18th Chopin Competition - CHOPIN TALK (JAN LISIECKI)

[@andreamartini7880]

Great personality, great musician, and pretty handsome! 😍

[@hnnmts]

I've been following him since 6 years ago and I would say his Chopin : Complete Nocture album is the best one, then made the whole album on my Spotify as my fave. Good luck and wish you happiness, Jan! :))

[@lmacosta6122]

Excellent pianist. He plays Chopin in an extraordinary way. His terrible problem is that he is too bright and fortunate in times of envious minds.

[@Latarniczka]

What a handsome man--Paderewski returned!

[@Lycoriste]

I like his playing. It resonates with me.

[@christophercacdac4702]

He’s so eloquent.

[@fwsant911]

my fav pianist 😍

[@Mq05515]

Szkoda, że Jan nie brał udziału w konkursie.

[@calisienis]

Bardzo dobrze, że tego nie zrobił.

[@danieltrzcinski2940]

@@calisienis dlaczego? nie jestem w temacie

[@Dwg256]

#5.

[@ewawojtyczka188]

Już ( od wielu lat) jest znanym pianista i nie musi przechodzić takiego stresu. Nagrywa i koncertuje na całym świecie. Jest dumą Kanady i Polaków w Kanadzie. Sprawozdawcy radiowi musieli nauczyć się poprawnej wymowy imienia i nazwiska!

[@vonkluge9352]

@@danieltrzcinski2940 już kiedyś wspominał że konkurs chopinowski nie pokazuje niczego bo każdy uczestnik gra doskonale i na swój sposób interpretuje utwory więc wybór zwycięscy jest niesprawiedliwy wobec wszystkich innych uczestników

[@phillipbaritone3843]

Having incredible technique and the ability to play the music loud, and fast is not always better. More importantly, it cannot be conflated for understanding the heart of the music. Being able to robotically type the sound versus perform the music with the soul are two very different things. In terms of true performers performing the heart and soul of the music, there were only several in this years competition and they largely exited early. I’ve contended for years that this competition doesn’t always exhibit or showcase artistry so much as clean and crisp technique in too fast of tempos. I rarely see true, whimsical artistic playing, at least consistently. Moreover, especially in the comments I see the relatively large lack of any true sense of artistic appreciation. For instance, Jan plays the Nocturnes of his latest album with incredible artistry and intimacy, in nuanced ways I haven’t heard before. And in terms of live performances, there isn’t one great performance where the artist pours their all into it without some small mistakes here and there. Every real performer knows to not chase perfection, those who do will fail far from the mark of playing with genuine artistry.

[@n.n7711]

Do you remember the peformers who played the music with soul within the competition?

[@phillipbaritone3843]

@@n.n7711 each performer has a soul and is capable of that, and most showed some, but some seemed to plug in more so than tune in, which is perhaps a more understandable way to phrase what I mean. At some point everyone were nervous or stressed, which is why I also don’t really care for competitions- people who think they are actual barometers of artistry are just incompetent. The way these are formatted are almost always about who can play most technically proficient. When we have performers who are not only technically capable, but also performance oriented to allow the music to shine, that’s where true artistry is found.

[@notbrians]

@@phillipbaritone3843 ahhh yea you should be on the jury clearly you have better ears.

[@andrzejherde8951]

janek lisiecki jest Polakiem i mowi po polsku to dlaczego rozmowa jest po angielsku?

[@Chopinesque]

Lisiecki is a talented pianist. But when I think of great Canadian pianists I think of Gould obviously, Marc-Andre Hamelin and maybe even Angela Hewitt or Charles Richard-Hamelin after his fantastic performances at the 17th Chopin Competition. And now I can add Bruce Liu to that short list of phenomenal great Canadian pianists.

[@victordelmonte9026]

None of them played with Jan's level of artistry when they were his age except for Glenn Gould!

[@christopherczajasager9030]

Big business.?...

[@Dwg256]

#2.

[@victordelmonte9026]

No! Big talent!

[@enigmas6210]

he's so overrated.. verbier performances are mediocre and full of mistakes... I don't think he would have moved past stage 1 in this year's competition. Bruce Liu is light years ahead of him. Hopefully Canada will have a new star soon.

[@Lilly-kg6dh]

Agree…. I think that’s the curse of being a child prodigy. They need to breakthrough the old approaches they were using in younger age; otherwise, the spotlight will be gone.

[@enigmas6210]

@@Lilly-kg6dh I'm glad you agree... People get very sensitive when any critique is said about Lisiecki.. I actually never considered him a Child prodigy... he was an exceptionally talented child. But there is a major difference between Lisiecki as a child and someone like Kissin as a child... or more recently even Malofeev as a child...Now those were child prodigies. Lisiecki seems he is still struggling to master his own technique.... and for that reason he takes difficult passages in just about everything he plays at a noticeable almost odd slower tempi ...and his live performances are flooded with mistakes. I honestly don't understand why the spotlight is still on him. I would rather listen to any of the finalists over him. I guess he has good agents.

[@Lilly-kg6dh]

@@enigmas6210 I didn’t know him until DG promotes his Chopin album. I checked all the videos including interviews in his KZbin channel. Then, I found that he is profoundly gifted (in terms of IQ) and he showed his talent in music in early years. Local median have huge expectation on him and called him the next Gould. However, I also noticed from those videos that his performance hasn’t grown with his age, and his rendition even became awkward now. (Hope Canadians won’t feel offended). In addition to Bruce Liu and JJ, Stephen Xie is amazing too. It’s good to see that Canada has more and more brilliant pianist (including Hamelin for sure)

[@enigmas6210]

@@Lilly-kg6dh I completely agree with you assessment. I've actually followed Jan's career since about 2009 which was around when he recorded both Chopin Concertos in Warsaw.... I think he was like 14 years at the time...and it definitely got my attention. I own the Kissin Recordings of the same Concertos recorded when Kissin was 12 or 13... Even though Jan was not even close to Kissin's abilities at an older age of 14...I still followed his career to see how he would develop. And I think I couldn't have said it better than you... his performances (and technique) hasn't grown much with his age... and I also feel a obvious awkwardness in his renditions... especially when there are technically challenging passages....and if the entire piece is technical , than he takes an unusual slow tempi to cover it up. I heard every one of his Verbier recitals which included several Nocturnes and many other composers. They were mediocre and non memorable. By the time DG signed him for the Nocturnes, I was honestly a bit surprised in DG... but I had no desire to purchase that disc. And every objective and informed pianist that I talk to about this feels the same. Now that he is no longer a "child prodigy" I don't see his career going anywhere but down. But I'm happy for Canada to have truly gifted pianists like Liu to lead them into the future.

[@enigmas6210]

@@Lilly-kg6dh oh and I forgot to ask... which Hamelin did you mean? Canada has the the 2nd Place winner from last Chopin Competition, Charles Richard Hamelin...who is light years ahead of Lisiecki... And of course Canada's supreme Virtuoso, Marc Andre Hamelin... who I won't even put in the the same sentence as Lisiecki. I wouldn't want to insult the great Hamelin.

[@enigmas6210]

Funny they talk about tempo .... I find his tempo strange at times... I think it is evident that a lot of times his tempo is decided by his technique.. or lack of. He's certainly good and talented.... but I think ALL finalists in this competition are way better than him.

[@victordelmonte9026]

You know nothing about music, obviously!

[@victordelmonte9026]

Envy, envy! You are born an artist, artists are not made. Machines posing as wanba-be artists those can be fabricated. The gift is a divine merit, not human made!

[@enigmas6210]

@@victordelmonte9026 it's you that knows nothing about music if you think his music is Divine. Clearly you haven't heard or are incapable of hearing other pianist Giants and the levels they are able to achieve. Kissin being one. You are unschooled. You are unaware. And you are simply impressed and mesmerized by nothing more than a mediocre pianist who started performing at a young age. You wouldn't know the difference between a great musician and a mediocre one. Now move on, simpleton!

[@enigmas6210]

@@victordelmonte9026 ok Victor...keep listening to your mediocrity and keep believing it's extraordinary. Yes he's talented...yes he's gifted...yes he excelled very early....but today he is ordinary at best. But he has name recognition....so people like you thing he's the greatest. Keep deluding yourself.

[@augustpropertymanagement3389]

Why didn't Jan Liseiki jump into the Chopin Competition? Afraid not to win it?

[@enigmas6210]

because he wouldn't make it past the first stage. He is not nearly on the level of ANY of the finalists. Thankfully, Canada has a new virtuoso now in Bruce Liu. Hopefully he will take lots of spotlight away from Jan.

[@lemoniada91]

@@enigmas6210 xDDD

[@lmacosta6122]

Jan Lisiecki is a very young pianist but also very recognized worldwide. He plays with the best orchestras in the world. It makes no sense for you to participate in the contest. It's ridiculous to do so. No well-known pianist competes.

[@augustpropertymanagement3389]

Lisiecki would likely just get 5th place or honorable mention had he competed for the competition.

[@enigmas6210]

@@lmacosta6122 not saying he should compete.... He already has a career...I'm just saying if he did he wouldn't make it past the first stage.