On Sunday, May 22, 2011 at 11:05:33 PM UTC-7, Charles H. Sampson wrote:
> A couple of weeks ago I attended a San Diego Symphony concert at
> which Yuja Wang played the Prokofiev #3. I had never heard of her and
> assumed that she was just another chinese pianist starting a career that
> might fizzle out in a few years. That assessment was pretty much on the
> mark except for the "just another" bit and the idea that her career
> might fizzle out.
> She has blazing technique in fast, mechanical, passages coupled
> with good sensitivity when things slow down. She has a number of clips
> at YouTube for those of you who, like me, don't know her. She's all of
> 24! Warning: she's somewhat younger in some of the clips and they're
> not up to what she's capable of now. I recommend her Liszt
> transcription of Gretchen am Spinnrade; the ostinato is absolutely
> steady, other than rubato, while she makes music with the upper part.
> I don't know about other cities now, but San Diego was long an
> automatic-standing-ovation city. All concertos automatically got a
> standing ovation. If the concert ended loud, there was an automatic
> standing ovation. Things are a bit better now; those who give the ASO
> are in the minority. In the meantime, I have for years sat on my hands
> at the end of average performances. Not this time. I was one of the
> first to his feet and might have been the first if it weren't so
> difficult to get me to my feet at my age.
> She played two (!) encores. The first was the Carmen Fantasy,
> another show piece. I'm not sure about the other but I think it was a
> Chopin nocturne, illustrating again her ability at the other end of the
> pianistic spectrum.
> Charlie
> --
> [A certain TV newsreader] had a role to play: presenter of the Other
> Side of the Argument, to whom fair-minded people were obligated to
> pay heed, no matter what nonsense he spouted.
> Charlie Pierce, Idiot America

https://groups.google.com/u/1/g/rec.music.classical/c/t2QbqNJ-W8w