Liszt: Réminiscences de Don Juan, S.418 (Masaru Okada)

A jaw-dropping live performance, and by some distance the best one I've heard.
The Don Juan paraphrase has attained a terrifying (and deserved) reputation as one of the most technically challenging works in the literature, but less remarked upon is the uncanny dramatic insight with which Liszt integrates the music of the statue of the dead Commendatore, the drinking song, and seduction duet into a narrative that celebrates Don Giovanni’s life and yet relentlessly reminds the listener of his eventual punishment.
The work opens with the Commendatore’s music, both from the graveyard scene where he threatens Don Giovanni and from the finale where he condemns Don Giovanni to hell. There is very little in this section that’s superfluous, despite the apparently florid writing: nearly everything evokes a distinct orchestral texture or passage from the original music, from the eerie modulating scales [3:02] to the sparse declamatory passages [2:35] (both from the final scene).
After this comes the seduction duet and two variations on this theme, and then an extended fantasy on the champagne aria so intense it feels like an amphetaminic dump straight to the aorta. Importantly, the Commendatore recurs throughout. He appears in the transition from the seduction duet to the drinking song at 11:39 [“Tu m'invitasti a cena...” - the Commendatore invites Don Giovanni to dine with him in hell], 15:12 [note also that the LH mirrors the middle voice from the opening section at 1:04], and at 15:48, where, in what might be the most bone-chilling moment of the entire piece, darkness swarms up to interrupt the lurid ecstasy of the finale, a reminder that underneath the celebratory mood that dominates the piece something more disturbing lies (this passage is often omitted by pianists, which seems pretty unforgivable).
Okada’s playing here is incredible. The technical mastery is stunning, of course, but is more importantly always used in service of the music. The variations on the seduction duet, for instance, at kept at a tempo that retains the original’s languorous, slightly oily feel, and the opening is played with nearly unmatched intensity. The leaps beginning at 13:49 are played with such a sense of fun - and with such lightness - that it’s hard not to feel like laughing out loud when they arrive, the staccatos at 10:20 are miraculously preserved, and the finale is played with that possessed, almost-but-not-quite-lost control that Horowitz managed to make his trademark.

[@hadenplouffe3976]

I think I speak for all of us when I say holy shit.

[@stuffclusters]

i was about to write holy fuck, so you sure spoke for me too

[@shadowjuan2]

Haden Plouffe hahaha your comment made me laugh although I was not exactly thinking that

[@Decrepit_Productions]

I'm with you. I was gonna type Holy.... but can now simply add my voice to the choir.

[@calebhu6383]

@hawkturkey The left handed trills are quite easy. The right hand is a lot more difficult than the left in the piece, save for several spots in ending.

[@calebhu6383]

@hawkturkey That would indeed be difficult if it were required! But the truth is, most people (including concert pianists) find it aurally sufficient to hold the chord down with pedal and do the trilling separately.

[@Epic-1224]

I don juan to play this

[@kerencanelo8580]

People don gerit

[@monacatowa3824]

Lol

[@theoboueid4744]

It does sound like a pain to play this piece, but damn, Don Giovanni cry from joy everytime you hear it or am I the only one who does?

[@aakarshitsingh1535]

Lolol

[@aakarshitsingh1535]

@Shostacovid h

[@bassodivo1]

this pianist understands and re-creates the drama so well. You can tell he actually listened to and absorbed the actual opera

[@makaan699]

I don't understand why he isn't more famous and we don't get to hear more of his recordings. This rendition of Don Juan is one of the greatest piano performances of all time.

[@isner_lew1834]

Bro this guy skipped a whole 30 second phase thinking no one will realize

[@loveispatient0808]

Who is this pianist Okada?

[@loveispatient0808]

@@makaan699 who is this pianist? Okada?

[@myl25-]

@@isner_lew1834 where? I’ve played this piece and didn’t notice anything 😂 unless I also skipped 30 seconds.

[@user-xn3cb4wb8z]

"With animation" - after playing ff presto for the past 3 minutes.

[@sprechendemulltonne5051]

That surely tells you something about the composer haha

[@sikroboskop3121]

and Prestissimo after that

[@pleasecontactme4274]

@@sprechendemulltonne5051 XD

[@sikroboskop3121]

@Charlemagne HAHAHAHHAHAHHAHAHA dostum bu gerçekten iyiydi şu an gülmekten yerlerde kıvranıyorum HAHAHAHAHAAH

[@arobloxuser4744]

Time stamp?

[@costasargyris835]

You know you have had too much Liszt when you listen to orchestral pieces and think that they are transcriptions from piano pieces by Liszt...

[@AndreiAnghelLiszt]

Hahaaha i can totally relate to that!!!

[@samthepianoman]

There’s no such thing as too much Liszt

[@TheFlamingPiano]

I had Leslie Howard's tracks so I listened to Liszt most often many years ago

[@blacksky492]

@@TheFlamingPiano hi

[@segmentsAndCurves]

@@TheFlamingPiano Don't expect you to be here.

[@thepianoman6958]

Liszt: ok Mozart, here is my rendition of your opera Mozart: What have you done!?

[@SpaghettiToaster]

mozart would've loved playing this, if given a piano to play it on

[@inazuma3gou]

I doubt Mozart can play this on his "piano" just because pianos from his time were not designing for this much banging. The strings will break mid-way. Beethoven, with his temperament, did lots to revolutionize piano-forte to set a stage for Liszt.

[@thepianoman6958]

He used a piano-forte correct?

[@inazuma3gou]

Correct. Perhaps, I may be misusing terminologies, but I remember stories of Beethoven banging on his keyboard (musically of course) and having to replace strings pretty frequently. I assumed Mozart's piano-forte was even more sensitive.

[@javascriptkiddie2718]

He would have hated it just like most people during that time.

[@achat77]

The interesting thing about the finale is that the piece seems to "end" four times before it actually ends: at 15:04, 15:18, 15:29, and 15:38. But it's unrelenting and a real treat for a pianist to listen to, because sometimes you just need a good climax - or five.

[@AndreiAnghelLiszt]

It wouldn't make sense (or at the least sound very rushed) for the piece to end at any of the times you mentioned.

[@achat77]

@@AndreiAnghelLiszt Sure -- I just meant these were climaxes after which the piece could conceivably start winding down, but instead it builds to another climax and another and so on.

[@pleasecontactme4274]

@@AndreiAnghelLiszt that's what i thought too, and if you say i'd obviously go with what you say

[@aakarshitsingh1535]

@@AndreiAnghelLiszt yeah true

[@p-y8210]

Anticlimax

[@empireentertainmentevents1353]

It is truly remarkable that a human can create this high level musical ideas on the piano. How did Listz get the inspiration to think of these insane arrangement?? He is beyond human!

[@carlus6432]

Paganini

[@kennytran2860]

@@carlus6432 very true, he only started composing and practicing these crazy things after he saw paganini play the violin

[@hdkrismazz9153]

He made a contract with a demon who gave him the skills like paganini, the demon used to be an angel of God but rebelled along with lucifer, that demon that helped him was one of the angels of worship and music in heaven, also Jesus saves from hell and loves you and wants a relationship with you

[@empireentertainmentevents1353]

@@hdkrismazz9153 lol! Religious nuts are everywhere

[@Sandy-lq7eo]

He got inspired at a young age when he went to a Paganini concert and was stunned by the virtuoso. Then he well… you know the rest

[@novellmusicmedia6895]

the pianist really understands the opera. great performance and study.

[@PieInTheSky9]

The piece that injured Alexander Scriabin's right hand (although Scriabin went on to write arguably more difficult pieces anyway).

[@PieInTheSky9]

Perhaps you're right. I haven't played any of the late Scriabin sonatas but it seems to me they are at least on par when it comes to difficultly. I believe Horowitz himself said the Scriabin sonata 5 was one of the two most difficult pieces he's played (the other being the Mephisto Waltz 1). Marc-Andre Hamelin has said that recording the scriabin sonatas was one of the most difficult things he's done.

[@robinshen1679]

Brady Dill who composed Traumerei and "the C major scale"? Because apart from Schumann's I don't know of another traumerei

[@mcrettable]

I kind agree with traumerei being difficult... the thing with don juan is a lot of people can make it sound like a muddy mess. few people can keep it at tempo and accurate. it's near the peak of human capability i think. what's "c major scale"? or is that a joke

[@MaestroTJS]

It's hilarious that people aren't getting Horowitz' joke, or half-joke as the case may be. He's probably referring to difficulties in interpreting Traumerei, although this could apply to any number of technically easy pieces (remember the quote about Mozart being too easy for students and too hard for performers). As for the C major scale, Chopin also believed it was the most difficult because it actually fits the hand the least of any scale. I read that the first scale he taught students was B major, which fits the hand most naturally.

[@gaborcsordas]

Scriabin is very difficult in a different way it's not comparable to Liszt. It has more difficult subdivisions and more voices to lead. Here it's the freaking jumps and that thirds are everywhere..

[@JamesLee-pf2dz]

Did not read the description and did I not have a single clue that this was a live performance. Unbelievable, as the word suggests.

[@darrthvader6669]

The "presto" coda (and everything else) was genius. That is perfect as possible. Every note was correct (in my opinion). I just know that Liszt actually tested the limits of the piano in this piece, and that this player just perfectly did that that Liszt wanted!

[@stephenmclaughlin1763]

Liszt is the greatest pianist this world will ever know

[@vnwa7390]

I wouldn't say so. Charles Valentin Alkan, an obscure composer, was described as having the finest technicality of anyone by Liszt himself. www.alkansociety.org/Publications/Society-Bulletins/bulletin53.PDF. He also composed a fiendishly difficult piece, the Concerto for Solo Piano, which amounts to 121~ pages of work, and more if cadenzas, improvisations, or obscure transcriptions are added (this is usually done by the performer(s)). Such a subject would, however, be very subjective. Since recordings of Liszt or Alkan don't exist, I don't think that the idea of comparison between the two should be given much merit. To each their own. Here's the audio for my personal favourite part of the concerto, performed by Marc Andre Hamelin: kzbin.info/www/bejne/pJaaiYyfZs5oopI.

[@donkgated8074]

Absolutely not. Our understanding of piano playing today is incredibly refined at the highest levels and the finest conservatories.

[@AndreiAnghelLiszt]

@@donkgated8074 Wow, you really don't know much about Liszt. When you take into account Liszt’s musical ability, musicianship, technique and influence, he almost definitely was the greatest pianist ever. During his lifetime he was universally acknowledged as the greatest pianist in the world. Even people who didn’t like him or his music recognised his greatness. Brahms, who hated Liszt and his music said, “One cannot even talk of piano playing unless they have heard Liszt play.” Contrast this with the fact that there is no clear consensus on who the greatest pianist of the last century was. There are at least 4 contenders (Rachmaninov, Richter, Michelangeli and Horowitz spring to mind), but none is universally acclaimed as the greatest. For Liszt to be so far ahead of the competition, in a very competitive age, is simply remarkable. With regard to musical ability, Liszt was almost certainly the greatest sight-reader that ever lived. There are numerous reliable accounts of his miraculous sight-reading abilities, including sight-reading both the piano and orchestral parts of Grieg’s piano concerto, sight reading a symphony from a hand-written full score and, most impressively of all, sight-reading Chopin’s etudes, playing them so well that Chopin himself (!) said he wanted to steal from Liszt his way of playing them. Clara Schumann said of Liszt that “he reads at sight what the rest of us toil with for weeks, and in the end get nowhere with”. Are you willing to disregard all of these?

[@donkgated8074]

@@AndreiAnghelLiszt "When you take into account Liszt’s musical ability, musicianship, technique and influence, he almost definitely was the greatest pianist ever. " Liszt was definitely groundbreaking in his compositions. If you take all of what you said into account, the case for Liszt to be considered the greatest is definitely strong. However, I'm talking strictly from a pianistic perspective when I said Liszt was definitely not the greatest who ever lived. "During his lifetime he was universally acknowledged as the greatest pianist in the world." Yes he was. And nearly 2 centuries later, our understanding of piano playing has improved dramatically while our instrument the piano has evolved - including the fact the keys are significantly heavier. "sight-reading both the piano and orchestral parts of Grieg’s piano concerto, " Great. Again, the game has moved on - thanks in no small part to Liszt. I wonder how he'd deal with Rach 3 or Prok 2 concerti. "Even a modern super-virtuoso such as Hamelin has said that Liszt’s Op. 2 Fantasy on Paganini’s Campanella (not the more famous La Campanella, but an earlier version) is impossible for him to play." Yes, I think that piece is simply impossible to play up to Hamelin's usual lofty technical standard, period - and that includes Liszt himself! Why did he write all those notes? Why was he still hailed as a super virtuoso if he couldn't play his own pieces? We have to consider the historical accounts and consider the audience of the day. They didn't have access to recordings, much less KZbin. Comparatively, today we can hear these favorite pieces of ours millions of times at a whim, and we get acquainted to the piece so well we can detect the slightest unevenness and struggle and wrong note. So imagine this. The audience got a buzz about Liszt coming to town. They've never heard him play. They bought tickets and heard the piano played like they never heard it played before. They were rapturous and proceeded to ask Liszt for the music sheet. They were even more impressed seeing the op. 2 with all those impossible notes to play. They wondered how he did it - but too bad, Liszt already left town on his whirlwind European tour. They just have to assume he played everything he wrote.

[@kellikim3850]

@@donkgated8074 so basically, you're saying that liszt is a fraud?

[@jackcurley1591]

This might be the single most incredible live performance I’ve ever heard. Okada, while performing live, handles this piece (one of the hardest in the “standard” repertoire) better than Marc Andre Hamelin in studio… and that’s saying something! Jaw dropping, show-stopping performance, one of the greatest performances ever imho

[@fredsharp7419]

For clarity, accuracy and panache, this performance stands way above all others that I have heard. Hamelin and Lisitsa give good renditions, but nobody captures the character of the love duet like Okada! Many thanks for uploading this gem!

[@Sandy-lq7eo]

Lisitsas performance is very dry. It feels kinda sloppy. Okadas performance are MILES better.

[@AlbertoCasado86]

Lang lang absolutely killed it

[@davidzas9413]

couldn't believe it could go faster, stronger, harder and then... 15:20. I've listened to countless renditions and this one is ridiculously on point across the board... And LIVE to boot. Incredible. I would have clapped for an hour

[@Tenormind]

For me it’s so fascinating to see that Liszt’s works gather his haters and lovers each time and there are super interesting, rich discussions between sides. After losing my eyes and mind following the score, I start reading the comments while I listen to his music and everything gets even more interesting, beautiful and deep! Thank you all for showing such care and interest in music! I find this kind of ‘meetings’ so precious

[@shadoemorante6271]

It almost sounded like that piano was about to break. Absolutely incredible. O.O

[@legendpossible7159]

Imagine Liszt himself playing this. Live. I would pay everything to get to watch.

14:55 that chord

[@blabla5268]

And the bass drop in the next bar is played earth-shatteringly grandiose

[@alvexok5523]

Amazing work. The piece starts getting really good at about 8:58 and keeps getting even better all the way to 13:28, where it looks like for a second it's gonna slow itself down, but it then immediately begins the next section which sounds amazing. And it keeps getting even more fabulous the closer it gets to the end! 15:22, wow! Another triumph, Liszt!!

[@seo-yeonkim6108]

0:00 - Grave 3:47 - Andantino 4:24 - Duetto Andantino 6:46 - Allegretto 7:33 - Var. 1 10:49 - Var. 2 13:00 - Presto 13:31 - Presto 15:48 - Andante

[@ethanmclovin1310]

playing this for my 15th birthday. wish me luck, cause im gonna need it.

[@thenotsookayguy]

How'd it go?

[@iaeud5401]

리스트는 진짜...... 기교가 어느 정도였을까... 미친 기교와 스킬.. 진짜 그의 연주 레코딩이 없다는 게 너무 안타까울 따름이다...

[@nickjgunning]

Liszt died 2 years before the first gramophone recordings, but there were a number of performers who his other students endorsed as being very like him in style- and they have musical descendents.

[@christianwon572]

Amazing! Liszt and Mozart were truly phenomenal composers!

[@franzliszt7682]

Nice profile pic

[@lizzybach4254]

Chopin?

[@falkfink]

@@lizzybach4254 this is a piece by Liszt/Mozart. Of course Chopin is great but this is not about him

[@angelob.1089]

3:51 -- The transition into that Andantino section is just the most gorgeous thing. Suddenly, there's a drop of colour in the blackness that we are initially presented with.

[@worstpianist3985]

My favorite part of the whole piece is the transition at 9:50

[@shenpathetic6144]

Me too! It likes someone who go through a terrible storm but suddenly find a way out. The melody is sweet and warm

[@aerohydra3849]

I know that the end of the piece is usually what gets the most attention, but can I point out how good the phrasing is at 4:24? In the original opera, this aria is actually a duet between Don Giovanni and Zerlina, and I think this performance almost perfectly reflects the difference between the two characters, with the confident and romantic Giovanni in the thick and bold tenor voice in the left hand while Zerlina is in the more tense and unsure right hand.

[@z.a.4801]

Thx I listened to it with your words in mind and it made me appreciate it even more.

[@kezia8380]

wait is it me or that part sounds like a piece from chopin? i forgot the name 🤦‍♀️

[@japonoyunyapmcskojima8290]

My favorite part from this piece

[@FrostDirt]

​@@kezia8380 It's Chopin Op. 2, it's a variation of the same theme, Mozart's "La ci darem la mano" from his opera Don Giovanni

[@youtubersingingmoments4402]

Liszt was doing Black MIDI way before it was cool...

[@swinger9374]

A great piece to recommend to beginners

[@treesny]

Thanks for posting this extraordinary performance. I never really understood the 19th century/Romantic fascination with Mozart's Don Giovanni until I hear this piece. What an amazing tribute from one great composer to another (very different) one. Some people clearly find it unnerving or even unpleasant to hear one composer's music from the perspective of another one, but this has been a constant practice in the history of music, and has often resulted in wonderful works like this. Stravinsky's The Fairy's Kiss, based on music of Tchaikovsky, is another example of musical tribute and transformation. :)

[@jackcurley1591]

The fact that this is a live performance... wow, Okada is incredible!!!!

[@federico6485]

This piece injured Scriabin's right hand and made him to compose the left-hand-only pieces.

[@empireentertainmentevents1353]

It's sad that VIDEO CAMERA Was not invented during the times of Bach, Beethoven, Mozart, Listz etc. Think...How amazing it will be for us to see these great composers playing their masterpieces the way the pieces were meant to be played.

[@rossiodiaz6414]

I agree.

[@Musicienne-DAB1995]

Even more astonishing that in a greater age of technological advancement, we still look back to people who lived centuries ago for guidance.

[@empireentertainmentevents1353]

@@Musicienne-DAB1995 you are 100% RIGHT!

[@CarmenReyes-em9np]

Tamaya Koei. ? Compositora de esta obra ?

[@gergelykiss]

Fantastic! Amazing performance, can't believe it is a live recording, near superhuman stuff. I really like that Okada preserved the return of the Commendatore at the end - he does takes one cut in the transitory section before the arrival of the drinking song, which has some deliciously deranged music (the most ominous double augmented major scales bubbling up from the deep end of the keyboard), I would have loved to hear his take on it. Ridiculously great playing, all the same! Thousand thanks to Maestro Okada!

[@amy-zv2cf]

13:00 is wonderful!!

[@antonygonzalez1672]

Amy A. Yoooo fr I love that part I always just get kept that going

[@joannalu9460]

i agree

[@pleasecontactme4274]

from that till the ending is so catchy

[@kerencanelo8580]

Is so beethoven

[@ValzainLumivix]

So is 0:00 to 16:13

[@christianvennemann9008]

I can play this with my eyes closed. They're closed because it would be a dream.

[@aalb1970]

Chuck Norris could play this with his a** cheeks :-D

[@christianvennemann9008]

@@aalb1970 Ling Ling could play this without even touching the keyboard. 🤣🤣

[@rayzhang9453]

Christian Vennemann yeah because he practices 40 hours a day

[@pentaxel3905]

I like how the piece also sounds epic while also being virtuosic, like the champagne aria and the cadenza, that's some of the most exciting music I've heard in a while

[@amerain1729]

Liszt wrote this piece to troll future pianists XD

[@retrops4261]

Everything Liszt wrote was to troll pianists!!

[@retrops4261]

@Lisztianok name one!

[@retrops4261]

@Lisztian thank you, no I didn't know. I am primary a violinist. My piano knowledge is far more limited. I will check out his later stuff... Not that I dislike the no virtuoso stuff of course! The transcendental Etudes, Hungarian Rhapsodies and I also love his Eb piano concerto. I also forgot about the piano trio/quartet he wrote...come to think of it, his chamber music is less virtuososic. He wrote that late in life?

[@retrops4261]

@Lisztian thanks, I'll check that out too. I find it fascinating that Lizst was almost experimenting with atonality before Berg, Shoenberg, and Stravinsky (to. An extent).. fascinating guy.

[@MathieuPrevot]

@@retrops4261 The romantism's writing an the exploration of new horizon of music writing was initiated by Beethoven in the sonata 29 Op. 106. Liszt was the first to play it when he was 16. Liszt inherited Beethoven's piano and remained very much marked by carrying further his legacy. Liszt wrote uncountable transcriptions, and organ pieces, and few chamber pieces indeed. Consolations, and many other pieces in Années de pèlerinage of Harmonies poétiques et religieuses are very much trimmed of physical challenges or what few call virtuosity.

[@elawrence8583]

Ashish, your channel is by far my favorite on youtube. I just wanted to thank you for finding and arranging all these performances; it makes finding music so much easier, and introducing myself to new composers and performers smoother.

[@AGP335]

10:24 THEY HAVE AN OSSIA FOR THE OSSIA

[@Mot-dh5sx]

It’s actually two different ossias lol

[@JG_1998]

my favorite performance of this piece, he manages to outdo even the likes of marc andre hamelin. This recording is blistering hot. It's bursting at the seams with energy.

[@vhagerty]

Hamelin's performance of the Hungarian Rhapsody #2 with cadenza is outstanding. 🙂

[@katalinrobin6222]

oh, boy! Mozart, Liszt and Okada go well together. Sensational!

[@redfishplayz4476]

U Guys cant Image how much fun it is to Play the Grave Part, it Just feels so good To let all that epicness and Show Out

[@frankiewinters1255]

Pardon my french ...but that was fucking brilliant!! :O best one I've heard since mephisto waltz no. 1. I would give ANYTHING just to hang out with Franz just for a day around a piano ...if only we could bring him back, people like Liszt should just be immortal as it's completely immoral to humanity that he's not around to compose these absolute masterpieces any more. And bravo to Okada for such a flawless, soulfull performance, I respect anyone who can bash at a piano for 16 minutes without their hands cramping up or losing concentration ...that simply takes talent and experience

[@Lordran__]

Frankie Winters Liszt was a PHENOM

[@CarmenReyes-em9np]

Lo amo 😘 😍. 💯🇮🇷. 🎶🎶🎶🪷 ,dichosos los que vivieron en esa época 🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹

[@CarmenReyes-em9np]

🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉

[@lingromanzecool]

Whao! It is awesome. I'm just speechless. I just don't know how to express my feeling! Wonderful piece, and awesome, outstanding, spectacular, impressive, extraordinary performance!

[@mdorianwu]

When I listened to it the first time, I thought it was a studio recording until I heard the strong applause at the end. It is such an unbelievable master play!!

[@japonoyunyapmcskojima8290]

One of my favorite pieces I mean it's masterpiece. Liszt's own style and technique combining with Mozart it's just totally amazing. Not just with Mozart but with Beethoven too with his transcriptions of Beethoven's Symphonies.

[@johnrees690]

Saw this live a few months ago and it was one of the most mind blowing things ever.

[@GianniFranceschi]

WOW!!! La parte di "Fin ch'han dal vino" è strepitosa!

[@rattywoof5259]

That just has to be the most terrifying set of variations on 'La Ci Darem la Mano' ever written!

[@soundspective341]

That final chord is ground shaking honestly. I've played the end of this piece (starting from 15:38) and I've tried to get the same massive, stinging like chord sound out of the piano. I must say, it is not easy.

[@herobrine1847]

It also has to do with the piano itself and the recording setup!

[@boogae2918]

@@herobrine1847 ...

[@stacia6678]

Its a bit late, but Okada plays the left hand coll.8 (an octave lower). That's probably why it sounds like a thump instead of a regular note.

[@skellez83]

Especially close to the end i can't help but smiling, and laughing a bit, and being filled with joy. Like, i see that funny side, that explosive madness in the name of fun and art.

[@juan-sanchez-256]

I think there are not enough applauses at the end... It should have been a massive burst of applauses. Thanks for the upload

[@amgx9670]

the result of unusually hard work

[@simmo5697]

Is this one of the most dangerous pieces to play in a comp? Almost anyone else plays this (even Hamelin!) and you just can’t help but notice the shortcomings. Truly one of the best performances of any piece I’ve ever heard.

[@lillianli1587]

13:32. Ommggggg

[@lucazangari9821]

It is very difficult to find a good live performance of this piece. This one is very nice indeed. The monstrous difficulty justifies some of the not so tasteful parts. But respect to every pianist who even attempt this! Wow.

[@tudorcucer907]

What a piece !! A Genius !!

Holy cow. This was LIVE.

[@franzliszt3393]

1:14 you can hear capriccio no.24

[@thejokingwizard]

Omg

[@szilike_10]

you mean the Paganini caprice? I don't :(

[@franzliszt3393]

@@szilike_10 yes

[@kasajizo8963]

@@franzliszt3393 you're a fucking genius

[@franzliszt3393]

@@kasajizo8963 yes I am

[@gligorvladimir1121]

Liszt was an ordinary man. He loves so few things. Torturing piano players is one of them :D

[@samthepianoman]

LegionOfGames yep

[@christianvennemann9008]

Yes. 😩😩

[@franzliszt3393]

Yes I do love to torture them ;)

[@franzliszt3393]

@@dadaketgasparge Ok, play this with the sheet music upside down

[@DanielFahimi]

Ordinary? Geniuses are ordinary to you??

[@roberto.7475]

Wonderfully played by a great pisnist.Thank you😊

[@Numberonesorabjifan]

13:32 so clean wow

[@vhagerty]

Franz Liszt...I bow down to you.

[@thefilipinodominochannel_jyz]

Pianist: Oh Mozart! Too easy give me a harder one! Sheet Music: Mozart AND LISZT Pianist: TOO HARD HELP ME

[@joscaz1447]

It's actually insane to think that a human being did wrote this piece, simply wow

[@desteddyeggroll]

10:50 I love Variation II!!! 11:58 Come on Sophie from TwoSet Violin!!!

[@Andrei.Christop]

thank you

[@NicoloPaganini1003]

Yes thank you for the timestamp ☺ I was looking for the part that Sophie played for a long time 😂

[@samthepianoman]

Ling ling plays this with one hand with the other he plays mephisto waltz 1

[@manuelbes]

@@samthepianoman lmao mephisto waltz, this one's hard

[@maverick1562]

TWO SETTER FOR LIFE BAAABY

[@Heisenberg1361]

Lyrics: Là ci darem la mano, Là mi dirai di sì, Vedi, non è lontano, Partiam, ben mio, da qui. : Vorrei, e non vorrei, Mi trema un poco il cor Felice, è ver, sarei, Ma può burlami ancor. : Vieni, mio bel diletto! : Mifa pietà Masetto. : Io cangierò tua sorte! : Presto, non son più forte! : Andiam, andiam! (Zerlina): Andiam! (Don Giovanni et Zerlina): Andiam, andiam, mio bene, A ristorar le pene D'un innocente amor

[@yayobro7194]

12:59 I love this section

[@remsan03]

Mind-blowing. Too bad there isn't a video of the performance.

[@wandahelenagorecka-fichten9258]

Liszta wariacje na temat Don Juan- genialne wykonanie przez Okadę

[@donnytello1544]

used to hate this piece. listened to this version. now i love it

[@segmentsAndCurves]

no you cant hate this

[@donnytello1544]

@@segmentsAndCurves yes

[@mariana.makasjian]

so so good, i love the part at 1:49-2:00

[@mihawkdrakule3869]

Mozart would be proud of liszt

[@eljodoma9105]

He’d definitely be weirded out.

[@segmentsAndCurves]

Just a prodigy see other prodigy's stuff.

[@aramkhachaturian8043]

I started clapping when the piece ended as well lol

[@ValzainLumivix]

Lol

[@johannsebastianbach2750]

Look at this! Just throw counterpoint out the window!

[@QDQDQQD]

Sorry bach

[@user-zz5mh9pp3h]

Это гениальное исполнение!

[@tuoshiwan5046]

lang lang doesnt break a sweat playing la campanella, but if you watch him play this he's literally dead

[@brutal5230]

That dude would be going fuckin crazy with his facial expressions

[@sanjosemike3137]

I believe Lang Lang has permanently damaged his hands. I don’t know if he is still playing. The human “equipment” is not suited to a virtuoso piano career. If you play too much crap like this, you will destroy your hands. Happens all the time. This is a recipe for over-use syndrome, from which you will never recover completely. Sanjosemike (no longer in CA)

[@manuelbes]

@@sanjosemike3137 what ?

[@sanjosemike3137]

mAnu My understanding is that he has taken a year break from playing, in the hope that he can recover. If he is playing now, it is likely only Mozart. Sanjosemike (no longer in CA)

[@789armstrong]

Lang Lang damaged his left arm by practicing Ravel's Concerto for the left hand, non stop, without taking rest periods, due to a heavy schedule.

[@CarmenReyes-em9np]

Carmen Reyes exelente obra. Lizst.

[@Pakkens_Backyard]

The last few minutes are just, um, wow.

[@Olga6328]

00:01 Парафраза на теми опери "Дон Жуан", вступ 02:23 Парафраза на теми опери "Дон Жуан", тема Командора 04:26 Парафраза на теми опери "Дон Жуан", тема дуеттіно Дон Жуана і Церліни 07:34 Парафраза на теми опери "Дон Жуан", тема дуеттіно Дон Жуана і Церліни, 1 вар. 10:50 Парафраза на теми опери "Дон Жуан", тема дуеттіно Дон Жуана і Церліни, 2 вар. 13:32 Парафраза на теми опери "Дон Жуан", тема арії Дон Жуана "з шампанським"

[@twood1uis]

That’s ... just...CRAZY.

[@CarmenReyes-em9np]

Desde una provincia de Mexico 🇮🇷. ❤️💐

[@CarmenReyes-em9np]

Nos enseño un maestro que estudio años en varios paises..de Europa. 🇮🇷 Mexico.

[@stefanoraz27]

4:24 i was surprised when La Ci Darem La Mano was in here then i remember OH DON JUAN RIGHTTTT

[@stefanoraz27]

Là ci darem la mano là mi dirai di sì Vedi, non è lontano partiam, ben mio, da qui

[@stefanoraz27]

Là ci darem la mano là mi dirai di sì Vedi, non è lontano partiam, ben mio, da qui Vorrei e non vorrei mi trema un poco il cor Felice, è ver sarei ma può burlarmi ancor Vieni, mio bel diletto! Mi fa pietà Masetto! Io cangierò tua sorte! Presto, non son più forte! Vieni! Vieni!

[@stefanoraz27]

5:27

[@DanielCharry1025]

Woah. I still believe Enrico Pace's rendition deserves similar (if not the utmost) praise.

[@RicAbapo]

The theme in the Allegretto sounds like that heavenly theme in Totentanz..

[@claudioparrella183]

Considerato tra i più difficili pezzi di Listz, si presenta come una rapsodia su temi di Mozart. Okada, per la straordinaria pulizia, si annovera tra i migliori.

[@kacemchawqi5787]

so this is ladies and gentelmen, the piece that injured Scriabin s hand when he played it in a concert

[@Reichthoff]

He injured it while practising for a duel against a rival pianist. He found the piece so hard and lost his temper during the rehearsal, banging the keys and then injuring his hand. Or at least that's how I remember reading about the story.

[@evifnoskcaj]

This is an ode to Mozart from Liszt. You can tell he truly admired Liszt, if his many transcriptions didn't make that apparent. Also, this pianist is immaculate and breathtakingly incredible.

[@nerowhoisbetterthansaber3610]

liszt was born after mozart

[@Algorox]

@@nerowhoisbetterthansaber3610 He meant to say "he truly admired Mozart"

[@CarmenReyes-em9np]

Así es 🇲🇽💐🏆.Divina música. Carmen.

[@zakazaka4459]

13:16

[@aa-le1yd]

Masaru Okada is a winner the Liszt International Piano Competition in 1999.

[@randomletters894]

I love the passage from 7:00 to 7:30 with the glisses

[@user-ru8vy1uz7c]

Браво восхитительно драматично виртуозность высшего уровня

[@hosefmarten9164]

Piano def needed a tune after that assault. Bloody brilliant

[@Azian2DaMax]

Insane that this is a live recording.

[@user-wu5dv3cp6x]

작곡하는사람으로써 리스트는 진짜 피아노 작곡에 신이다진짜반이라도 실력 물려 받고 싶다 대박

[@nagarajanmahalingam1564]

Note the word 'possibile' at 15:20. He just means that the whole song is not possible

[@stacia6678]

wtf

[@stacia6678]

@Musedudes Bro he’s joking

[@graffzeppelin12]

14:21 I Like This Part

[@Roice-sq5wj]

10:42 Kinda reminds me of the Wilde jagd etude.