrument is still different.

I think very few (if not none) can play as effortlessly as he did, but what really is otherworldly about the man is that he could improvise as effortlessly as he played very difficult passages. What remains a mystery is how he managed to get such astounding virtuosity considering he himself declared he wasn't a concert pianist and his flat-fingered betrayal of the tried-and-tested "curvature" most pianists adopt. Different from Cziffra, an exciting but (subjectively) too showy/vivacious performer.

I don't know what her other interests or talents are. I just recently have been watching some of her youtube performances and interviews which are all about piano. I feel she fits the title of this thread in that regard. I had not heard of her till I started looking around online since picking back up on piano work after a long time away.

I wouldn't try to emulate her playing however. I do like it, how she does it though. There is a lot of young talent out there other than Valentina as well that I also was not aware of. I think that's wonderful !!

Valentina Lisitsa wasn't as young as I thought, actually. Nearly 40 and is married...

Don't like her that much though, to be frank. She plays very cleanly but I think I could do with more elegant or expressive elements...Rubinstein remains my favorite.  

[passagli]

for me, evgeny kissin.

 

[khadsell]

Every pianist is tense - they are use their arms except one....

[alhimia]

Every pianist is tense - they are use their arms except one....

Oh sure...

Let's not forget this:

https://www.pianostreet.com/smf/index.php?topic=2129.0

[martinrdb]

Hamelin, of course. The man always looks completely at ease, no matter what he's playing.

How does he do it? 

Unfortunately youtube seem to have removed his left handed performance of the revolutionary étude.

[asuhayda]

Aracadi Volodos - he takes hard pieces and makes them harder... and makes them look easy.

[bachapprentice]

To me Valentina Lisista makes it look easy and she has such flow in her movements when performing. Here she is speaking about her choice in piano in an interview but some passages tend to show what I mean too:

&feature=related

There are many youtube performances to view of Valentina. She seems to have it all, power, grace, speed, accuracy, transmits feel for the music.

She is one of the great pianists of our time.

[tb230]

She is one of the great pianists of our time.

I don't think Valentina makes it look particularly easy here. If you want a comparison, look at Arrau:

His playing looks SO effortless, and he was 80 (!!) when the recording was made. 

[shaggyy]

To me Krystian Zimerman makes it looks so easy. I think it's because he doesn't 'stroke' the keys, wich some other pianists do really heavy, what makes it looks much more complex.

[charmsjr94]

I'm surprised no one's said Argerich!

She doesn't even look like she's pressing on the keys in this video

[fftransform]

Moiseiwitsch is famous for his composure:

I don't think anybody would say the Tannhauser transcription is anything other than one of the nastiest pieces in the common (or semi-common, I suppose) repertoire.

I'd also say Argerich; she looks nearly bored whenever she's at the piano.  Pletnev is another:

Also Entremont:

I definitely disagree with Katsaris (although I like him very much), Lisitsa (are we still calling her a pianist?), Horowitz and Volodos, however.

Also, the wonderful Ekaterina Novitskaya:

https://www.rtbf.be/video/v_1968-ekatarin%C2%ADa-novitzkaya-urss?id=33551&cat%C2%ADegory=divertissement


And of course, Berman:

[mistresstogould]

Myra Hess