Piano Masterclass with Gyorgy Sebők / Einat Fabricant / Liszt: Funerailles /Jerusalem Music Centre

From the Jerusalem Music Centre's Archives: Historic Masterclass with the legendary pianist Gyorgy Sebok at the Jerusalem Music Centre (1986). JMC graduate Einat Fabrikant plays Liszt's Funerailles for the great maestro.
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One time, Sebők looked back on a concert he gave at age 14, and drew a connection between that event and his teaching philosophy. "During the third movement I made some mistakes," he recalled, "but I didn't feel guilty about it because I felt I had done my best. We had a neighbor, a music lover, who said to my grandfather about my performance, 'Oh, that was wonderful, but in the third movement something went wrong.' My grandfather became very angry with him and said, 'I don't care, because the sun has spots, too.' That was a beautiful thing for my grandfather to say, I think, and sometimes I remember that: Even the sun has spots."
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From Gyorgy Sebok's Obituary in The Independent, November 1999:
"In Starker's view Sebok was "one of the greatest teachers of all time". David Cartledge, a student of Sebok's for the past seven years, reported his keen awareness of the role of music in the larger picture of things. He maintained a strong awareness of the world at large, informing himself thoroughly in developments in science, philosophy, art and literature. This meant that a lesson with Mr Sebok could easily range in discussions - and far from superficial discussions at that - from Einstein and Feynman, to Proust, to Fred Astaire, to Ella Fitzgerald, whilst still remaining germane to the musical point at hand. One cannot help but emerge from his studio with a larger perspective of what music means, and what it means to be a musician.
There was no Sebok "method", Cartledge feels; instead, he was able to put music in its context, and truly made the student feel part of the heritage of pianism dating to Liszt. All of this teaching varied with the specific needs of each student. He had a unique ability to tailor his approach to each student, and to present ideas and concepts in a way appropriate to that student's musical development. Perhaps what makes it difficult to summarise his teaching is that there was no "one" path that each student followed: each student had an intensely personal experience.
The violinist Janet Packer, a chamber-music student at Ernen in the late 1970s and early 1980s, observed how Sebok would respond with physical advice, psychological probing, historical anecdotes, back-to-the-score literalness or poetic evocation. He had an uncanny gift for sensing the obstructions blocking a student's progress, deftly revealing them for what they were, and working with a surgeon's skill to remove them. The illustrations he gave at the piano had the zen-like quality of sounding perfectly right.
Piano technique was, as was everything else, holistic. One learned how to use one's whole body to assist in getting around the keyboard, whether it be to remember to keep a relaxed pelvis, or to tighten one's stomach, or to twist one way while reaching the other . . .
His own playing revealed a remarkable ease and fluidity: even when teaching rather than performing, he seemed to have the bulk of the repertoire in his fingers at any given time.
Cynthia Cortright, Sebok's biographer, recorded his view that "Not only is music a language, but every composer, I think, is a language in itself. It has its own grammar. One has to feel that, and understand that. And, still, there are dialects possible. If you speak English as they do in Boston, then that's fine. And if you speak it as they do in London, then that's fine, too. And if you speak it as they do in Tennessee, that's also fine. But if you speak English as I do, then it is wrong. The pronunciation is wrong; the accent is wrong. It's English spoken with a Hungarian accent. Playing Mozart with a Chopin accent is wrong, too."
Sebok wasn't interested in fame (almost all his available recordings are in the chamber music he loved, not the soloist's spotlight), and his rather roly-poly, cuddly exterior seems to have saved him from the attention of the marketing men; as a result his stature is better appreciated among musicians than the wider public. But his relative celebrity is immaterial to his true worth - in the words of Janos Starker, his friend and partner of six decades, he was "a giant of music".

[@axelsohn1454]

Sebok's insights, and his impulse, sonority and timing are superb and really inform the funereal character and depth of the work. I always appreciated his collaboration with Starker, but this is marvelous.

[@edwardbak4459]

I participated in Sebök’s classes at Banff in 1989. He made such a deep and lasting impression. How lovely to see him again!

[@elenajalan]

What an extraordinary archive! The student is extraordinary in this Liszt that I adore to the point of obsession, and the Maestro is simply fabulous. A bewitching masterclass, even when you don't know how to play Funérailles.

[@asherwade]

György Sebök was truly the Maestro Par excellenceß!

[@antoniopep6860]

Excellent teacher. He gives us a lot of useful advice. Thanks for sharing. Greetings

[@quaver1239]

Thank you. Deep wisdom there.

[@carmenvaldivia8651]

Splendide!

[@JonDunnmusician]

An extremely gifted teacher

[@privateprivate22]

One of the greatest revelation in musicianship. It’s also should be noticed that prof. Sebok had perfect material for this demonstration, the girl is really talented, if she just would have been trained more skillful sound production, but she in some degree compensates it in her ability to communicate her inner content.

[@pianomaly9859]

About the finest masterclass I've ever seen. Had heard Sebok's name but didn't know anything about him. Brilliant and deeply insightful. The young lady is very perceptive and musically sensitive. I hope she's gone on to fine career. Not like some of the clueless ones I'e seen Fleisher try to drag along in his masterclasses.

[@r.i.p.volodya]

Excellent masterclass with Sebok.

[@estherdeferios]

Thanks for sharing!

[@militaryandemergencyservic3286]

8:39 - Liszt pays tribute to Chopin, since this piece was probably written to commemorate Chopin's death (I think: although some say Liszt said otherwise, but obviously the octaves link is too blatant.) It is a homage to Chopin - just as Schubert's impromptu 1 d 899 was a homage to Beethoven (after his death) - again as a funeral march - just my opinion again) Incredible playing!

[@damoon57]

Name please ?

[@elliotdavies3555]

Einat Fabrikant

[@omovitruviano]

The pianist is already a master, she doesn't need any masterclass.

[@chester6343]

28:45 egg on your face

[@johnboettger864]

Wierd!

[@BestAmateurViolinist]

He was a very mean spirited person. I saw him attempt to eviscerate a student with horrible words of contempt and it was a fabulous performance. He actually was making extremely personal comments which would not be put up with today. It would get somebody fired on the spot. I think he was highly overrated

[@allegrissimo]

Interesting comment…What you’re describing might be more a problem of the current times we’re living in. I find that people are less and less capable of really listening and learning by opening their minds and leaving their ego’s at the doorstep. Mr Sebök carried out the knowledge of a very rich piano tradition. If you are stating that he was highly overrated, I assume you have the qualifications to judge that?

[@gatesurfer]

Read Jeremy Denk's "Every Good Boy Does Fine," a preview of which was in The New Yorker. While acknowledging that Sebok could be "old school" tough, he has a vastly different view of his importance. Certainly his ideas here about generating different colors on the piano are very interesting.

[@couchphotography8861]

@@gatesurfer That's a great book! Required reading for every pianist, would-be or professional

[@user-fu7zf4ck9z]

@@allegrissimo what a stupid remark. You really think not tolerating assholes is a "problem of the current times we're living in"? Insults have nothing to do with rich piano tradition. You should open your mind to maybe a let a brain in and do the thinking for you. Whether he was an overrated teacher or not is insignificant to his obviously brilliant piano playing, no qualifications needed to judge the character of someone while still being able to appreciate the artistry of said person

[@christopherczajasager9030]

I have attended a n d played in Master classes over many years. Gyorgy Sebok gave the finest, attended by people in many fields as he was so profound and ever open and spontaneous. I heard him as performer as well, v e r y subtle and selfless and was privileged to enjoy the friendship of both Gyorgy and his lovely wife, Vica.