Schumann: Sonata No.2 in G Minor, Op.22 (Nakamatsu)

[@MrPi-li2pe]

The funny thing about "as fast as possible" is that it would be technically correct to play it at a very slow tempo if that's the fastest you can play it.

[@NoahJohnson1810]

Indeed. Perhaps, "As soon as the keys come up, slam them back down" would have been a better notation.

[@OonHan]

or just VERY FAST

[@reneseilburg4419]

Yes, you may play it very slowly, if you can. But please note, that the coda has to be played faster than possible, and the very end actually still faster.

[@abritishguy8351]

As fast as possible means as fast as it is possible to play the piece as opposed to as fast as the specific performer can play it.

[@danal81]

a british guy but again,”as fast as it is possible to play the piece “ is a relative thing and it depends on the performer

[@calebhu6383]

While this sonata is known for being fast and rowdy, I actually find the slow sections to be the best parts of this piece. They are truly exquisite and elevate this work from being a mere showpiece to art of the highest level.

[@marco119w7]

The slow (etwas langsamer) sections in the final movement are so touching. It's like a confession of love. Probably one of my favourite moments of the whole sonata.

[@ronalda.saname396]

Love this piece.

[@alexdimopoulos769]

I wanted to learn some Schumann, and I thought it would be an easy job... After listening to this work: Ight Imma go play clementi now

[@calebhu6383]

There is a lot of hard Schumann but there are also some easier pieces. Try the Kinderszenen or Waldszenen.

[@SCRIABINIST]

But ur Chopin, you can play any Schumann no problem?

[@calebhu6383]

@@SCRIABINIST I doubt Chopin could play all of Schumann's pieces, some of them are harder than Chopin's hardest pieces. Chopin also didn't understand them to begin with.

[@SCRIABINIST]

@@calebhu6383 Which ones? The Tocata? His Fantasy Op.17? The Symphonic Studies? The Piano Concerto? The Kresleriana and The Carnivalse? Which Ones, I think Chopin and Schumann are pretty matched in terms of difficulty.

[@calebhu6383]

@@SCRIABINIST I'd say the Toccata is matched with Op.25 etudes in difficulty. Carnaval matches the Ballades. The Sonatas are about equal. But the coda in Op.17's 2nd movement is harder than any passage in Chopin.

[@martagianola504]

0:00 1. So rasch wie moglich 5:57 2. Andantino 11:13 3. Scherzo 12:47 4. Rondò

[@cashierperson5987]

why does KZbin translate this as “I know how to get married”💀💀

[@fridericusrex9812]

​@@cashierperson5987LOL

[@ayushrudra8600]

@@cashierperson5987 and it translates scherzo as "just kidding" (which I guess is pretty close) and 12:47 as 12:47 pm lol

[@turkonfire]

I'm learning this right now and after finally listening to it I have fully realized what I have gotten myself into...

[@manuelrivasgomez4785]

Same here bro 😔

[@viggojonsell9754]

You tried learning it before listening ONCE? Poor soul :,)

[@muripu206]

me tooo my teacher recommended i play it and i’m sitting here listening like 😀… it’s so beautiful though!

[@jeffreylastname6863]

Nobody: Absolutely nobody: Schumann: Fast as possible. No, faster. No, even faster. Still too slow!

[@javiertw89]

That diminished chord at 17:25 is awesome!!! I was totally not expecting that.

[@luableah7615]

Same!

[@stavenbyrne8010]

Me too! However I overuse it in my sonatinas, final cadence (BONK

[@segmentsAndCurves]

And what's after that is speechless.

[@stavenbyrne8010]

...I hate you.

[@myrnamichell2309]

Listen to Waldscenen 'Verrufene Stelle' (Haunted spot), bar 29 - the 'catastrophe chord'. At its repeat in the next bar, for me it has the same impact again somehow.

[@huathebard]

Nakamatsu is such an excellent pianist. Hearing him play Rach 3 live has been one of the highlights of my musical life.

[@lolbruh1170]

His woelfl recordings are incredible

[@sayandeokulkarni5344]

This is crazy, just crazy. And to play such insane creation like this is literally more insane. Each and every note so precisely even in such fast tempo. Out of this world .

[@kwanwoojeong830]

I have heard Mr. Nakamatsu live. Very humble, genuine and understanding virtuoso- full of humility and richness in making knowledge in musciology of wonder as if a child finds a new thing in the world- he reminds us that musicianship is not only skills involved, but also the statement and belief or rationale it self in effort to define it. In another words, musicianship is an expression of one's life, a mirror of our mind and affect. The world of wonderful fondness is where it's at.

[@aarondrayer548]

8:35 so beautiful, the crescendo that Nakamatsu puts and emphasizes the stress is just so beautiful. Listen to the second movement!

[@MaestroTJS]

All right, here's my theory on the tempo indications: it's as fast as possible at the beginning, but once you're playing, your adrenaline starts pumping so he keeps wanting you to push it more and more because he figures you'll have worked yourself into a frenzy by that point, so why not see what you can REALLY do once your heart is pumping?

[@CK-kd5pn]

Or he was trolling

[@user-je1ng2vp9u]

천재라는걸 이런사람을 두고 말하는거구나 슈만은 진짜 천재다

[@genie6462]

옳으신 말씀 저 학교다닐적 연구발표때 쇼팽 리스트 베토벤 드뷔시 작품이 주류였구 슈만은 손가락 안이엇지요

[@danlo5]

Ashish -- I learn so much about the piano, about music, about all these wonderful pianists and their library of recordings through your KZbin channel. These videos and especially the insights you post are so great. Thanks for putting them together.

[@WoutDC]

I've loved this piece since I heard it for the first time about a year ago and especially that second movement I've found to be deeply touching, with how thin it feels, especially the 'Im Herbste' paraphrase and how it (feels like it) only really gets resolved in the coda, how it feels like only at the end, finally, we got some firm ground beneath our feet. Recently I read a poem that I've found to be so right with this music. Bare with me here, because I got to know it in a translation by a Belgian poet but it's originally by the American poet Edna st. Vincent Millay and I wasn't able to find the original English version thus far, so here is a rough translation of the first verse: "Autumn is the time of suspecting, not of knowing./ Of feeling, not of grasping. Of first, with my thumb/ wiping the mist off a purple plum/ and of then feeling and only then eating./ (...)"

[@Andre-mo4ik]

So tragic and beautiful. A masterpiece.

[@1anya7d]

From all the recordings I heard, this one is as clearly as it gets

[@burakunsal4501]

This is by far the best recording of This Sonata that I have found. The first movement is sublime, the sound gets more and more intense until it becomes epic in the final bars, seriously they give me chills Those final fast bars are played to perfection and played with such force it is almost miraculous.

[@punkpoetry]

Burak Ünsal check out Anatoly Vedernikov’s recording.

[@stephenvalentinemusi]

I love this sonata and the analysis of it! It makes me really want to learn this thing now.

[@oritdrimer4354]

One of, if not the best piano work ever. I love the contrasts between the fast storminess and the melodic sweetness in this work, and he mastered these two completely different edges, and in the development in the 1st movement (my favourite movement out of the amazing 4), it sounds like if the two sides are arguing, using the sweet melodies in a stormy format, and the immideate switch between the sweet and slow 2nd movement to the fast and furios 3rd movement is very nice, and the end of the 4th movement is just the cherry on top. And Schumann himself wrote this piece while he was suffering from his 2 personalities "fighting" (to a lack of a better word) like in this sonata right there. My first time ever listening to this piece was in my parents car while it was raining outside, and it just fit perfectly, The storminess in this piece reminded meof the giant storm outside, and the sweetness in this piece perfectly fitted me just chilling in the car, listening to the piece. Schumann really found his own style (although everyone says he's very simmilar to Beethoven, I can't disagree more), contrasting and balancing (and sort of not) between the 2 new colors that romantic music brought to the table. Plus using, of course, great melodies and harmonies throughout the piece. Probably in my top 3 favorite composers (just behind Scriabin and Rach), because of many works, but this is by far my favorite one, and shoutout to the pianist for being one of the best interpeters of this Sonata.

[@maribell3117]

I can't stop listening to this fantastic beautiful sonata! It's my favourite sonata by Shuman!💖👏

[@TheYoshi463]

It's a beautiful sonata, but his name is Schumann. I find it kind of disrespectful to misspell someone's name, even if that person is dead.

[@haomingli6175]

@@TheYoshi463 maybe that's a transliteration in a different language. For example, the Chinese translation of Schumann is 舒曼, which in Chinese pinyin is Shuman.

[@jarjuicemachine]

17:17 beautiful transformation

[@user-ip4ow2wc1m]

Порой, мне кажется, что сказать о чём эта музыка - невозможно, но сказать, что она ни о чём тоже нельзя. Гениально

[@raymondgood2359]

the 2nd movement , to me, is one of the most beautiful pieces ever written. it's based on one of his lieder.

[@raymondgood2359]

the song is " Im Herbste"

[@alanleoneldavid1787]

I played Im Herbste last wednesday with a baritone , lovely experience. This sonata version is ashtonishing, amazing harmony , sound almost like Bill Evans in some passages

[@user-cw3qd8hq3c]

0:01 5:58 11:13 12:47

[@TalhaMakakk]

Cats are always helpful. I love you all. Dogs are the worst.

[@CatkhosruShapurrjiFurabji]

@@TalhaMakakk this is Schumann, not Sorabji lol 😂

[@stavenbyrne8010]

5:18 Schumann van Beethoven (BONK JK I meant this is VERY similar to Beethoven's Pathetique Sonata quaver run. Beethoven: Hey, some parts sound like Tempest 1st movement. Other parts sound like Pathetique Sonata minim block chords (Exposition I). Wait, is that Pathetique Sonata octave tremolos?! (Development I) Conclusion: Schumann learned a lot from Beethoven (especially Pathetique sonata)

[@pianoclassics6201]

Spent a whole year looking for this sonata. 💜💜💜 So worth it.

[@pianoclassics6201]

Super Splash Queen hi are you playing all the movements? I’m only playing 4th one.

[@davidrehak3539]

Robert Schumann:2.g-moll Zongoraszonáta Op.22 1. Il più vivacemente possibile 00:00 2.Andantino,supportato 05:57 3.Scherzo:Molto vivace e marcato 11:13 4.Finálé:Presto passionato 12:47 Jon Nakamatsu-zongora

[@CatkhosruShapurrjiFurabji]

köszönöm az értékelést

[@user-nh3qt2ws9o]

3:50 My favorite part.!.So delicate melody line.♥

[@robertbairdmusic]

Incredible music, incredible performance. Thanks so much for sharing!

[@lorenzo5955]

12:29 seems like the opening of the sonata op. 14 one step up

[@anotherdepressedmusician]

That's exactly correct! I didn't even notice at first. It is based around the clara theme (motif - descending notes of the minor scale) he had used, specifically in that sonata.

[@danielhughes441]

This rendition is flawless!

[@OmarCaccia]

Genial work. Schumann was a great composer.

[@handekmessiah1112]

Schumann is CRAZYYY i love you man thank you for your music

[@user-kd9le5rp1f]

1 0:00~0:12 3:09~3:21 0:20~0:31 0:51~1:01 0:20~0:31 1:03~1:09 2 11:28~ 11:53~12:14 14:02~14:19 6:48~7:20 11:13~11:19 6:14~ 11:18~11:28

[@rravvia]

"We don't make the pieces, we just make them better ."™© Alberti & Co LLC

[@bernardparret3191]

Thank you Ashish for the analysis of the work you have done ; it is very helpful ; I deeply appreciate it.

[@user-tg4st7wn2j]

この演奏が好きすぎる

[@Mahlerweber]

Excellent performance. Lovely Slow Movement [II] as only Schumann can do them.

[@ofpoprecords]

The end of the final make me think about final of Chopin Op. 35. Thanks for sharing.

[@user-bn2nw2um2t]

For russian speakers: Многие пианисты любят "давать по ушам": они замедляют игру, делают её всё тише (при этом она, как правило, становится вдобавок очень неясной), а потом - БАМ !! - какой-нибудь звук или аккорд по ушам. Я полагаю, они думают, что это производит художественный эффект. В таком случае, если с вами говорят тихо, всё тише и тише, медленнее и медленнее, так что вы начинаете засыпать, а потом неожиданно кричат со всей силы вам в ухо, то это тоже художественный эффект.

[@cedricrlongreen]

What a sexy ending Schumann really knew how to do it🔥🎵

[@TimondeNood]

Thanks for uploading all this music. I find the 2nd movement especially beautiful!

[@bp8269]

Thank You so much for sharing

[@lisa3308]

Beautiful ❤❤❤

[@Classical.music-Japan]

好きな曲です！

[@knuthaakenaasen1880]

Originally Schumann wrote another 4.movement, Allegro appassionato, but Clara found it too difficult to play (!) and asked Robert to write a new and "easier" one, which he did. The original finale is even more gorgeous than the actual one, both tecnically and in content. A real hype!.

[@DemitNWC]

My favoritestississimamente piece of Schumann of all time

[@christophersims7426]

Anyone else find the passage just after 3:30 quite reminiscent of the first movement of Tchaikovsky's 6th symphony?

[@hagenseah4306]

but tchaikovsky came after schumann, no

[@calebhu6383]

@@hagenseah4306 Schumann was one of Tchaikovsky's favorite composers so this sonata possibly influenced him

[@thejuice8325]

I'm speechless

[@aramkhachaturian8043]

Very Pleasant

[@abelpalmer552]

In measure 268, that's an F not a g. I dont know why a lot of people play a G there, but the music here and my own Henle book clearly show an F

[@Galantski]

It's been suggested that following "as fast as possible" with "faster" was an indication of Schumann's mental illness, but I've heard the refutation that the markings are actually quite rational, as the latter part isn't quite as challenging, so playing it faster would be very possible.

[@cm1665]

The word "rasch" in German has a subtle connotation of still a little bit slower than "schnell" (fast/quick).

[@calebhu6383]

Does "rasch" mean more like "hurried"?

[@Nnnyao]

0:00 1 5:57 2 11:13 3 12:47 4

[@blacksheep5297]

what a recording!! excelent choice Ashish Xiangyi Kumar

[@klop4228]

So the question is whether 'Rasch' translates to 'fast'. Generally, yes - but if you translate it as 'rash' then it makes sense, along with being not entirely tied to tempo anymore (I mean, he chose to say "so rasch wie möglich", rather than "so schnell wie möglich"). I may be reading into it too much, on the other hand.

[@ChiragBharadwajYT]

Yo Ashish, thanks for the lovely music as always, mate. Been following you for ages. I have one question, though-where do you get your recordings? Have you simply amassed quite the collection over years of appreciation? Or do you purchase them on a one-off basis online? Or do you use recordings in the public domain? =P -A brother from the U.S.

[@AshishXiangyiKumar]

A mixture of all of the above (minus public domain, I suppose). Most of the stuff is from my collection, but I buy quite a lot of stuff on a one-off basis if I know it's good.

[@ChiragBharadwajYT]

I see -- that's pretty cool. Thanks for letting me know!

[@CatkhosruShapurrjiFurabji]

14:04 reminds me of a section from Schumann's 5th Novelette; descending fourths but instead of hemiolas we have syncopations.

[@earthwater9964]

Superb playing. God bless you.

[@Qwuarter]

Good job Sophie!

[@AndreiAnghelLiszt]

Lol

[@AndrewWuMusic]

Thank you for your uploads! I always enjoy them. Just as a question: are you ever planning to upload Schumann's Fantasiestucke, op 12?

[@AshishXiangyiKumar]

Yes. :)

[@ThePainkiller1982]

where is it?

[@calebhu6383]

@@AshishXiangyiKumar 3 years later, where is the Op.12? It is such a beautiful work!

[@GICM]

@@calebhu6383 4 years later now

[@christianvennemann9008]

The beginning of the second movement reminds me a little bit of Chopin's Prelude in E minor.

[@orlando5911]

Insane. Amazing.

[@oalfernandes]

Wow!!! Amazing!!!

[@napke8571]

Wow, extreme clean and sharp play! wonderfull!

[@alex1lv632]

Wow, I had somehow never heard this sonata (or maybe I just don't remember). Thanks for such a great recording! Also, a question: you rarely upload 20th century music (except Rachmaninoff and Medtner). Are you just not a fan of, say, late Scriabin and Prokofiev? I'm not judging you, just curious :)

[@AshishXiangyiKumar]

I really like late Scriabin and love Prokofiev in particular, but finding high-quality scans for both has been a bit of a struggle.

[@alex1lv632]

You're right on Prokofiev, but I'm fairly sure there are good quality scans for late Scriabin on IMSLP(from Edition Peters).

[@AshishXiangyiKumar]

I'll check them out!

[@alex1lv632]

As for recordings, my favorites for late Scriabin are Hamelin and Ashkenazy. I know Sofronitsky was also great, but the sound quality unfortunately is a turn-off for me.

[@freddiehand6551]

Try scorser

[@burakunsal4501]

The end of the first movement is the best climax ever in a piece of music. Seriously it is surreal its like heavy metal even more hardcore. Nakamatsu played it to perfection I can't find any other pianist with the same approach to this piece. It should be played like it's heavy metal at the end. If I ever hear him live I will give a devils horn salute and shout FUCK YEAH at the end of the first movement even if I get kicked out.

[@user-je1ng2vp9u]

너무나 아름다워 소름이 돋는다

[@uberwolf1424]

Hermann Lübbe, thank you)

[@benbroverman5150]

Wonderful interpretation of a wonderful work

[@opuspocus2385]

:'( Quel passion, quel tristesse dans les 3 sonates de schumann! incroyable!

[@CarlosRochaJR1850]

8:05 it sounds like Schubert´s Ave Maria (Liszt arrangement)

[@kelxey.5989]

17:25-18:01 I Love it so much💕 I wish I can play like that😹

[@leandrodepaivacarneiro1647]

Magnífico! 👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏🎶🎶🎶🎶🎶🎶

[@gwilymprice4442]

Just a small correction to make in the analysis: the "B" theme in the quasi-recapitulation of the final movement (at 15:15) returns in Eb major, not Ab. Apart from that, a wonderful video and analysis!

[@1blairt]

Fantastic!

[@CatkhosruShapurrjiFurabji]

Is it just me or is it a truly double reference? In the second theme of the last movement there is a descending fifth, which can be considered the "Clara" motif. But at the same time it can also be considered a descending fourth as well and it's exactly the same descending fourth (moving down from G to D, with the prolonged G) which is primarily used in the first movement. Also, the second theme in the rondo repeats thrice just like the first theme of the first movement (that opens the piece). Honestly, though, I prefer the original finale to the rewritten one.

[@sebastientraglia1351]

Schumann originally composed a different finale for this sonata which was then discarded. It's as good as this one, maybe even better (for me). Here it is: kzbin.info/www/bejne/a17cd5aurtOtjsk

[@magbag70]

The original finale is better in my opinion. The broken octaves in the new finale are a bit weak especially in the last part where they lose momentum even in the hands of a master. I read that the finale was changed after Clara suggestion since she found the original one to difficult to be played

[@calebhu6383]

17:28

[@snowcarriagechengcheng-hun3454]

Thanks for uploading!

[@rakeshkrishna1795]

Loads of Beethoven inspired writing

[@calebhu6383]

Yes. It's like a wilder extension of Beethoven himself.

[@CatkhosruShapurrjiFurabji]

@@calebhu6383 indeed, a wilder extension of Beethoven and a lyrical extension of Chopin.

[@catherineloriotahahah6614]

hyper tension 18

[@eunsungkwon485]

g minor (1st movement) Discontent, uneasiness, worry about a failed scheme; bad-tempered gnashing of teeth; in a word: resentment and dislike. C major (2nd movement) Completely Pure. Its character is: innocence, simplicity, naïvety, children's talk. g minor (Scherzo) Discontent, uneasiness, worry about a failed scheme; bad-tempered gnashing of teeth; in a word: resentment and dislike. g minor (Rondo) Discontent, uneasiness, worry about a failed scheme; bad-tempered gnashing of teeth; in a word: resentment and dislike. g minor (Quasi cadenza) Discontent, uneasiness, worry about a failed scheme; bad-tempered gnashing of teeth; in a word: resentment and dislike. www.wmich.edu/mus-theo/courses/keys.html

[@benjaminbeam5273]

think he broke his thumb on the last note of the first mvt

[@FirstGentleman1]

Welch zerrissene Seele in Schumann gewohnt haben muss.

[@user-uo6gv9pj8f]

I like 4th movement. 12:47

[@fulviopolce9785]

Superba esecuzione. Ottimo post.

[@user-mv1nt9bg7n]

克明に弾いてて、1楽章が、良かったなと、思う。遊びやロマン性が、上乗せされて来ると、もっといいと思う。

[@SM-pt4uh]

nice

[@hhyyeej]

0:00 5:58 11:13

[@user-ug5hp7ti6p]

고맙슴다.^^

[@user-px4gt5ju2i]

ㅏㅡㄱㄴㄷㅂㅅㅈㅇ

[@jin-suchoi2517]

came here from twoset

[@alyr228]

same

[@user-gd6od3rf9g]

Me too! I came across this piece through twoset.

[@anotherdepressedmusician]

I had already known about it beforehand but I was surprised when they picked it out

[@Tax_Collector01]

Same here.

[@juliangst]

Jin-Su Choi really? In which video was this covered?

[@15.svt.]

제가 4학년인데 콩쿨 이곡으로 나가기로 했는데 하.........

[@hadenplouffe3976]

Fantastic video, both in the performance you chose to share and the extremely useful analysis you've provided! Out of curiosity, do you ever think you'll upload Busoni's Fantasia Contrappuntistica? It's a fantastic work (I think on par with Godowsky's Passacaglia) and it can always do with a broader audience, I feel.

[@AshishXiangyiKumar]

I've had my eye on that for some time. I don't have many recordings of it, though: any you'd recommend?

[@hadenplouffe3976]

Geoffrey Douglas Madge's recording is excellent, and Petri's is solid although the audio quality is very poor. I think the clearest interpretation I've heard is whoever plays in the multi-part score video uploaded a few years ago. Unfortunately the uploader did not make note of who was playing, it's actually similar to Madge's in a lot of respects but a few things are clearer. It might just be a different recording of his or someone else entirely.

[@AshishXiangyiKumar]

I've got the Madge, but it doesn't quite seem to do the piece full justice. Maybe I'll use it, but I'll look around a bit more first. Thanks for the suggestions, nonetheless.

[@hadenplouffe3976]

I have yet to come across a performance of it to stand alongside something like Siirala's performance of the Godowsky Passacaglia... Someday it'll happen but it doesn't seem like that day has come yet.

[@AshishXiangyiKumar]

We live in hope, I guess!

[@chasebuccaran8447]

It’s 1:08 am and I’m tempted to listen to all of it but I don’t want it to put me to sleep lol this song (currently in Mvt. 1) is very fast and intense but so relaxing!

[@afksx]

実に面白い.

[@frmm123]

I believe this was a piece written for Bugs Bunny.

[@mikejr41387]

this is very good playing! but better than argerich recording?

[@nemorable1]

Personally, I consider it a much more interesting and emotive interpretation than Argerich shows in her recording. To each his own.

[@davidk2594]

Truly a passionate work, but some of the greatest moments are in deft, lush cadences especially early in the first movement,and they just fly by. Certainly too fast to be appreciated on the first listen.

[@AshishXiangyiKumar]

I was wondering, with these tempo markings, when the first "This is too fast!" critique would come by, and here it is! :)

[@davidk2594]

It's just a bit hyper. Other works, by this composer and others, repeat their phrases in different registers so that the harmonies and musical ideas linger more in the listener's mind. Although, I won't deny the effect of my own playing of these passages at a drastically slower speed, allowing me to milk the phrases with more rubato. Then when I hear my favorite sections played at the designated speed, they sound less important.

[@JoseAPerez-nq9vu]

The problem with this "as fast as possible" (so rasch wie möglich) in this particular case is that we lose (or at least I lose) the capability to distinguish the beauty of the melodies. No, it's not that the pianists "blurs" things up (though sometimes it happens), but at such an increidibly velocity I don't physically have the ability to distinguish and savour the distinct melodies. I'd rather have it slower...and in fact much slower as long as it is still pretty fast.