Van Cliburn plays Liszt Un Sospiro

[Blackcatjulia]

ALLGirls.....

I mean the audience



[darktowersl]

@Blackcatjulia hahaha apparently for liszt too

[muz1kars]

why does he slow down all the time !? strange version.

[crayZsaaron]

@muz1kars Um... rubato?...

[uuganbayar4]

Beautiful. I can go hearing this piece the whole day and forget about everything else.

[WASSUPFOOISH]

How can you not like this???!!!

[Bluejeans0701]

The sound quality of this recording is splendid. And every performance of van Cliburn is really amazing. No wonder this piece has a title "A Sigh". I find myself totally enchanted and mesmerized by this clip.

[saagua1953]

probably the finest American pianist of the 20th century.

[Steele8924]

@p1ano What CD/Album is this recording available on? Is it still available for purchase? Thanks for the upload, it's beautiful...

[czerashni]

BEAUTIFUL!

[snowgirl1052]

My piano teacher used to play this for me. I would ask her to play it so many times that she would say no, Iam not your performing monkey today! It is just so beautiful that it stirs the soul.

[Rastaleus2]

What the devil happened to this guy? Burnout? Breakdown?

[scientistpatrick]

@Rastaleus2 From Wikipedia: "Now over 70, he still gives a limited number of performances every year"

[cowlikesbeef]

this sends shivers down my spine! so chillingly beautiful, tears at your heart and gnaws at your soul! thanks so much for the upload god bless!

[Failein]

absolutely gorgeous! it's so straight forwardly passionate, i love it

[vanessasgram]

I play classical piano and know how difficult this selection is to perform!

I always thought Van Cliburn doesn't show much feeling in his playing but have to say that this is so moving and opened my appreciation of Liszt even more than ever. This is one of my favorites but Beethoven an Mozart's music will always be first in my heart and soul!

[keenanonie]

@vanessasgram I've never heard anyway say that about Cliburn before. Have you listened to his recording of the Tchaikovsky concerto? Or Rachmaninoff 3? Or any of his Brahms? Just curious. He's one of the most emotional pianists I know of--almost to a fault.

[billyguns2]

OK, having listened to all Un Sospiros on YouTube, this and Bauer are my favorites; Arrau is third.

[tombennettpiano]

Van Cliburn nails this one. Excellent! Wow.

[Vanzetti1936]

those girls in the back man.. ! =)

[Joniterp]

Van always had an advantage when it came to Liszt. Gorgeously done, Van. For those unfamiliar with his history, his teacher was a pupil of Liszt.

[9samten]

List is not my favorite composer but the way Van Cliburn plays it takes away one's breath. It's pure magic. Absolutely breathtaking without ever crossing that fine line of being an emotional "drivle". Thank you for the upload.

[StormSong8]

Can someone please tell me what "Un Sospiro" means? Thank you.

[dickdona]

@StormSong8 A Sigh

[StormSong8]

@dickdona Oh. That gives me something to think about. Thanks.

[dickdona]

@StormSong8 download google translate. great little tool

[MyLordLoke]

He plays it so unike...

[donthuis]

Wonderfull performance, just as correct in the spirit as the Lamond version (last living pupil of Liszt known to us by a recording). No need to put one above the other. But the dynamic range of this Steinway is certainly higher than on the Duo Arte grand piano's in Lamond's time, both in clearer treble as in the deep bass tones. And quite different from Cliburn's equally outstanding bravoura Tsjaikovsky pianoconcerto, that made him win the contest in Russia.

[mvolkov11]

@donthuis Lamond had an incredible mechanism and wonderful intensity, yet was not even one of Liszt's best students. Years ago John Browning said he thought playing standards had actually come down since the Golden Age. Although many would disagree, listen to Arthur Freidheim's electrifying yet profoundly spiritual performance of "Les Jeux d'eaux a la Villa D'este" -Browning may have been right! You will hear playing that no one, not Kissin or anyone else today, could ever hope to match.

[donthuis]

@mvolkov11 Thanks for the reference, I did not know Arthur Friedheim before. What I noticed from the rare YouTube acoustic performances, is the realisation that indeed rolls were quite superior to acoustic technologies in those early years of recording. All the more it's a pity that some mp3's contain so much distorsion. Is the Liszt Années de Pelerinage excerpt on "la villa d'Este" to be found easily?

[mvolkov11]

@donthuis Sorry I didn't notice your response till now. Do you mean are recordings to be easily found or the music itself? Liszt composed a number of pieces for each set of Années de Pelerinage: first book Switzerland, second book Italy, the third book which contains the Liszt jeux d'eau was published much later. Dover has a marvelous edition of all three that is

very inexpensive. If you have any more questions I'll be glad to answer them.

[lulu67889]

in that picture we can see that most audience are young , nowadays almost all of the classical music audience are old. I cant understand why the young generation don't like classical music?! such that beautiful peace!

[aardvaark069]

Al the young'uns love Sospiro and the old'uns love Czardas Macabre when played by Brendel. Van Cliburn could play so beautifully.

[lsbrother]

@PJinBston

if all the monkeys in the world were all kept typing all of the time - they still couldn't come up with the amount of nonsense that appears on Youtube

[mvolkov11]

@PJinBston: Meaning what, exactly? That Cliburn plays like a monkey? That Liszt composed like one? I can't tell if what you've written is intended comic relief that utterly fails or the wild rubbish of a fourth-class mind. It's too bad that youtube has no mechanism for enforcing minimal standards of literacy and mental competence.

[MISHA1119]

@PJinBston: I don't mind admitting I misunderstood you, and am glad you liked the piece. Liszt is probably the greatest "hit or miss" composer ever. His best music combines epic, soaring grandeur with intimacy and warmth - un Sospiro is like this. But frankly he wrote a lot of trash. Yet sometimes even a bad piece will have short passages of great beauty. So you have to listen to a lot of Liszt and decide for yourself about each work. And certainly there are worse ways to kill time.

[mvolkov11]

zolessi, I've thought about this my entire life. Who is writing music now like the Liszt Sonata or the Chopin Fourth Ballade? After Rachmaninoff, Scriabin, Ravel and Prokofiev, piano composing took a dive. Even Barber's superb piano pieces can't really compare to Liszt and Rachmaninoff. The chaotic, high-tech philistinism of our age hugely influences muscial talent, and this bodes poorly for producing piano music now in any way comparable to that of Scarlatti & J.S. Bach through Prokofiev.

[kjsharke]

@mvolkov11 Maybe Liszt/Chopin were the height of their form of music, and some people prefer that music to say... Duke Ellington. Those people all defined their type of music, and people today need to define their own forms as well. Technology has good and bad aspects, whether or not you like Squarepusher, for instance, I think he has some interesting things to say: ?v=X5qEbAD-sKw

[9samten]

Although I'm not particularly a fan of Liszt, Cliburn plays the "Un Sospiro" beautifully.

[libetta]

this is why i love new york steinway. that phrasing he made at 1:22 really brings out the voice even at loud or soft goings. you can't do this with a hamburg steinway :)

[uhartchristian]

@libetta thatys completely right, the new york steinways are very different to the hamburg ones. The sound is more clear and they are more easy to play. I had the chance to try out one of Horowitz personal Steinways. It was a real shock for me what was possible to do on these pianos specially also in pianissimo.....

[libetta]

@uhartchristian

quite a lot more "bird-like" ringing treble isn't it? not to mention, a booming bass. on the hamburg the bass is more "refined" and restrained. i don't understand why they rave about a hamburg having a more even register and warmer sound. with ny, you can have more colors

[uhartchristian]

@libetta thats right, the new york steinways have more colours. Thats because the vertical surroundings are much more thin at the new york steinways than the Hamburg ones. They are more close concerning this to Boesendorfer pianos, but the steinways have a better mechanique of course than Boesendorfer.

[MISHA1119]

Asian piano man, the article you have about Cliburn's mother is wrong. Rildia Bee (O'Bryan) Cliburn did not study with Liszt - she studied with Russian-born Arthur Friedheim (1859-1932), who was one of Liszt's most notable students. Friedheim also studied with Anton Rubinstein in Petersburg. A recording he made of Liszt's Les Jeux d'Eaux a la Villa d'Este (it's on You Tube) will give interested listeners an idea of Friedheim's transcendental pianistic abilities.

[MISHA1119]

4Topwood, to expand on your point, most of today's pianists feel if they can play the hard passages cleanly and convey the overall structure of a piece, then they are ready to walk out on stage with it. But a piece like un Sospiro needs to be ignited with the white heat of ardent passion, it needs to sweep listeners off their feet with its noble, fiery outpourings. But if the pianist does not first feel these things within himself, how in the world can he make an audience feel them?

[4Topwood]

@MISHA1119

Beautiful. I heard Van Cliburn play the Rach 2 back in the 70's. It was a dreamy, romantic interpretation in the best sense of those words. Something in Van Cliburn responds to the Romantic spirit in a way seldom found anywhere today. Or maybe his is simply a Romantic spirit born out of its time.

[MISHA1119]

This is a glorious Un Sospiro, and showcases all the best qualities of Cliburn's playing in its prime: the golden singing tone, the crystal clarity of his mechanism as

those long fingers ripple across the expanse of the keyboard, and his innate feeling

for beautiful phrasing, grand rhetoric and exquisite rubato. Cliburn's performance at of this piece captures both its explosive power and its glowing, ardent warmth to perfection. Many of today's pianists (Lang Lang?) could learn from this.

[4Topwood]

@MISHA1119

Lovely tribute to Van Cliburn's very special gifts. But I don't think many of today's pianists could learn from this. I wish they could.

[btjohnson96]

Hi guys, I was reading the Juilliard requirements, and they require a virtuosic etude by Liszt. Would this be a good piece to play? I just started about 7 weeks ago, I already got the first 8 measures down pat, I plan auditioning in another ten years or so, do you think it would be a good piece? I'm 14 years old by the way.

[superstar90897]

this is my favorite piano piece ever! i have to say i think its a little fast. but it is stilll amazing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[supersandyjean]

Thank you Liszt for giving us such beauty,

Thank you Mrs Cliburn for giving us Van..

[nesta7777]

This is just amazing. First I listened to Hamelin and others but I found this one my favorite with Hamelin. He really deserved to be remembered.

[z1Amii]

Nice feeling but too fast.

[asianpianoman]

i love van cliburn!

[diabelliforlife]

w0ooo0w  absolutely amazing!

[sayyumhayyum]

i love how he plays.

loev his interpretation !

[1fattyfatman]

One of a very select group of pianists that really understood the word Melody.

[asianpianoman]

this includes horowitz (not lang-lang) and rubenstein

[ludieludes]

Exquisite...made me cry.

[123drgott]

Helps that his mom studies with one of Liszt's students.. I heard and met him when I was 10 in Minneapolis after one of his concerts. He was very nice to talk to.....in no hurry. Most underrated pianist in American History.

[ayso78]

@123drgott Cliburn was Elvis big in his heyday, 1st pianist to get a ticker tape parade, etc. Hardly underrated, although it could be argued that the critics threw him under the bus in later years.

[123drgott]

@ayso78 You are probably right, I was meaning he was dissed more as his career progressed. He was big coming out of Russia though.....When I met him it was in 1968 and he seemed so young to me (even at 10) to be in a tuxedo,,,,such fair skin, and gentle spirit.

[asianpianoman]

When I told my piano class about his mom studying with Liszt, they didn't believe me until I brought in the printed article!

[bludgeonbunny]

@asianpianoman If Van's mom studied with Franz Liszt, then she must've been at least 70 when she gave birth!!

[metlayst]

WOW REALLY NIZE. WOW. fuckin' god

[sayyumhayyum]

wow, sounds like a harp (:

[misspianolova]

this is incredibly beautiful, he brings out the melody gorgeously and i just want to melt into it!!!! fantastic peice, fantastic preformer!

[billyguns2]

This is just gorgeous playing, and it joins my favorite performances of this magnificent composition, those of HArold Bauer and Marc-Andre Hamelin.

[1810to1849]

One of the structural problems in Sospiro is to re-invent, yet relate, all those 1/4-note melodies. Too much tempo variation and I lose their relativity. Also the two-handed melody delivery sometimes results in VC's dynamic phrasing being compromised. Lots to like though - pacing of the last page not among them.

[piano345]

Genuine poetry. He responds with tender feeling for Liszt's great inspiration. Beautiful!

[lovesGenet]

I always hope I will learn something when i read these posts. The compare people simply show they DON'tListen nor are they aware of the various piano schools . this is probably the most imaginative Liszt playing I knowof. Horowitz : three notes and such individuality.Listen heard the regrettable playing in Japan whn he was on too much medication- still ev note is characterized dynamic ,and like the differences in human speech so inflected .There is much more than technique!

[stan724]

What a magical performance! It's interesting to note that Cliburn's mother studied with Arthur Friedheim, one of Liszt's last, and favorite, pupils. Van's major teacher was his mother (pace, Madame Lhevinne). Listening to this, it's not hard to imagine Liszt's influence descending down to the third generation. Cliburn has said that Dr. Friedheim would sometimes tell his mother things like, "Liszt played it this way," or "Here's what Liszt did in this passage."

[Ray0X0]

Such a warm masterpiece from master Liszt... BEAU TI FUL ... this version is extraordinary... and

Arrau's one from another world...

Excuse my english :-)

[zolessi]

Yes this is incredible and oh so beautiful played by this master - now . . . can you imagine having the mind and technique to compose something like this? Truly a monumental human accomplishment - Liszt.

[titanicpiano14]

Van Cliburn is incredible! Check out my tribute to Un Sospiro on Church Organ!

[Troybeallad]

Beautiful,Van !

[XpiR3d]

sexy stuff

[pclrrr]

I think this photo was taken at his 1958 triumph in Russia, but I'm not sure. Did he play "Un Sospiro" then or was this a later recording"? Just curious.

[p1ano]

This recording took place during the mid-1970s.

[PeteTheSnowDog1]

@pclrrr Yes, this is just after his 1958 triumph. He is required to perform a recital just after being declared the winner. Hence the photo that you see........Take note of the women in the front row. You would think it was the Beatles performing on the Ed Sullivan show

[caoshiliang]

soo good.

[vlotjah]

Can you describe it?

Or maybe place a photo of it on a clip of something? Anything, whatever.

Would be a thrill for us music-lovers...

[348Frate]

are you being cocky with me?

[vlotjah]

Nonono! Just trying to make fun. Out of jealousy, I suppose. But, I think you should'nt sell that autograph. It's priceless. And a bought autograph means nothing. Just be proud of it! You've got a story with it to tell. So, tell it, and don't sell it. Keep it in the family, along with the stories. You would regret it if you sell it. I'm serious now!

[VanCliburnFoundation]

Watch the Thirteenth Van Cliburn Competition live starting May 22 through June 7 at the Cliburn website. The webcast will feature live streaming of the performances, online voting, commentary, backstage access, all chamber music rehearsals with the Takacs Quartet and orchestral rehearsals with James Conlon, and more. Its free and open to everyone.

[PhilipLu3]

This is probably the first time I listened to this piece, or at least the first time I recall, and it sounds pretty good. Maybe other people can play it better, but I'm giving it a 5 for now.

[evilorgood28]

I don't know much about Cliburn, but from the way he's playing Liszt. He's pretty amazing. This is probably one of the most deep and inspiring piano tunes I've heard. I love Un Sospiro!

[lynndelano]

Please look at the other wonderful videos of Cliburn. The BEST is Tchaikovsky, Conc 1, Mvt III. THE BEST version ever. The Van Cliburn Competition is every four years and happens to be this year in Fort Worth. Worth the trip even to just meet this magnificent man. Pass it on.

[lynndelano]

Oh, if you don't know Cliburn, you should hear him play Tchaikovsky. Concerto 1, Mvt 3, 2, and 1 (in that order) He is truly the entire package. His hands are amazing and his presence is just perfection. Some will say he is not the best and there are many better, but regardless of technical proficiency, one must possess more to be a great pianist. This is JUST my opinion but....in my opinion. ... this man IS THE BEST. I hope you take the time to see what I mean.

[libetta]

he's up there with the best and in many ways far more musical than most pianists of his time, including Ashkenazy, imo. while possesing a light, lyrical tone (almost reminds me of Heinrich Neuhaus), one couldn't ignore the technique that he 'had', considering the large amount of concertos he's played.

[francooregano]

van cliburn is definitely one of the greatest pianists of all time. certainly the best living pianist, now that Vladimir Horowitz has passed. yes, there certainly is more to virtuoso pianism than merely technique. if not, then emanuel ax would be the best of all time! the defining trait of any truly great pianist is his/her feel for the music and the translation of that feeling into something more than just nicely played notes. His handling of the phrasing in this piece is just divine.

[shalloee]

thank you so much for this amazing recording!the picture really shows how people admire him.I love Cliburn!

[xplorall]

It has occasionally been fashionable to malign Cliburn as over-rated, etc. But a performance like this serves to emphasize how great he truly was/is. My favorite of many versions of this warhorse. I play this (sort of) and can therefore better appreciate how impeccable his performance is here.

[19330131]

His interpretation is perfection. His Russian teacher helped him find his musical soul. I am in my 70s,studied voice and violin,but his playing makes me young again, emotionally. Know what I mean?

[lawfriendly]

Yes , God bless

[Jonimera]

Hemekin preformance is no doubt the best of this piece

[simmo303]

Hamelin

[Jonimera]

yes

[ellerveira]

Why he stopped concertizing I never completely understood. I think he came from a rich family and really didn't need to money and probably found it more trouble than it was worth to him. Or did he suffer from stage fright?

[thiswastoogood]

i seriously don't believe cliburn would suffer from stage fright, it's going to take a lot of convincing for me to believe that

[Bruce88keys]

No, he never developed the repetory and was extremely exploited after his win in 58-he even said"I'm a sensation not a success"- he freaked in the 70's

[19330131]

"No" is the answer to both your questions.

Just enjoy his rendition of this beautiful piece. Grandma

[ellerveira]

Wild's performance was very good; this however is superb. Incredibly fine.

[camileludwig]

beatiful, peaceful, =)

[billyguns2]

This is every bit the equal of Harold Bauer's legendary recording, and even more expressive IMO. Cliburn was one of the greatest pianists ever, even though his best years were far too brief. I feel the same about Ashkenazy, BTW; the young Ashkenazy was a wizard, a giant, who became very dull indeed.

[beethovenof08]

Just breathtaking! I love this piece performed by Van Cliburn! :)

[filexfilex]

Eto es simplemente una interpretación trasnscedental-Gracias.

[ZZoe77]

How can you explain talent? I guess you can't, you just know when you are in the presence of it... and listening to this piece there is no doubt. Thanks Van Cliburn for sharing with us your talent an feelings!