Are THESE Prodigies? Professional Violinist Reacts

[@RayChenViolinist]

You don't have to be a prodigy to become a great musician., just a supportive and nurturing environment. Join the practice community on Tonic today! tonicmusic.app/practice-now

[@jub8891]

Your heart will go on (and on)

[@jnee3873]

Can you make a video about the Play with ray for next year?

[@rykehuss3435]

Ray, you asked about hearing Chloe play something more difficult. Listen to her performing Wieniawski - Scherzo Tarantella at 7 years old. Or her Ysaye sonata #3 from a couple of years ago.

[@Daria-ut6en]

Hi Ray do you happen to have tchaikovsky’s full concerto when you broke the string? It was my favorite version please upllad it❤

[@ningzhixie4818]

@@rykehuss3435 I do not think Wieniawski - Scherzo Tarantella is more difficult than Four season - Winter by Vilvadi. Scherzo Tarantella is not as difficult as it sounds like. And Winter is definitely a piece that can showcase the great potential in a violin prodigy. Remember this was Chloe playing on Menuhin competition - the Olympics for young violinist.

[@gatesurfer]

My two cents. I’m not a violinist, but I’ve been around a lot of young musicians, especially pianists. I met a family whose daughters were taking piano lessons. They had the John Thompson series, so I sight read a couple of those on their new baby grand from Europe. They were all amazed, but those pieces are so simple I knew they didn’t know much. But I noticed one of the daughters then started picking out some of the Melodies I had played. So I told her parents they needed to get a better teacher for her.Last I heard, she was writing musicals for her school and studying with the best teacher in town. I’m glad I spoke up. On the other hand, a long time ago, I was visiting a friend whose 10 year old son was taking piano lessons. The family was not particularly musical. The son wanted to play for me and did the 1st movement of the Moonlight sonata. It was HORRIBLE - uneven, lots of starts and stops, missed notes. I smiled and tried to be encouraging, but felt his music career wouldn’t last long. Well, last I heard he had finished his performance degree at Rice, where Jackie Parker teaches, and was in the graduate composition program at Juilliard. I’m glad I kept my mouth shut. You never can tell with kids, but one thing is for sure, if they have love for music, it’s worth nourishing and supporting. Maybe you don’t have a prodigy, but your kids will have something that is theirs to treasure for the rest of their lives.

[@chrisma3256]

Love this ❤❤❤ thanks for taking the time to relate 😊

[@antine1279]

I'd say you hit the nail on the head there. Not everyone wants or needs to become a professional musician, but having something you love can keep you alive

[@Mariyanthi]

Sorry to say that,but why so many people have the audacity to critisice someone's career from THAT early age?! the music field is the only place I've seen people doing that! Brain is still developing ,our perception of music is still developing together with our personality. A talented kid might look like a prodigy in the beggining ,but there are not few examples where kids reach a certain level ,but they fail to overcome it. There are also examples of "late bloomers" who became admirable artists and teachers. AND no one mentions the fact that some kids might be prodigies but simply DON'T want this lifestyle and simply quit!

[@chrisma3256]

@@Mariyanthi he didn't though. He actually said you should encourage them anyways. You probably haven't witnessed any other competitive hobbies, especially dancing or acrobatics.

[@Mariyanthi]

@@chrisma3256 Yes,but despite the ,often pretentious,encouragmennt,judging is always there and I 'm not reffearing to the person who did this comment personaly! Dancing itself is a tricky subject cause from one hand it is based on body abilities, which are naturaly developed in childhood and we can't change that, but ,exept ballet, most of dance forms are also based on the impact of the performance and not only technical skills. Aka not every famous dancer is neccesary the best dancer,the best "athlete"... I am not native english speaker and I hope I made myself udnerstoood.

[@PranavViswanathan]

One of my favorite Leia clips is when she played Paganini Concerto for Chaim Taub during a Keshet Eilon masterclass and instead of giving her comments, he just thanked her repeatedly for the performance.

[@Lokan3]

I just listened to it. She was incredible. He said he had never in his almost 92 years heard anything like her.

[@BoraViolin]

I remember that too!

[@AndySaenz924]

He was honest and humble enough to say he was not a prodigy. But he certainly became a world class violinist! Ray gives me hope that I can become a professional violinist as well. I’m not a prodigy, I started playing violin when I was 14.

[@7kaisheba]

when I play a little guitar, some who did not practice, would call me, being good at it. Since I did not practice violin..... I call you an expert ;-)

[@birdgirl2623]

You know who ELSE said he wasn't a child prodigy? Itzhak Perlman! Could have fooled me! But if you compare his playing as a 12 year old to his playing as an adult, you can tell there is a difference, particularly in how the music is interpreted. The point is, that no matter how bad or GOOD you are at one point doesn't mean that there isn't always room for improvement. That's why, even world class soloist such as Ray Chen still PRACTICE. You started at a later age which I presume meant you WANTED to play the violin. That in itself is an advantage over a toddler with a 5 minute attention span being FORCED to learn an instrument because Mommy and Daddy won't love them any more. LOL True prodigies of any kind seem to almost force their parents to let them learn and play! A really unique mindset. Keep practicing.

[@MishaSkripach]

How old are you now and what can you play well?

[@deborahlin7781]

Chloe is definitely a prodigy. She really masters the pieces she learns till they’re flawless and she plays very cleanly. Her musical interpretation of the pieces are out of this world. You should see her whole Menuhin performance that day

[@Lily-1670-x7w]

Do you know which country she comes from?

[@DISRUPTOR40]

@@Lily-1670-x7w Singapore

[@Towmatodowg]

@@AaronYker-xp8rp Wdym stereotyping asians I think bro's just genuinely curious about which country Chloe came from

[@Towmatodowg]

@@Lily-1670-x7w I believe shes Singaporean

[@sophiabansil7014]

@@AaronYker-xp8rpBro did you forget to take your meds or something🤣🤣🤣❓

[@LeiaZhu]

Btw Ray I played Bazzini Dance of the Goblins on the same TV show 😭

[@yingyings]

OMG LEIA I WAS SO SHOCKED WHEN HE PULLED THAT CLIP OF U LMAOO

[@therefulgences]

😭😭😭

[@Arcenmh7718]

I feel sorry for you 😭🙏🏻

[@sofieyas]

I WAS LIKE WHAT?!?!

[@ameliejones1234]

don't worry Leia, we know how good you are!!

[@Camilla-js2rn]

Hey Ray, here's a list of some of the 'harder' pieces that Leia has played... Concertos Mendelssohn (both concertos) (aged 8, 9, 10, 11) Tchaikovsky (aged 9, 13, 16) Sibelius (13) Bruch (8) Beethoven Brahms all Mozart Korngold Saint Saens Wieniawski No. 2 (8) Wieniawski No. 1 (12) some she mentioned in Q&As: Dvorak, Shostakovich, Britten, all Vieuxtemps some virtuosic pieces Ernst Last Rose of Summer (aged 12) Ernst Erlkönig (aged 13) Ysaye Sonatas (multiple from age 10-13) all Paganini Caprices all versions of Carmen Fantasy Paganini God Save the King Paganini Nel Cor Piu Non Mi Sento Sarasate Ziguernerweisen, Caprice Basque, etc. These are only the ones off the top of my head.... I'm sure there are plenty others...

[@MattB90]

and these were performed in front of major orchestras, all throughout the world...This has to be on purpose, because as a top violinist himself he absolutely has to know about Leia and her prodigious rise, as well as how she is continuing to live up to the pressure and standards of being a child prodigy, and how she is one of the few top violinists utilizing youtube/social to the same extent that he is

[@ningzhixie4818]

Just playing some hard pieces doesn't really mean she is really good. I had listened to her Erlkönig and last rose of summer. They are all broken, not even enjoyable. You really have to listen to pronounced violinist playing these pieces and know what they should sound like.

[@ningzhixie4818]

The third child also play Erlkönig in this video. I would say she plays better than Leia on this piece, even at a younger age.

[@liv7098]

@@ningzhixie4818no. compare it to Leia’s version and it’s miles off on completely different levels. this girl is just playing the notes. leia played the music.

[@ningzhixie4818]

@@liv7098 you cannot play any "music" without playing the notes mostly correctly lol

[@childofgod3583]

Leia Zhu is a prodigy. You have watched the wrong video. If you do a 2nd part put a video with Leia. The video where she performed The Last Rose of Summer is amazing. and not just that.

[@ningzhixie4818]

Although it is a simple piece, you can tell she was not very good at violin at least at that time. The intonation was not good. Just like you can tell Hilary Hahn is a very good violinist even when she was just playing "twinkle twinkle little star"

[@MishaSkripach]

@@ningzhixie4818 exactly

[@liv7098]

@@ningzhixie4818what do you seek in music? complete technical perfection? if so, you might as well listen to a robot playing. in a world where so many strive for technical accuracy, few stand out musically nowadays. leia is one of those who have an individualistic approach to music, which is why she is so unique.

[@robotnik77]

@@ningzhixie4818 Hilary's great, but she thinks too much; always worries about playing perfectly, instead of letting go & being spontaneous. That's undoubtedly the minority view, but that's nothing new for me. My take is that a great inspired performance with a few flubs is better than a perfect tentative, or measured performance. So ratio me already.

[@tonyboy8946]

Oh please. Ray specifically said, "for this specific video". Even ray was not a prodigy. People just chill. Its not like ray is demeaning leah. These blind supporters with zero comprehension.

[@m160e]

Yeah, definitely a bad clip choice for Leia but Ray can only judge based on the video snippet that was given to him so I don't blame him for that. I think you should check out Leia and hope she gets featured more in your channel though. She deserves to be recognized more! Calling Leia even just a prodigy is an understatement, she is a ONE OF A KIND prodigy. If you listen to her playing and her interpretations, I'm sure we could all agree that she is way ahead of her time. Not only she's a great player but she's also a great teacher who's very articulate in expressing her musical insights as well as giving the historical context of the pieces she's playing which is pretty uncommon for violinists of her age. She has the musical maturity of an adult stuck on a child's body while still keeping that childlike personality within her. I remember listening to her insights on Mendelssohn violin concerto and all throughout the video, I'm like wow, I can't believe I'm listening to a child and actually learning from her that I haven't learned from other masterclasses. Check out her Thinking Aloud series to see what I'm talking about. Despite her accomplishments as a young violinist, I still think she needs to be more well known. Everyone should really check her out!

[@MishaSkripach]

It was a very wise choice by Ren, as such things tell a lot. Choosing simple and not sounding great in that simple .

[@Y3llow_Submarin3]

Chill, even Ray wasn't prodigy. Really you don't have to be prodigy to be great.

[@patrickpascal1225]

Bro are you her publicist 😂

[@m160e]

@@patrickpascal1225 lol nope. In fact, I've only watched a few of her videos and in those few videos I was already blown away haha. I just feel like she's not getting the attention she deserves and people are missing out from the kind of content she makes.

[@johanweir9848]

Leia Zhu and Chloe Chua are definitely prodigies.

[@pugsnhogz]

Ray Chen's enthusiasm for music is so infectious. Just hearing him react to other people playing makes me want to listen to HIM play, because you can tell how deeply he feels it. Technique IS becoming more common-passion and connection is what I look for these days. Cheers, Mr. Chen!

[@kartoffelninhulleundfulle4623]

Leia Zhu isn't a self-proclaimed prodigy... also she's super talented, so this clip choice wasn't great at all. She is one of my favourite violinists, with great personality, lots of wisdom. She Inspires a lot of people. I started learning violin because of her. Sorry for broken English ^^

[@8ball708]

Your English is perfect 👍

[@stanky5187]

Whoever chose that clip did her dirty lmfao

[@lizzybarnett2893]

Wasn’t the second one (Leia) the same girl that TwoSet reacted to playing Ernst Last Rose of Summer when she was 12?

[@Caroline-jt6ez]

Yes, Leia is now 16 and still plays!

[@Arcenmh7718]

Yup!!!

[@musiqal333]

Yep. And that performance at 12 of Ernst "The Last Rose of Summer" was beautifully rendered.

[@Lily-xj7di]

Holy cow - we need justice for Leia Zhu 😂

[@CottonCandyTheWW2Geek]

LMAO-

[@evanjones9602]

She's in the comments.

[@jh.y00N]

You're all amazing, including Ray!!!! The world of classics is great, especially in the art world!!!👍🏻✨🤯

[@nickiemcnichols5397]

Chloe makes me cry with joy.

[@sed64]

she s the best of all , actually ...saw her live , amazing ..

[@probag8414]

Ray's gonna have to release a "Professional Violinist falls on his sword over clip choice" or the Leia fans are gonna eat him

[@myrtillegrandesoreilles8275]

Literally that 😂

[@ningzhixie4818]

who cares?

[@probag8414]

@@ningzhixie4818 Read the comments, I guess a lot of people do lol. But honestly, it's more content Ray can make so why not?

[@juliejules7780]

It was a joke

[@ningzhixie4818]

@@probag8414 Those are The Crowd who knows nothing about classical music. I highly suspect if they actually have ever listened to a classical musician playing in a concert

[@EPSON-HP]

Leia Zhu was definitely misrepresented here...

[@h.p.734]

Wow.. Ray is one of my favorite violinists alive now and his expressiveness and fire is hard to find an equal to. I guess everyone has a different age where they bloom. Thank you for the honest video

[@chrispham6599]

I don't know if I could call Leia's clip "honest": there were much better performances that she gave, which could've been easily searched up.

[@essexitagermeng5504]

Karolina’s dad probably wrote that definition in the intro of her channel, which he manages. Shame she wasn’t shown in one of her classical performances. She plays and performs also difficult and complex classical pieces, obviously to another audience.

[@MishaSkripach]

She is not considered a prodigy in classical, this is what Ray meant.

[@glafirgraf6034]

Yes she got a lot subscribers but made as show but it's more better young players around.

[@stanky5187]

Yeah they are doing a collab now :) Just kinda sad that whoever chose these clips did some of them dirty 😢😢

[@MishaSkripach]

@@stanky5187 no they were spot on

[@stanky5187]

​@@MishaSkripachare you being fr

[@philippemagerus8752]

You left out one of the best : Himari Yoshimura who was accepted at the Curtis Institute at 10 years old, and is now 12. Shis is fabulous.

[@damshek]

Leia Zhu: Studies with Itzhak Rashkovsky and Zakhar Bron Plays Paganini concerto 1 by age 10, then the Campanella by age 11 Gives concerts in 15 countries before age 12, including in venues like the Barbican and the Mariinsky theatre. The youngest artist to be managed by HarrisonParrott Artist-in-Residence with the London Mozart Players by age 14 Performs with the LSO and Sir Simon Rattle at Trafalgar Square, also at age 14, broadcast live worldwide Ray's editor: This is (checks notes) Leia, and here's a clip of her playing twinkle twinkle little star

[@MishaSkripach]

And...?

[@JohnSmith-oe5kx]

Big BIG respect for Ray posting clips of his younger days. It is tremendously inspiring to see that not everyone needs to be a prodigy to become a world-class musician. Bravo!

[@MishaSkripach]

Why would it be inspiring? Everyone knows their level of playing anyway.

[@JohnSmith-oe5kx]

@@MishaSkripachBecause Ray is a virtuoso who was not a child prodigy. It gives hope to those of us who were not child prodigies.

[@MishaSkripach]

@@JohnSmith-oe5kx It does not work like that. Those who are not prodigies still play at a very high level when kids. If by age 12-14 you don't have any technical difficulties in violin and can freely remember huge repertoir and play it without endless repetition for months, then you have a chance. Ray's playing was strong. Loading a child with 10hour a day work in order to enter and win 40 competitions by age 7 is a decision that parents make, not a child. It is also parents who make contracts and travel with the child to whatever competitions and masterclasses. Your chance depends on your talent, aural abilities (perfect pitch or no perfect pitch) and your level of play. Every soloist has perfect pitch, for starters.

[@JohnSmith-oe5kx]

@@MishaSkripach Obviously he played at a very high level as kid--so did I. But we were not prodigies. And I am not talking about me having a chance at a performing career, I am decades past that.

[@MishaSkripach]

@@JohnSmith-oe5kx Every parent of a truly talented little child must make a string of decisions: who to travel to, how much to budget for lessons, which and how many competitions to attend, whether to accept invitations...whether to make the child drill the same repertoir for years in order to take part in many competitions...whether to feed their child cognitive enhancers that seem to seriously stunt growth... what to promote, how to promote, if to promote at all ...all this is about parents. Some parents put a pencil into their baby's hand at 3 months. Some parents order a handmade violin for their two year old, and make a 7 y old enter a competition with the movement form Mendelssohn concerto with the difficult bit simply cut off, taken out to fit the time limit. Things like that. As for me, I am a bit scared looking and listening to some modern prodigies. They feel very special during their childhood and then find things are tough.

[@sophelet]

Hi Ray- I wish you had also considered Christian Li played the Menuhin junior competition and tied with Chloe Chua. She was 11 and he was 10. I found his playing to be fantastic and compelling. He also did a superb job with leading the orchestra while playing the Vivaldi.

[@deguard7]

I agree. Christian Li is amazing!

[@jansnauwaert1785]

Here is a (super) prodigy: Himari Yoshimura. Never seen and heard anything like her before.

[@pugsnhogz]

If you wanna know what "prodigy" looks like, check out Midori doing Zapateado for an encore in 1990 (it's on YT). OK she was 19 not 9, whatever. The sheer CONFIDENCE and absolute commitment to the performance... oh and it's the most flawless interpretation I've personally heard, on a beast of a technical piece (IMO - I'm hardly an expert). My jaw hits the floor every time I watch it, which is a lot of times...

[@TacticalStrike]

Leia zhu needs more credit lol. Also I’m a firm believer that Himari yoshiamura is the prodigy of our time

[@MishaSkripach]

She won Kogan against me when I was 6 and she was 7.

[@alk672]

I love how Ray's casual passages are cleaner than most musician's performances. Unreal.

[@mrtoast244]

He was a child prodigy himself, except he's been playing his whole life. So that makes sense

[@АнастасияАнатольевнаКостикова]

Leia is one of the most talented and skillful prodigies! Are there many children playing The last rose of summer at the age of 12? I admire Leia so much!

[@MishaSkripach]

Те, кому педагог дает, те и играют.

[@joesu4777]

Leia is definitely an amazing prodigy, not a great clip choice. Hopefully Leia doesn't take this personally 😂

[@Arcenmh7718]

Yeah Ikr Out of all the amazing clips,they pick this one…….😢 I hope ray can review other clips🥹

[@paganina2330]

I feel so sorry for this video. Leia is one of my favorite violinists in the world. There are lot of amazing performances out (Introduction and Rondo capriccioso of Saint Saens with Sir Simon Rattle or Tchaikovsky VC with Tonhalle Orchester Zürich to name just two). In my opinion she is technically impeccable and emotionally riper than her real age. She’s already an amazing violinist. This video shows nothing of her abilities. But I know Leia wouldn’t be offended. She‘s a great young woman and well raised. I love her personality. Regarding this violinist should have done more research. Sorry, Ray Chen and team.

[@assetful2537]

she replied to this video 😂

[@ceciliahuang3984]

Strangely, I doubt that Ray Chen wouldn’t know how good Leia Zhu is. The reason he deliberately chose this one AND declared her not a prodigy…..maybe he got a blow on his head or had a bad hangover. Also Chloe Chua has tons recordings of extremely difficult pieces - all played BEAUTIFULLY, often even better than many ADULT PROFESSIONAL violinists. (I’m one of those LESSER professional violinists……😂)

[@MishaSkripach]

A true prodigy always has something amazing in their sound and playing, even at the very beginning and when they are tiny. Looking at a simple piece played by some well promoted "prodigy" tells a lot about whether it is from within, or it is training 24/7.

[@nickiemcnichols5397]

I’d love to hear you play!

[@chloeblackett6270]

Leia Zhu isn't a prodigy. She is far better than a prodigy. I advise you to check out her channel and the videos she has. She has many performance videos, but also vlogs giving us a glimpse of her life. She has also made videos about the history and background of many of the pieces she's been learning. Her technical and musical skills are on another level. As a teacher myself I have to say that nobody comes close to her.

[@testme242]

She isn't a prodigy... Chloe is.

[@creamsoda6427]

@@testme242 Yeah, Leia isn’t a prodigy anymore. She’s greater than that.

[@testme242]

@@creamsoda6427 yes always second fiddle to chloe

[@rykehuss3435]

@@creamsoda6427 She is a prodigy. Chloe Chua was better than her, by a mile. Also a prodigy. Check out Chloe Chua performing Wieniawski - Scherzo Tarantella at 7 years old.

[@rykehuss3435]

@@testme242 Leia is absolutely a prodigy. Chloe is too, c'mon dont be that guy

[@micahmilton1101]

You really should hear Teo play the Paganini Violin Concerto Cadenza. His playing is incredibly clear and articulate! His intonation and clarity on the arpeggios is particularly impressive.

[@evanjones9602]

For Leia Zhu, she’s definitely a prodigy. You picked the talent show video, but Two Set used her Last Rose of Summer, which is a better judge of her abilities. (At 12)

[@leiazhusbiggestfan8407]

If you watched the full video of Leia, you would have known that that piece was a request from Dawn French herself. Afterwards, she nailed Bazzini's Dance of the Goblins. This clip is truly not indicative of Leia's capabilities. I'm very disappointed.

[@testme242]

She's so over rated. Chloe was far superior

[@therefulgences]

@@testme242 Comparing Leia to Chloe is so disrespectful to Leia

[@testme242]

@@therefulgences you're right I shouldn't even put Leia in the same sentence as Chloe. Leia doesnt belong. I apologize

[@PranavViswanathan]

I think Chloe’s performances are very technically polished but Leia’s playing seems much more mature and she seems like she is really telling a story with her music

[@therefulgences]

@@PranavViswanathanI agree - however in music are we really seeking for more 'perfect' playing, or the most individualistic in terms of artistic expression?

[@kratze1738]

I bought the Sara Chang version of the Paganini concerto not long after they released it on CD and I love it. I don't ask much of my music, just make me happy and sound really good. And that delivered big time.

[@romnick5405]

Sarah Chang is one of my favorite since then. That tone 😊

[@mushymushroom3891]

I love how everyones defending Leia xD

[@PP-wp2bx]

Just Chinese people...typical

[@Michael_levy]

3:18 you wrong leia zhu is one of the greatest musicians today

[@patrickpascal1225]

😂

[@shashadeng9031]

And also react on Sohyun Ko, please please. Two of my favorite young violinists. Sohyun and Christian!!

[@jacquieviegas6082]

Another up and coming "prodigy" is young Himari from Japan, I think she would meet Ray's criteria. And I hope he has listened to or watched more of Chloe who is now the artist in residence of the Singapore Symphony, 100% a prodigy who has become one of the outstanding violinists of her era.

[@jackburgess8579]

Himari is most certainly a prodigy. I think that in the years to come, she will be Chloe's biggest rival.

[@jjonwards]

Only a confident person can conclude a video by saying he wasn’t a prodigy, love your music.

[@adambe1126]

Leia has a reccording of last rose when she eas 13. Just listen to that before saying she's not a prodigy

[@ameliejones1234]

Ray, why was this clip of Leia chosen? We clearly know she's a great violinist if not the best of her generation...

[@dehanbadenhorst1398]

Agreed, she plays Ernst Last rose of summer and Erlkönig really well

[@joesr31]

I think he just chose a random one from youtube lol, so many triggered people. He probably should have used a few clips but people out here thinking he hates her or something

[@Nyxiedoesstuffig]

I hope Ray knows Leia played The Last Rose of Summer when she was like 12 😭

[@mancraft7555]

The students at the university where Ray studied are undoubtedly top-notch geniuses. This is also evident from the fact that only a select few among those geniuses are allowed to enroll. Through further advanced education, the level of the students will improve even further.

[@BirdGuy1928]

'Walking fetus come in and completely wreck your confidence' had me dying 🤣

[@levi_toth]

Thanks Ray After watching several others on KZbin, I mean a lot. You have convinced me that we should follow you and downloaded Tonic. I'm 40 but hey hopefully never too late, as my daughter is 6 and she just started Violin we decided we'll she asked me if I can start with her, and I said yes as 2 years ago I tried but probably with my daughter will be much more to the meaning and fun together too.

[@zacharycalled]

If Leia Zhu is not a prodigy, then nobody is. Leia's first performance was for 2,000 people at the age of 4. Leia's first tour was at the age of 5. Leia's first international nine-city tour was at the age of 6. When Leia was 9, she had already played with many orchestras including the Russian National Orchestra and Belgian National Orchestra and pieces like Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto and Lalo Symphonie Espagnole in venues like Tchaikovsky Concert Hall, BOZAR, Royal Festival Hall, Barbican Centre. Leia got signed by HarrisonParrott when she was 12. Leia became Artist in Residence of the London Mozart Players when she was 14. When she was 14, she played with Sir Simon Rattle and London Symphony Orchestra at Trafalgar Square for BMW Classics Leia became Patron of HP Foundation when she was 15. Leia became Education Ambassador of the London Mozart Players when she was 16. One of her recent concerts was with Paavo Järvi and Tonhalle Orchester in Tonhalle. These are only a few of her achievements. Putting that clip of Leia is so disrepectful. Do your homework next time.

[@ameliejones1234]

this should be pinned

[@kartoffelninhulleundfulle4623]

wow this is so impressive. i didn't know all that. i only know she is great violinist and great person. she also played in berlin philharmonic twice! my friend went to see her the second time and she also had duets with the concertmaster noah :D

[@VuduNRG]

Cry

[@thorfinnthegoatmc]

sadly Chloe Chua solos

[@MishaSkripach]

You listed sponsors' achievements.

[@Gail-yv7fn]

They picked the worst clip for Leia… why

[@ameliejones1234]

it felt like deliberate shade 😭

[@M_SC]

@@ameliejones1234did it or are her fans a bit extreme?

[@ceciliahuang3984]

It’s not “worst” - she played it nicely even though it was an easiest pop song - aimed to entertain people without classical music experience. What’s ridiculous is how Ray used THAT to declare that she was not a prodigy. In that case we could easily judge Ray’s level by his Titanic performance 😉😉😉 and declare that THAT was how he ever was/is.

[@chloeblackett6270]

@@M_SCno what they say is completely true - this is outrageous behaviour...

[@fatdoi003]

same as Chloe.. winter

[@Nightrapture]

Man you should check Leia Zhu master class with Leonidas Kavakos and rethink your words on her tbh. 🤣

[@RealMusicalMunch]

He prob just searched violin prodigies and this came up. Based off the clip of course she’s not a prodigy, but taking in account all of her achievements and performances she is a prodigy for sure. But everyone assuming that ray knows her for sure is stupid. He’s just basing this off clips…

[@Nightrapture]

@@RealMusicalMunch Man there is no need to justify him tbh. People expect a minimum of seriety about him judjing these guys, at least making a minimum of research that anyone can do, or it seems he's just trying to "elevate" the people he prefers, and do the opposite for those he doesn't like. We could assume it wasn't intentional but that doesn't justify him anyway, it wasn't "professional".

[@RealMusicalMunch]

@@Nightrapture he prob had a team behind the scenes that gives him all the clips he reacts to. I’m just saying that it’s not that deep in this context. And I don’t think the reason he used that clip is because he “doesn’t like” leia.

[@musiqal333]

Ray, you have NOT seen Leia Zhu in her actual produgious talent. It's hard to judge on just one performance.

[@assetful2537]

What’s up with the clip choices? Deliberate by Ray and/or team? If not, this is extremely reckless behaviour… P.S. I also like how Ray shows more footage of Leia speaking than her playing

[@jacksonmarshallkramer5087]

The Russian street player is unbelievable. Her mom is amazing, as well. This girl is serious business. She does the movement thing.

[@AndySaenz924]

Leia Zhu IS certainly a prodigy! She has accurately played some very difficult pieces at a very young age.

[@catherinel7831]

Ray, please do a reaction video on Leia’s Paganini Concerto, where she played for Chaim Taub. She deserves it after this video 😢 I am a big fan of her and couldn’t believe out of so many brilliant performances, this clip was picked for you!

[@chunkitpoh3749]

Ray, while I love you and your work, I have to completely disagree with you on Leia Zhu. Please watch more of her performances, and you'd change your mind. Your editor-san needs a quiet chat without coffee!

[@MS-3-3]

This is so enjoyable to watch!

[@Thelegendofme]

Prodigies dont exist, there are just some people who get 10,000 hours of practice in before they turn 5.

[@MishaSkripach]

People have different abilities. For example, not even 100000000000 hours of practice would get you perfect pitch that prodigies have at age 3? before they had their first hour of work. So it is impossible for most people to catch up with them, practicing 24/7 unless perfect pitch and other abilities are inborn.Practice is still required.

[@BellambiFredRoberts]

I'm not into violins or classical music at all and don't know how I .across this post but it's really good. Coincidentally I knew Lin Menuhin who's grandfather was a famous violinist but don't know his name.

[@gregorykuperstein1560]

Being a prodigy is not just about technical ability. It is more about having maturity beyond one's age. It is not what you play but how.

[@Priamix1977]

I thought this video would depress me... However, with mr Chen's presentation, it actually made me feel good and happy!!! Ray Chen seems such a nice person! Thanks for that!

[@MishaSkripach]

How can a video depress or make feel good and happy? Your playing stays exactly where it was, and if it was not good, it did not gecome good. ?

[@liv7098]

wth ray was that clip of Leia 💀 shame on u and the team 😭

[@mlilac]

Chybby baby-Ray may not have been a child prodigy but he definitely was adorable

[@temenuzhkamilanova]

Leia an Chloe ARE prodigies. Haven't seen more of them and decided you can rate them not prodigies ?!

[@Chibanah]

It is true, age is less important than motivation and keeping up the hard work they put into it, it can be any profession or sport, chess is the same. Just because somebody breaks an age record, it doesn't mean they will automatically become the best later. There are many cases when musician won a big competition yet later we basically never hear about them, they could not break out for some reason, lack of motivation or they simply don't see a future in this. Nowadays it is impossible to stand out just by few great competition wins or great concerts, the musician continously has to build his/her career getting good places at competitions, giving many concerts around the world and also social media presence has been very important too, firs of all sharing their concerts online so they can reach more people. So they continously need to build up their renown.

[@AmandaViolinGirl]

Karolina regularly plays on the street in front of a large audience but repeated pieces. I'm waiting for her to play on the street some longer classical pieces. I haven't heard her play the meditation thais piece or vivaldi 4 seasons yet. Ray you got into the music school you did at only 15 years. Karolina is 15 now and I think she will need to learn a lot more pieces before she will get into the same school you did.

[@joycenorthwind6874]

Have you followed her classical training and heard her orchestra solos. Karolina over a yr ago knew 250 pop songs by memory which doesn't include the classical pieces she trains on with Sam Fischer. It's unlikely she would so classical music while busking.

[@MrThuraKo]

Well. I feel very disappponted about what you have choosen for Leia. She is definitely one of the super talenteds if not the best. The clip you chosen doesn't represent her capability at all.

[@andrewchristianbrundidge]

I would have to disagree with Ray on Leia Zhu. She is definitely a prodigy.

[@nickcarroll8565]

Bro, he said “based on this video”. Granted he should have really looked at some other clips. She wouldn’t get the rep she has if she only played like that.

[@eddavidson3051]

Glad you gave Karolina a chance to play with you! She’s progressed away past this level in 4 years, hasn’t she. I’m really enjoying your street duets w/Karolina posted this week. Who’s sweating in front of large crowds now? 😅 Great job, great example for her! Good for you!

[@wallie963]

Leia's clip tho 😭😭 did her so dirty

[@Matthew_18]

Ray has such a great personality

[@Someone1OO]

Me: “let’s check the comments today” The comments: “ leía! Leía! LEÍA! “ Me going to leía’s page 😮❤🤩

[@angelabell7254]

Walking Foetus! 😂😂😂.

[@volfgankamei5348]

Ray make it seem like Karolina was better than Theo judging from the video. Also performing with an orchestra is much more difficult than performing on the streets. Edit: so seems like Ray knew Karolina personally so I guess that's why Ray was a little soft on her.

[@newin548]

Humble, talented,awesome❣️

[@semplice14]

I asked Chat GPT-4 "Who is Leia Zhu", and here is its response: "Leia Zhu is a talented young violinist known for her prodigious abilities and performances. As of my last update in January 2022, she has been recognized as a child prodigy in the classical music world."

[@YolandaSuen-x9c]

I love Chloe and 吉村妃鞠！Please go check her! She’s so good too

[@AA-pb2rz]

leia????? ray is trolling!

[@jnyjelly32]

"This part right here: diddledoodlediddledeedle *with smile on face* is super difficult"

[@alexashaw6616]

definitely chose the wrong clip for leia omg

[@zyxjulia]

the fact that Leia is currently the most successful out of these prodigies atm and THAT was the only clip Ray could pull out? 😳💀

[@Camilla-js2rn]

THIS!

[@Y3llow_Submarin3]

Fame/ number of concerts= success ? She is for sure highly skilled now, but now we are talking about were they prodigy?

[@Lokan3]

I have to admit that I think Ray really messed up on Leia. I used to watch her ten year old vlogs and I think she is amazing. I'm not alone in this opinion. I agree that the clip he watched didn't show her abilities at all.

[@thorfinnthegoatmc]

Chloe Chua clears

[@gagasaurio12]

mmmm chloe chua was in the video also.

[@jrkin]

4:00 she plays my favorite piece

[@radjedi2010]

It’s a good concept, but I think your editor may have let you down with the selection of clips. Also, it may be cool for a future episode to listen to them blind.

[@ASilentSymphony]

I wouldn’t say I’m a prodigy, but I’ve just recently marked a year of leaning violin and I’m already first violin in a String Orchestra

[@sofieyas]

WHAT IS THIS CLIP OF LEIA ZHU?! You know that she has more concerts than you in one month than you have for the rest of the year...

[@MishaSkripach]

Wow what an aggressive comment. Maybe he chose the most truthful clip? Playing a simple melody, not prepared by teachers ?

[@MVAvery12]

“Walking fetus” comes in to play. 😹

[@umberella7]

everyones saying leia had a bad clip but chloe whos now 16 can play much more amazing stuff 😭 wish he had watched ysaye ballade 3 as its my favorite of hers

[@chloeblackett6270]

all clips were bad tbh but leia's was on another league of bad...

[@magic4hk]

I respect you that you honestly admit you are not a prodigy 😂

[@shiragoldmusic]

Ray why'd you do Leah dirty like that

[@finminder2928]

If this video gets really popular, could you do chimera by Polyphia next. Love the thirty minute format, but I would prefer if you tried to figure out how to play from the original song (without Tim walking you though it 😉)

[@corbeaunoir8319]

Having seen Sarah Chang live the first thing thay comes to mind is intensity and it was still true back then. It took one bar of erlkonig for me to go damn

[@starros1]

Ray, is there a reason you didn't use Karolina's Mendolsohn's Violin Concerto to judge her performance? It's such a pleasure to see and listen to you. Thank you.😊

[@MishaSkripach]

the video wasout before she played it? But anyway that video would have confirmed what he said

[@conceptacasserly1360]

​@@MishaSkripachthis time I agree with you! She's no prodigy.

[@sophelet]

Other amazing prodigies: Hilary Hahn, Leila Josefowicz, Midori, Joshua Bell, Yehudi Menuhin, and Tamaki Kawakubo.

[@violetvrataski]

Actually, bad choice of clip for both Leia and Karolina. Karolina's covers are mostly pop, but she does have a few classical covers on her channel, and they're pretty good. Obviously Leia is on a whole other level, 5 seconds of her recording of 'The Last Rose of Summer' would tell you that.

[@MishaSkripach]

While playing pop, one chooses to be very behind on classical. This is the choice that parents make.

[@Vanessa-fr1ho]

I also think Leia is definitely a prodigy. Karolina is a very talented young violinist but in my opinion she can't keep up with the other prodigies, also not with her classical pieces I have seen. But nevertheless she is very talented.

[@mariaswan1539]

@@MishaSkripach Ray was with Karolina today with his violin, seems a mistake is being fixed

[@MishaSkripach]

He made no mistake and there is nothing to fix. She is not a prodigy, she is a pop cover dancing girl star, it is different.@@mariaswan1539

[@mariaswan1539]

@@MishaSkripach the mistake was the video used to represent her, he realised it after we told him in the comments, now she wins, she gets inspired by Ray and gets to see his strad, possibly even play it, who knows how far he has traveled just to see her, it's great respect from Ray and she will be very happy.. No doubt he got a call from Colburn too saying she deserves a better account of her playing, great job by Ray, us fans and Colburn.

[@evanjones9602]

For Leia Zhu the best video for her would be her Last Rose of Summer at 12.

[@naxos41]

Ray is either grossly misinformed or just trolling.

[@MishaSkripach]

Ray sees true things

[@vivekapihl5179]

I bet trolling.

[@MishaSkripach]

@@quenoselecruzenadieI don't think he trolls, he sincerely just expressed his thoughts. As not a prodigy himself, he thought it won't be ever offensive to say that someone is not a prodigy. Indeed, making the child a prodigy is a decision by the parents, without the orchestrated parental effort no child, however talented, will be positioned as a prodigy. However, it is possible that people who achieved millions of fans take PR very seriously. If anything, however innocent, causes losses, it will be objected to. Prodigies are the products of investments. Talking about classical music prodigies, Karolina is obviously not one of them, in my personal opinion. However, she is a child star of pop business, this is something evident, and a natural star at that. I think she could have gone the path of a classical prodigy if the parents wanted, she is talented. It is a choice, and the choice parents make, not ever a child. It is also a gamble - if a child is not well known by age ... - will this child able to "break through" later, or destined to be never a soloist? If, on the other hand, as a result of huge investment and 10-h a day practice the child did achieve a prodigy status - would this give protection and guarantee of a good adult career? Ray raised a very important issue, vbery interesting to think about.

[@MishaSkripach]

@@quenoselecruzenadie Come to us for some Sibelius! and piano and cello :) no prodigies there, just youth and learning

[@ClassicalClown1756]

Improvisation is a unique skill because it usually isn't taught outside of jazz and a few other genras. For a violinist to learn how to improvise is incredibly unique and special. We need to develop this skill im more young musicians.

[@MishaSkripach]

Very many violinists improvise easily since early childhood, it is not a unique skill at all.

[@ClassicalClown1756]

@@MishaSkripach I guess I am mostly referring to 'classically trained' musicians. I know that is someone is trained in other genres they are probably more likely to learn improvisation.

[@MishaSkripach]

@@ClassicalClown1756 Improvisation does not require much learning, and a good proportion of classical musicians easily improvise, most of them without any training. It is called talent, and their skill of playing whatever is in their head fascilitates this.

[@ClassicalClown1756]

@@MishaSkripach I think your right, improvisation is fairly straight forward (as someone who is a self taught improvisor). I think that in my region specifically it is less common (America). it probably has to do with the image of classical music as "sacred" and something that is played rather than created. But as I was saying, in my local community no classical musicians improvise, my violinist friend (who has been playing sense the age of four) said that I was unique for teaching myself improv. None of my friends or anyone improvise, it's just not common in this part of the world I guess. But I am delighted to find out that it is common in other parts of the world!

[@MishaSkripach]

@@ClassicalClown1756Good musicians all can improvise, but their earning does not depend on it, so they don't place much importance on this. Violinists can be different, playing violin from 4 does not mean playing well.

[@gingerbeer5499]

I take back my comment today Ray, I saw your Instagram short you went to see Karolina perform today and no doubt she will gain great inspiration from you again, great job, this is the Ray i respect.

[@AttilaLothrigel]

Not only went to see, he performed duets with her. On that day, Ray became a street performer. I was there and they were fantastic

[@gingerbeer5499]

@@AttilaLothrigel I've saw your comments saying this, if you were there surely you recorded some of it, pretty much everyone else would so if you can upload even a few seconds of it, that would be awesome Then we will know it actually did happen.

[@AttilaLothrigel]

​@@gingerbeer5499Karolina just published one fun duet she did with Ray. They also did some classical ones not published yet. See it on her you tube channel Karolina Protsenko Violin

[@DavidChow-n4x]

Good morning Ray. I just finished listening to 10 years old Yeonah Kim from Seoul Korea playing at a public airport. She was playing Vivaldi “Summer” Prodigy or not? Like to know what your opinion and your reason why and why not. Since you also play this piece in public. Thank you for your analysis. “Gracias!” “Ciao la Mein” composer or pasta. 😂