Niespotykana jakość! #januszbielecki

Hello. There will always be someone else to play for free or underpayed, that is one of the reasons why the gages are so low. Because music is a "passion" you know... and there is 0 solidarity amongst musicians other than connexions and relationships. About competitions : musicians SHOULD NOT go to competitions, supporting this system ! I'm waiting for a documentary with hidden camera that reveals the internal corruption and frauds to the public. There are other ways of playing and getting concerts. By going to a competition you basically feed this system of corruption and you not doing yourself a favour. When are professional classical musicians going to wake up ?

❤ merry Christmas and a happy New Year 🎉

After listening to this long rant I have come to one conclusion, get another job lady 😊

Bravooooo❤

Bravo, you played this not so easy concert quite well ( which I didn't expect after listening your practicing video ). Anyway you've got still a long road before you. Wish you good luck and all the best ! ( A better accompaniment could help too ) I think, it's not a really good idea, to play like an arranged jazzy version of Mozart, especially not alla turca. No Jazz pianist would ever play unrelaxed like this, sorry. It's just not swinging.

Most of the people meeting here seem to live in the 19th century ( or even before ) and don't realize, that it was such a big difference playing as a professional musician in those times. What we today call classical music was then totally exiting, fresh and new to those audiences, which were exclusive high society. Those days are long gone... The most important music of the 20th century ( and it's already gone too ) was Jazz and its many related styles of modern music. 1970 Jazz was like already dead in its development, classical music was dead at some time between WW1 and 2. When do all of you want to accept that? Can't you really see, that actually most of you are privileged without even noticing it? One more word : I got 20 piano lessons from an old professional pianist in my life, studied later on Jazz trumpet in Graz/Austria ( earning 1000 DM in the summer in Bavarian beer tents, which made me getting by the first 3 months ). I could get stipendia, but I preferred to earn my money on the stage. I played trumpet in Show Big bands, Jazz bands and Salsa bands ( all of this is like hardest work in the "Bergwerk" - a mine ), then I got my first jobs as a piano player in restaurants, hotel bars, in "dancings" in Switzerland and so on. At the end I was able to play classical piano music in theater productions, in cinemas - accompanying silent movies, playing together with singers or with choir. I was on tour with several acts, best of them being musical Hair ( as a trumpet player, but they wanted me to play piano too, if needed ). In between of 2 tours I got the chance for playing a classical piano concert program. I said yes, practiced less than a week and played my stuff. And this was the only time I earned only 100DM ( still in the 90ies ). So I finally understood, if you aren't really special, if you got no name, if you aren't extremely lucky : you don't follow this dreams anymore and you'll be better off. Life is simple. It has to be lived forward with all you ever got and you don't ever look back.

Where are you playing? I love it ❤

Thank you for your honesty!

Maybe the world is not waiting for pianists who play covers. Too many pianists play the standards over and over. When one chooses his own path of improvising, composing and perhaps playing Bach or Chopin, than there is a complete other perspective.

Anna, I fully agree with you. I got piano classes when I was young and it led to my interest in Classical music. I don't watch piano competitions regularly but when my work allows me, I do. And then I watch it almost back to back, alt least from semifinal to final round. The last one I watched was Chopin piano competitions in Warsaw, including disclosure of the of winners. The disclosure of the winners was not made in a formal public setting but rather on the stairs of conservatory or competition venue with pianist waiting/congregating at the bottom of the stairs. In my eyes that reduced the image of the competition, the judges and the pianists who waited in front of the judges reading the names of the winners. To make clear where everybody belonged, the judges read the winners and prizes standing on the stairs above so that everybody could see and hear them while the pianists were standing on the floor bellow. If I remember correctly they also read the names and positions of the teachers of the finalists. It became clear that prior to competition most if not all the pianists worked/took classes with one of the judges or teachers linked to them. To me it was a competition among the judges. I'm sure not all judges enjoyed the same level of influence within the judging body. I checked with my friends if they felt that the judges and the competition was fair and impartial and they didn't see any problem with having the competition between the judge-pianist tandems. Was that the sign of time?

the dark side of having an expensive hobby and being so talented why is life always so dark. there is always a dark side of something! like what path should a person choose to avoid dark sides? i guess there's none. so, i always appreciate those warning about what to expect, and what i should be grateful for since i don't live such life.

Would Rosalia have worn that dress if the person hiring her was a woman? If Rosalia was bankrolling a concert, would she ever want to increase the return on her investment by going with a sure thing, such as a performer wearing a dress that is known to her internet audience? It's interesting that putting out this video as well as the one about the downside of being a concert pianist are risks that Anna is willing to take even though it might affect future work. But at the same time, the risk of "daring" to dispute a paragraph in a contract for Rosalia seemed large at the time. I think I agree with her decision to state she will wear what is appropriate, but it does raise the question, should she have just asked for more money and worn the dress? Her hair looked so lovely in that one video where she is wearing the red dress. I honestly want to hear her play more when she looks so nice. Don't you think young girls also want role models who are beautiful? It's human nature to want beauty in all its forms, in music, art, fashion, looks. One mustn't think it's only men who want beauty.

Dear Anna, thank you for uploading this and your sincerity. I understand you. I only want to remind that you are speaking from the specific frame of competitions and the market system (which as you said selects for a very narrow number of performers) rather than the broader frame and viewing classical music development as the vocation. You wrote "That's what the music society wants us to think" which shows that you are aware attention to market value and competitions it is an indoctrinated value, rather than a self ascribed value. I communicate with musicians frequently, give masterclasses, and frankly the ones with the most enjoyable career are usually, in fact near always, the ones that only perform occasionally, and where their main work is in teaching, or composing, or research with rarer concerts (not trying to fit with market system) or presenting what they have researched/studied with intrigue. Neoliberism (allowing the market to decide what is best for society, thus buildings becoming cheap and grey looking to save cost, Coke adverts taking the place of past education programmes on TV, etc) is not helping the situation. So I also agree that state support would be better. There would be a far larger number of opportunities, more audiences as they could be educated about classical music, and education and research would be shared between teachers as they could travel and give talks, etc. In any case, what I want to say is that the classical music career can be viewed separately from the competition/market-system nonsense. In this way, it is not as bad as it sounds also because the music "career" itself is interpreted as general cultural development alongside other doings. In the similar way, many study anthropology, or paleontology, or history, or mathematics, and teach it without practicing (respectively - digging, or creating revolution, or inventing new theorems) only to retain a momentum of the knowledge for mental enrichment. In the case of music, it can also be thought of as part of one's general human development and a goal in itself. The classical musicians who teach do usually have some part-time concert life also, even if they are not 100% paid by giving concerts which is only an extreme minority.

Thank you for being open about this topic. I am one of those, I was very surprised the day I realized that my childhood dream of becoming and living off of being a concert pianist was just not happening, I felt so confused. During my higher education still I basically played for free every time and was never taught to have a business approach to the matter which led to lots of helplessness and a greater artistic need for doing it for the sake of doing… I started to teach early and I love teaching and discovered a passion in it too, but I would be lying if I said I don’t get frustrated periodically that my main focus is not my own piano like for most of my life, even because I work so many hours I just can’t do more, but still it is the best feeling knowing that I have it, that when times are bad all I want is to practice for days closed off from everyone else, and it’s an incredible feeling of fulfillment, intellectual satisfaction and joyful effort that I don’t feel doing anything else…

okay. you mentions some dark forces in the selection of pianists for specific venues. I thought you were going to talk about demon-possessed pianos or the real Phantom of the Opera. Phew! It was not that bad. Don't listen to me. I'm just being funny.

1) Life is not fair 2) Life is hard 3) the biggest problem in life? look in the mirror. Once you understand this then you can move forward in life.

Thank you so much for revealing the reality, though it's actually pretty sad.

22:10 The statistics - maybe 15% female winners - is not too surprising given that the table goes back to the 1950's. Would be interesting to see results for last 10 years. Also it needs a comparison with the % of females who entered the competition.

Nice.

N2

Same here!!! With my U3 SH2

Music began to die the day Edison invented the phonograph. Compare the quality of Bach 300 years ago with the repetitive computerized noise of today. Why starve to learn Scales and Harmonics when you can make million$ with vulgar hip-hop noise? Edison killed music forever. 😢

The classical world really needs to listen to the world of DJs. It’s about the venue and filling halls. You need to get a crew together, start your own festivals, bring in artists associated with a foreign organisation and they will have to reciprocate. You need to build a career in music, whether it’s classical or electronic. You need to build a crew - musician is not a job, it’s a type of person - find a crew.

Actually The Rubinstein Competition was won by a woman in 1992. Giorgia Tomassi 1st Prize...

thanks for your vulnerability and transparency, I love people like that!

When I was young, aged about 9 years old, I realised that I did not have the perseverance to become a concert pianist. I was also from a poor background and I did not have parents who would carry me if I had no income either. And looking at this video I'm so glad I didn't bother. I have made many mistakes and wrong turns in life and am full of regrets, but I'm so glad I didn't try the concert pianist route. It would have led to even more misery. I still play every day and have been successful in a different sphere.

Or one has to dress in a 'seductive' manner to get noticed & to get a job which is so unfortunate

So beautiful and interesting. Thank you!

In the end, it's show business. There are always very few "stars" and very many who don't make it to the top.

There are several videos on YT about this topic.

Now let me talk to you about the dark side of having a 9-5

Does anyone still write music?

Hello Anna, do you have plans for a concert in Vienna?

So great, Anna!

The point about having a jury made up mainly of pianists is that - hopefully - they will have a good chance of being very familiar with pieces played, their difficulties and be in a better position to judge how 'well' it was played rather than a less knowledgeable public who are far more likely to be judging whether they liked the piece of music played rather than how well it was played.

I love this piece so much!

First video I saw from you and it was very interesting!

Everyone requires doctors - the medical profession - at times, but the great majority of people do not require or indeed ever go to a piano recital so a comparison is rather meaningless. A pianist who attracts a crowd of 5000 will get paid about 50 times more than one who plays to 100, just like footballers, actors, novelists. This is often irrespective of their relative merits - it might well be that a very worthy musician is underrated and some acclaimed ones overated.

I loathed giving concerts.

I never expected to be hailed, nor payed. I realised you have to be really top and even then it's not obvious to make a living of it. I was pushed by my teacher to prepare for higher. I didn't do it, I loved playing the piano, I loved playing the violin and every day I play and enjoy what I am doing. And I have no stress. I had enormous stress preforming and was unable to play, as I did when there was no public. The top performers can unlock their stress, but not every musician can do this. Puplic exams were horrific for me, I could freeze of stress. Not anymore, YT music concertos and I play with it. I love it. Just enjoy what you've studied and only play the music you personally like. And jobwise....I did jobs nothing to do with music, but play my preferential music at home.

It’s not worth it

Some interesting points raised, keep trying!

The posture of your hands was from the beginning on really good. Wow.

Exquisite. What a tenacious memory she has.

Nice touch, great sensitivity, rigor in seeking the right interpretation and the right relationship between the notes that must come out and those of the context. Excellent pianist indeed! Well done, keep it up! 😊... Your playing and your love for rachmaninoff touch me deeply!🥲

If you go to a competition because you want to play in a beautiful hall on an excellent instrument , and make friends for life - go ! If you are “ planning “ to win it - you are bound to be disappointed.

Wow!! After so many years of romanticizing the idea of possibly winning the Tchaikovsky competition in a very different alternate timeline, you've completely burst my bubble!! Your observations about piano competition culture remind me of the sort of closed-mindedness I saw during my little bit of exposure to classical music education. I have one issue with your proposed totally public voting system as a reform for result-fixing collusion amongst judges in cahoots, and that's the corrosive effect one contestant's external popularity can have, as exemplified in some seasons of "Dancing with the Stars" on US TV. The public are supposed to vote to eliminate the worst dancers, but they often vote off the people who objectively dance the best and are judged the best by the show's judges, in order to keep their favorite contestants, even if they dance the worst, especially if they're popular political figures or beloved TV or movie stars outside the competition. There would need to be some safeguard against that kind of mass-voting corruption in an open-voting system. I think you're right about the whole thing becoming less and less relevant as time goes on, just like record deals in pop music in this era of social media and Spotify. Excellent video, Anna!!

I'm mostly familiar with the International Chopin Competition in Poland. The problem is the most Chopin like pianists like "Cateen" are eliminated. There is no compositional or improvisational component in the competition. The winner is generally the best trained parrot. Genuine creativity and unique individuality is not important.

BRAVO!!!