Pianistic Declines

[zpianist]

[deleted]

[adodd81802]

All about Yundi Li?

"Returning to Carnegie Hall, Li will tour in 2015 with the National Youth Orchestra of the United States, as a featured soloist."

Doesn't sound like a decline to me?! Admittedly, it seems the performance was not good.. but what evidence have you got of his decline?  

"Cliburn performed and recorded through the 1970s, but in 1978, after the deaths of his father and manager, began a hiatus from public life"

Sounds like a suitable reason for a "decline", in fact what do you class as decline? Not being on the stage, not being center of attention?

[tinyking12345]

Pogorelich!
He was such a good pianist in the 20th century, but these days his piano playing is nowhere near as good as it was before. He plays most things sooooo slow...

[zpianist]

All about Yundi Li?

"Returning to Carnegie Hall, Li will tour in 2015 with the National Youth Orchestra of the United States, as a featured soloist."

Doesn't sound like a decline to me?! Admittedly, it seems the performance was not good.. but what evidence have you got of his decline?

Well I was thinking of this.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x7MhAgH5HvU and https://slippedisc.com/2015/11/breaking-yundi-crashes-out-of-chopin-concerto/ (yes, Norman Lebrecht is a terrible journalist, but you get the idea of what happened)

And Yundi has associated himself much more with actors & singers than with classical artists... He gets into messy business and aggressively clears up the gossip and rumors circling around him on his Weibo (Chinese Facebook) page. Fun fact: he actually SANG a Chinese pop song at a concert

[adodd81802]

Hm, I don't disagree with your points.

But the two examples we have discussed so far, both have a common theme where we have commented on the mental state of the pianist being either affected or unstable.

Maybe that's why. Piano playing is equally about the fingers as the brain, and why even their worst performance could be better than one of our best, it doesn't compare to the guys at the top of their game.

Plus pianists peak, just like a footballer, a singer, a driver, they all require very different aspects mentally and physically, but everybody peaks, and unfortunately it can be difficult to deal with the decline.

[rubinsteinmad]

Lola Astanova?
Age 12:

Adult:

[zpianist]

[deleted]

[rubinsteinmad]

Holy sh*t! The op. 62 no. 1 was so mature for a 12-year-old. That probably represents the best of the best in the Russian central schools...
I don't think she can play with as much depth as she did in that one recording...

IkR? I wonder if that video is a fake? (I mean, it doesn't show her actually performing the piece.)

But probably not. She  placed 3rd at the Moscow International Chopin Competition for Young Pianists, which is the most prestigious Chopin competition for youth, no question.