Saint-Saëns: Violin Concerto no. 3 - 1st movement (Benjamin Zander - Interpretation Class)

For more classes like this one, please visit the Benjamin Zander Center - www.benjaminzander.org/
Alex Goldberg, violin; Dina Vainshtein, piano
Interpretations of Music: Lessons for Life
with Benjamin Zander
Dave Jamrog Audio/Video

[@lsmart]

This is what you call a masterclass. Even a non-professional can understand every point he makes and see the difference between the playing prior to that insight and after it. I could watch his class for two hours and no get bored. Usually, in the masterclasses of the superstars, they'll offer a brief insight here and there, and move on. Zander produces an entirely different piece of music after his emendations.

[@nunyabiznez6381]

I know nothing of music other than I enjoy listening to classical music. I recognize some composer's music without being told, never having heard the piece, perhaps about half the time unless it's an obscure composer. So I am an appreciator of music but by no means an expert and would never pretend to be such. I can't read music and I have never even attempted to play an instrument. Yet I understood most of what Maestro Zander was teaching this young man. having watched a few of these master class videos I can also say I am now a far more discerning listener that I used to be and as an artist I have applied some of Maestro Zander's concepts to my own work. I hope to have an exhibition by the end of the year, something I never dreamed I would be good enough to even attempt a year ago. What he teaches here can be applied to much of life but especially any creative or expressive process.

[@orangek9702]

“Always think bigger than yourself. Yourself is great, but it’s not enough, include the world”

[@charlottegodbolt5138]

Yes love it 😃

[@thesumo24]

Yes i really needed to hear that

[@LuBre]

One day he will look back and remember this day as one of the most intense experiences of his career. He met a true master, a coach, an inspairing man.

[@ulengrau6357]

I wonder if he's looking back, yet, or still just looking: kzbin.info/www/bejne/fX2tfHaFoq2MbJo

[@ofsabir]

@@ulengrau6357 He certainly is looking *bach*

[@gReY-yf3uc]

Me An Intellectual lol bruh

[@TheTaimory1]

Brilliant kid with such a humble and reserved character.

[@almagirimai8931]

only inner passion could respond so readily!

[@ritazanin1429]

@@almagirimai8931 I was thinking exactly the same. There’s a seed that is blooming for he’s a good soil.

[@jpdj2715]

Let's recognize that Ms. Dina Vainshtein does a great job in these classes

[@maazzafar2822]

She's fantastic!

[@philgan9911]

oh yes! I was going to say, how she played with his lead on the slow passages

[@jaydenfung1]

Jo Mamma A great job. Going into music is risky business and is rarely not done out of passion. I applaud her; not to is dehumanizing, in my opinion-she is not a robot that plays in the background.

[@aaronhorsley-teny8143]

That young man got a incredible gift that will serve him well for the rest of his life. What a blessing Mr. Zander!

[@SimonStreuffViolinEducation]

The student, Alex Goldberg has some amazing qualities! His sound is very smooth for such a young player! I Wish him all the best!

[@ulengrau6357]

I just saw a video of him last year and his sound hasn't evolved much. I keep seeing this in young musicians, and I don't know if it's the overconsumption of "others ways of playing" or what the hell... but it's like all people who start playing between 2-5 these days, peak at 15-19, depending on the instrument (hand-growth is definitely a factor on something like the piano/cello).

[@daviddemar8749]

God what a great coach! I've just started to watch a bunch of Zander's vids and every one of them is proof positive that music is more than notes on a page. this young man's 1st attempt at this piece was undeniably technically proficient and what Zander was able to pull out of this young man was just levels of expression beyond what he had just done, bravo!

[@luisbreva6122]

5:38 "Oh my God, here it comes" describes perfectly the introduction.

[@acr08807]

I've tried maestro Zander's methods with my blues band, and they really work. It turns out that sharing the stage with a maniac improves my performances immensely. :)

[@ramirodelbosque7280]

1st attempt...cold, rigid, soulless. After zander intervenes it completely transforms into another piece. BRILLIANT!

[@AndrewWilsonStooshie]

I love the accompanist in Benjamin's videos. He just has to mention the Mendelssohn violin concerto and she immediately starts playing it without a second's thought!

[@Freeeeee1]

This kid is really awesome. He looks too calm with that sort of energy inside.

[@streetofdreams4538]

"Always think bigger than yourself. Yourself is great, but it's not enough. Include the whole world!" "Our job is to fill that [listener's] heart with what the music has to offer." Zander gets right to the heart of things and shows how life principles drive above-and-beyond musical expression--and he does it with grace and joy. This is real music-making!

[@mattg6262]

They're applauding themselves.... Love it. That revelation was amazing

[@UTubeSL]

he is a brilliant teacher. Such passion, and a nice bloke.

[@ritazanin1429]

Sweet boy, patient and educated. An ideal student.

[@rocketcrazy3467]

He must have an amazing bow for the sound he's pulling and his bow not falling apart

[@jefftaylor5884]

What an amazing gift you are giving us all Mr. Zander. I have been a professional musician for 50 years and never had a teacher like yourself. I have spent decades learning the hard way what you are teaching in 20 minutes. God Bless You! Stunning playing by the young man and the accompanist.

[@UcheNkiru]

This is insane. There are no words for what I just felt while watching this.

[@tazviolin]

OMG...My teacher!! Stepped back in time! He's same as ever!

[@thoyo]

Maestro Zander really pulled something out of this young man I had no idea he was in possession of. There is no doubt about his technical abilities, but the emotion he was able to pull out of a previously lifeless performance was so impressive

[@prototypeinheritance515]

please, the first performance was still full of emotion

[@foxmulder8955]

I'm just starting to listen at the first performance, the very first notes are already burning with passion and you call that "lifeless". What kind of invertebrate are you ??

[@foxmulder8955]

Of course the melodic lines are lacking a sense of phrasing but thats to be expected for a kid with little experience. Freedom and control of timing comes with technical mastery and being comfortable in front of an audience. Has nothing to do with being "lifeless" at all.

[@sambulls]

@@foxmulder8955 I don't think he's a "kid" in the musical training sense, he's very mature. but what he lacks from age is just burning passion, which he was probably not taught to channel into a performance, and this is a performance, not a practice session, performance is a different thing , great stuff can happen there

[@foxmulder8955]

​@@sambulls "kid" doesn't have to refer to musical training or anything specific. At 15 you're a kid. And you certainly don't lack burning passion at that age. The ability to communicate on stage and transfer those emotions through an interpretation is something you need to train by playing on stage for an audience. Experience matters. If the kid was "lacking passion" how in hell can you explain why he can deliver a different and way more compelling interpretation few minutes after the first one ? As awesome as Zander's teaching and advice are, he doesn't create anything that wasn't already there and you can totally hear the potential in the first rendition. The phrasing is insecure but the energy and intensity in the sound and love of the music are evident.

[@susannestechow]

And Mr. Zander is an excellently good teacher.

[@nicolotar]

Mr. Zander is not only a phenomenal coach, but surly a great practical philosopher ,, a mentor for the life,.. Viva Benjamin Zander

[@Pandawill123]

thank God I have this chance to watch Zander'videos, he is so rare and amazing

[@grandcarriage1]

His sound, his timbre is just EXTRAORDINARY.

[@tatycarvalho3442]

What a teacher !!! What a violinist !!! What a wonderful class !!! This makes the students play formidably. Beautiful work.

"do the first one as much as you can and then do the second one more!" :D Zander pearls!

[@jejerin2754]

This kid is going places. Amazing performance!

[@123jozef]

I got bashed for saying the same thing about Maxim's classes. These types of instruction and this type of knowledge being imparted to someone at such a young age, when they are already so extremely advanced is going to shoot them in the stratosphere and give us another level of playing that we have not yet seen.. in 10 years or so. If you want to call that statement 'naive' so be it. This is such an invaluable tool. Any endeavor in this life would benefit from such circumstances. Especially when the criticism is done in this manner, by giving the credit and commendations, and then gently breaking into the critique mode without injuring feelings. This takes experience and finesse. It is also being given by an elderly man, and I've always said, if you want to learn to live your life "as the crow flies" or get through your tough times with a little extra help, just go visit a convalescent home and speak with the folks who still have their mental faculties. All they have is time and knowledge to spare and impart. How many folks actually do this? You are providing a service by visiting the lonely but you are leaving with a gold mine of knowledge that is applicable directly to every nuance in your life. Humbling experiences need to be welcomed, not rejected.

[@nunyabiznez6381]

The kid went from technically proficient and quite suitable for the violin section of any symphony orchestra to being worthy of solo performances in half an hour, as long has he retains what he has learned and applies it to his performances of all works and not just this one piece. Hopefully he will take what he has learned here and climb inside the heads of the composers and pour forth music that makes to feel and not just hear the music like he did here. Meanwhile, at least with this piece, he's ready to record this as a single and could be capable of producing an entire album of similar quality and within five years could be among the top half dozen or so violin soloists. I can hear that in his playing. I'm an artist. When I was this child's age I got free drawing and painting lessons from an 80 year old woman whose works now hang in major museums. All I had to do was mow her lawn and shovel her snow. I definitely got the better end of the bargain, especially when she left me her favorite brushes and other equipment when she passed though I'd have traded them all for one more art lesson. My lessons were only for a couple of years and I learned a lot but it never reached master class level. It took watching Maestro Zander's classes here on KZbin to inspire me to understand what the old masters did about art and now my work in the last few months has improved greatly. Where I thought I had a deficit of natural talent was merely a misunderstanding of the role of an artist as a communicator.

[@nickyork8901]

What an amazing intense sound this violinist has - absolutely appropriate for the piece. He is very talented, beautiful playing.

[@heyviolingirl9553]

” I can actually stop being the boring thing in my life”😂omg! I can’t stop laughing!

[@tsecphk]

What a witness with instant improvement. Beautiful sounds there.

[@57dogsbody]

Now I know why despite his technical brilliance I find Wynton Marsalis trumpet playing so dull. This is a BRILLIANT masterclass. Thank you.

[@katie4623]

Very good, cant believe he's only 15

[@noelizromen1603]

Quien es este chico? Me encanto su interpretación.

[@hitmanfcp1]

Alex Goldberg es su nombre

[@hitmanfcp1]

este es otro vídeo de él pasado 3 años kzbin.info/www/bejne/fX2tfHaFoq2MbJo

[@aaronhorsley-teny8143]

15!!! Wow he looks 12.

[@glorytofathersonandholyspirit]

Aaron Horsley yes. It makes the Asian parents madder

[@quentina8596]

I have been watching a lot of these masterclasses, and loved them. However, seeing the shy but proud smile of this young man at the end of his incredible performance is so delightful. Imagine how strong this memory will be for this promising violinist, a true life changing experience in which he just got the right impulse to explore the unknown of himself

[@GrlRock]

This one made me cry!

[@Elpaso555]

Gypsys are the most authentic passionate and free living people on this planet with all the consequences positiv and negative .. for playing music it’s perfect to me

[@onlinemusiclessonsadamphil4677]

Amazing talent all round. Brings back memories of my teacher singing the harmony when I was learning the Mendelssohn. Hear the harmonies, breath, padded fingers :)

[@celsoescobar9630]

Fantastic transformation !!! The boy turned into a man before our eyes!

[@mrsivyy]

I wish I could play this as good as this little guy does 😭

[@renzo6490]

sara_ gibels f He is a Good player who plays Well.

[@ramirodelbosque7280]

Well...all you have to do is practice!

[@tombokany9442]

At least you can play it ;) and not stuck in marry had a little lamp

[@pietrinomilaresol]

Absolutely moving... Thanks a lot for sharing it

[@pauchalo]

Bravo! Gorgeous sound, round and rich as it gets!

[@finnurth]

Love the teaching! Fantastic recording, both the filming and the audio.

[@inohope]

I have watched tons of these videos and it's amazing how talented these people are, but mr Zander always shows them there is a whole another world to their talent which even they didn't know they have. Brilliant teacher and master. I would be so honored to be able to call myself his student.

[@Helvanic]

The difference between the first introduction and the one he performs after just a few words is stunning. And the first one was already quite good actually !

[@osaki0329]

Bravo !!! Excellent performance !!!

[@clairepotter6975]

Beautiful. Brought tears to my eyes.

[@wupeide]

Fantastic... Love how he gets this intensity out of people

[@amitsriam]

Beautiful composition so brilliantly played.. Benjamin Zander is the best :) these are lessons not only in music but as said for life

[@Elpaso555]

Wooowwww this young boy is a true hiuuuge talent .. he has the right mix to become a superstar in Violine playing ..he plays with feeling very precise passionate learning extremely fast and looking very good and lovely .. all Attributes to become very successfull more then David garret ..

[@almagirimai8931]

Such extraordinary music, in the hands of a beautiful young man, coach by an old man who knows the pathways to passion and tenderness and expression... What a joy, absolute joy... and such music OMG!

[@user-qh7jc7kp6f]

Great process for both Alex and Zander, indeed.

[@lShenlLoul]

Simplemente INCREIBLE. 😢

[@etiennesourd3607]

Bravo. Amazing music as well as a life lesson. Thank you.

[@yoericktv9610]

Beautiful.

[@leonardniamh]

Beautiful and emotional and extremely mature

[@robynsalain]

cet enfant est une lumière

[@joshthompson9390]

I love Benjamin Zander.

[@CocoNats1]

Какой великолепный педагог, влюблённый в музыку, скрипку и своё дело! Браво! Браво!!!

[@theocrevon6374]

This kid is to become a wonderful violonist! He actually got tears to my eyes... (And I generally hate solo violon pieces...)

[@borroni9090]

Theo Crevon never heard a solo “violon” piece before. Sounds like a cool instrument!

[@jonathancole3340]

"Violon" is violin in French, FYI.

[@borroni9090]

oh my apologies! In my family we say Geige is which is German.

[@jonathancole3340]

@@borroni9090 no worries! always something new to learn, right?

[@ralphcordon5688]

@@jonathancole3340 and "Violone" is the ancient Italian word for double bass.

[@Catherineshanghai]

Bravo à ce jeune violoniste très talentueux !

[@lotusbuds2000]

that ben zander...I wish he could have been my teacher/coach....my life would have changed!

[@sajjad4626]

such a teacher !

[@margot5327]

❤ little boy is really lovely

[@martinriha3729]

It felt almost like the bow is going to snap when he played near the tip.

[@xichang5092]

Amazing

[@anthonykimofficial]

He is so talented and like his sound. 🙂👍👏🙋‍♂️

[@weijiang4626]

Genius boy....!

[@SingingblissofRajat]

unbelievable

[@user-ky2xm5vn7t]

아직 어린소년인데 가르켜주는대로 잘 켜네요.. 어찌들으면 성숙한 느낌도 들어요

[@user-ky2xm5vn7t]

와... 나이가 어려보이는데.. 힘있고 굵직하고 .. 무언가 듣는사람으로 하여금 빠져들게 만드네요. 아름다워요.

[@adriancressy8363]

The gentleman is so passionate with his music. But that's what it's all about. Classical (REAL) music is supposed to take you somewhere. Lift you up and take you on a journey

[@susannestechow]

You Play really very well.

[@susannestechow]

Alex.

[@JasonBryantGreen]

God I love a good g string

[@ChrisvanHeerden]

This kid is perfect.

[@vra4432]

you're going to open up his heart .

[@robynsalain]

zander est génial malgré une gestuelle exagérée c'est sans doute pour cela qu'on l'adore

[@Abhiperry]

I am not a musician. I watch these video for positivity. :)

[@nathysilvio]

Wow that class was amazing

[@Seevryn]

Very good !

[@litoboy5]

great

[@dsdfsdfdsfsdfds3800]

the boy has a very good sound.

[@BrianS2468]

Kinda getting worried about the bow @ 5:47 . Definitely learned a lot in this video about the interpretation of a piece. I am actually learning this piece right now as it is one of my favorite violin concertos.

[@ralphcordon5688]

Don't worry about your bow, they are built for far more loading than you can ever achieve.

[@petercolby6020]

what exactly is the violin and shoulder rest that he is using?? because their AWESOME!!

[@stevenlovinger9092]

The shoulder rest looks like a Mach One Maple.

[@petercolby6020]

thanks... I was looking at those a couple weeks ago

[@zoeguan9941]

I wonder if it’s the shoulder rest that’s doing all the work?

[@glorytofathersonandholyspirit]

This guy is one year older than me in this video and I can’t believe it!!...... I am actually trash at the violin compared to him

[@javierbiaggi3072]

Wow! I was stiring in my bed like a snake.

[@feelslikeflying23]

Hello, may I please ask you to open your videos for translation is possible? I would love to contribute.

[@ranbirkaur1078]

kzbin.infoabout - write them an email please.

[@joefagan9335]

My violin is not so well in tune. Amazing playing. 👏👏

[@ceoraaa]

we are the same age and i definitely don't have the level of skill

[@mattg6262]

Always think bigger than yourself

[@gReY-yf3uc]

Boy: plays Master: *stops* Boy: *looks at him* Master: “accent accent accent accent accent accent accent accent accent accent accent accent accent accent accent Audience: *laughs *

[@mishpatim123]

Alex will be coming to Brussels despite what's been done or said to him by ignorant people. FYI.

[@-Honeybee]

Perhaps a rehair or an instrument adjustment.... I think perhaps the student is playing beyond his equipment in the best of ways.

[@charlottegodbolt5138]

Do the first one as much as you can… then do the second one more 😆💪

[@TheKay830]

what I just saw was what always happened to me when I learn piano..hahahaha though it was long time ago~but my hands are still stayed same.. short nail, long fingers with big joints haha~

[@sebastian9445]

The kid in the first row at 16:18 was trilling in the air

[@ralphcordon5688]

He obviously learns to play the violin too.

[@jpdj2715]

New England called "petit bourgeois" - a level to rise above

[@vra4432]

every note has accent ?

[@BOOSHCY]

i feel like i am getting life lessons.