Andante spianato e Grande Polonaise brilliante op.22[2 part]

[23piano23]

it is such a great interpretation truth.. but i think there is a bit too much scriabin at some points... that's all... (only my opinion)

[janvandoedelpuk]

This is to big for me. To massive. He puts his bodyweight behind most of the passages.

fortissimo should be the end of the dynamic range, not your starting point.

Thats why it sounds a bit automatic pilot for me. There is nowhere to go. Everything passage is milked for every last drop of expression....

It is just to much.

[Cooller1993]

@janvandoedelpuk thats the difference between amateur and professional.

[Jukalaboo]

this is one of the best performances ive ever witnessed

[FutureAbe]

he has more talent in one finger than I have in both hands

[RicAbapo]

@FutureAbe oh gosh, i just have to like your comment! so true! haha! your comment made my day! lol

[marcohorowitz8]

a white man with an afro??

[ShipperS7]

The measure of a pianist is not technical accuracy -- the measure of a pianist is whether, when technical mistakes are inevitably made, it matters. In Kissin's case, the answer is obvious no. The interpretative structure is so fucking titanic that you'd have to hit it with a cruise missile to do any damage whatsoever.

[dquibs2]

I love this eccentric fellow-my fave. Imagine a Russian sporting an Afro!! You alright, man. A credit to my culture.

[chickennrunn]

I can't imagine how much you have to practice to play like this... I would just show this video to my piano teacher and tell her, "if you want to hear it so bad, you should just listen to this... until then I'm watching TV instead of practicing" ;P

[MACKYDELICIOUS]

this is real music, created and sculpted differently by each who play it. this man is not just a pianist, but an artist, sculpting and creating beauty with his hands that so few could even come close to. what a "Sculptor" bravo my friend. pure genius.

[richclayderman]

freakin awesome!

[misspeckpeck]

obvious mistake around 3:25

[satyu131089]

@misspeckpeck at 1:30 in the arpeggio too!!

[juzzyfuzz]

@satyu131089

make you feel better about yourself? feel superior even perhaps?

[satyu131089]

@juzzyfuzz what do you mean?

[ilpianista89]

little imprecision at 3:25... but the the only one in a majestic interpretation!!

[caricama]

who's that creeper in the back?! is he allowed to just stand there like that? haha

[Snezhinka9]

caricama: i suppose he is, it's a free country lol ;-). He does seem creepy thought lool :-) btw i LOVE Kissin :-)

[r19rsi]

I saw him playing this wonderful Chopin-masterpiece in Lucerne (Switzerland) in 2006 and it was just perfect and the most beautiful interpretation i have ever heard/seen! I would love to see him playing Chopin again soon! =)

[paopaomanalansan]

I think he is angry!

[aaabbbccc5]

Respect!

[modelstatue]

Is Evgeny Kissin Russian? Theres an interview of him, but I don't know what language is spoken.

[flouz2]

@modelstatue born in moscow in the 70's

[flouz2]

@modelstatue october 10th 1971

[FutureAbe]

the best

[cisdolce]

This sounds like Chopin's work played by Liszt.

I think Kissin's Chopin is top notch, but sometimes I do miss the romanticism in his playing. But honestly, I don't think there's not many impressive Chopin interpreters that parallels Kissin. I am deeply inspired by "his way" but this performance just didn't work for me. Maybe I am too used to Yundi Li's interpretation. I prefer a slower tempo.

[93rardo]

I Agree. Kissin is an excellent player but he doesn't quite grasp the soul op the piece. The GBP is a fearless, proud and nationalistic piece and should be played as such. The romaticism will flow automatically out of the music.

The irony is that pianists who try to play the part with extra inappropiate feelings tend to destroy the soul of the music.

[meimaochina]

absolutely love this piece! it also appeared in the moive "the pianist"

[modelstatue]

That last scene of the movie was so cool when he was playing it!

[93rardo]

Obviously a fantastic performance. But, what do you think, doesn't he use to much rubato?

[gcaee]

he is my idol !! but not in this piece ......

i like his beethoven and prokofiev !!

he is a maestro but i prefer rubinstein ......

[thepianist213]

It's very interesting that the best pianist usually play a repertoire that is not precisely virtuoso. What I mean is that today's young pianist play always Rachmaninoff sonatas, Chopin sonatas, Gaspard de la nuit and stuff like that. Kissin closed the recital with a Polonaise, thats brilliant! For the sake of the music, they go for musicality and not for virtuosity.

[VikingBerserker]

this piece is pretty virtuosic actually. There are quite a lot of difficult passages in there.

[Cooller1993]

@VikingBerserker this is one of the hardest pieces, maybe not THE hardest but still ONE! and its just godlike. chopin was a god. kissin is one.

[65231x]

Rubenstein's version is more epic, more alluring. The convoluted essence of rubenstein's interpretation convinces one that there is no comparison to the degree of depth and artistry that he posesses. The Hoffman interpretation is also extraordinary.

[durkma2]

@65231x Interesting that you say, "Rubentein's version" as if Rubenstein had patented one single version. This performance of Kissin's is one of hundreds. I wonder what Kissin's one, 'patented' version of this piece will sound like once he's done performing. Better than this one, perhaps? Better than Rubenstein, perhaps?

[Rahav033]

its amazing that his hands didnt broken down.

[ostrun]

I dont like how he playing you must heare rubinstien and that no comperesing.

[ric55]

The usual fulsome praise follows this man around- why, I fail to understand. There are many,many better pianists around today, and hundreds of better performances of this great work from pianists of the past. The chromatic upward runs in the coda, and the last half-dozen bars are over-pedalled almost out of existence. Listen to Josef Hoffman for a finished and polished performance.

[latchy01234]

there isn't any better pianists around, its just your opinion, i aint trying to be funny or any think like that, i have followed kissin ever since i started to play the piano, but i know what your getting at, to me i think he's the best i see him play all the time live, the reason i like him best is because he plays the music the way i like it like horowitz play a polonaise i carnt remember the one now but horowitz play it soft and it was not catchy as it should be an kissin was a lot better imo

[optimusito]

yeahhh!!!! the best pianist now alive.Its a touching honor to be alive in the same time with such a man.

[myteddy04]

the best pianist