Shostakovich Cello Concerto in E-Flat Major

[tungstentoaster]

The orchestra is kinda amature but I like the cellist's take on the piece.

[tungstentoaster]

1:18 to skip tuning

[xbasket12x]

Even my school orchestra can do better.....

[ifeelunusual]

This is really good. Don't listen to all those precious pinched comments of the muso scrooges. Maybe it does take more a grumpy old man to play the Shost 1 in the true Stalinist style, but it is a work that really responds to teenage angst (and even more so the Shost 2 !!)

[Jhh1771]

Not to be the bearer of bad news, but the oppening notes need to played as though you are murdering them. Dont gring them or make them harsh... Just with the mind set of murdering them. Just to set the mood of the piece!!!

[Merrirose]

merrirose - - EXCITING ! my first experience of Shosh

[nwick440]

6:02 =)

[MrHerecomesjared]

thats some sticky rosin

[willdabeastlol]

DUDE. There are a few Orchestra teachers from my school district in this performance xD The man in first chair, second Violin was my middle school Orchestra teacher :D

[someone6712]

Forgot the chair? That's unprofessional...

[kcee54]

poser

[15cellist]

i dont like the way he plays!!

[kanye1204]

Wow those wind players sounded like crap

[SuperMusicman70]

Awesome performance loved it! intonation was a little off on a few parts but other than that great performance.

[wormonthefloor]

E flat major devilish isn't it.

[havingfunyet9]

I think he was about 13 or 14 at the time with several years on the cello.

[aamish911]

i agree with you.... i'm just curious, whats your experience on the cello?

[iWyke2]

his name is Schnaynay?

[Arodang]

6:45 memory slip? lol its ok this concerto is  a monster.

[pessshred]

badass

[ROFLMFAOMG]

wow it seems like you're very young, and in the beginning the winds are slightly behind from your playing.

But i think you played VERY WELL

[oseascartagena]

exellent

[feurmann]

AWFUL BEGINNING!!!!!!!!!!!

[baconpatrol1]

Holy damn, are you ever following the tempo? But honestly you did a pretty good job by me. It's better than several other youtube presentations of this.

My favorite player of this song is Rostropovich!

[manora67]

@baconpatrol1

a song????

[aamish911]

well it was written fro him and he was the greatest cellist in my opinion ever so.......................... ahah and he is russian so it just adds all together

[crossxyuukixsnow123]

*0*

WoooW

awsome fello cellist!!!

[delarss]

i prefer tina guo for Shostakovich, by the way he is russian so you have to say his name like the russian say

[yellotheemcee]

u need a better cello but really its great

good intonation and technique

[gajek1]

How old is he?

[pakgab4]

you need a better cello....

[ROFLMFAOMG]

Not bad. You rushed a bit in the beginning, but good job.

You should try adding a little more emotion into your music though.

[Ivy8574]

really good job dude!! you have a beautiful sound, congratulations.

[Rinhos]

well, considering that you're a student and young, that's really a wonderful effort. I agree with makuletboy, a bit too gentle to be Shosta.

[sakurapeatey]

you need much more good orchestra!

[Peetreeman]

seemed a bit rushed

[johnspoon]

Truly wonderful :) Petpetfood is a wanker.

And attractive!

[TheGerardWay]

Wow, this is amazing. It's one of my favorite pieces :) You sound really good

[petpetfood]

Wow I'm not gonna lie.. This was pretty bad. Maybe it is because you didn't spend enough time practicing or you just aren't ready for this technically or musically. I don't care if you CAN play the notes in tempo, it doesn't mean you are ready for it. Always practice with a metronome so you don't have to worry about getting ahead of the orchestra so many times.

[man53542006]

Shosty not Bach... ==

The soloist should be the one who is guiding the orchestra... NOT... following it...

[n40008]

nathan this is thomas, i cant believe this has 30,000 views. and 98 comments. wow this came up as the top result for my search for another shosty piece. wow ur such a youtube whore

[cellolove7]

Fantastic. Perfect. Don't change a thing musically.

[SoCalTrojan]

omg. he's double-jointed! i take that back. considering his physical impairity, it's a great job. i've seen many crap cellists that cant play cus theyre double-jointed haha. theyre better off playing violin for technique =P

[SoCalTrojan]

coulda sustained more. still good.

[cellodude1]

Hey good job. This is a toughy! You took a very demanding piece and made it musical. Of course there are are ares that could improve. There is so much musically that could be made out of the work that it could take years to come close mastery. There are some points where it was sound a little dreary.

[juicyexitboi]

Nice attempt. I dont think I have ever heard Shosty So pretty. I think It was a great attempt though.  You you take a different approach to it. Put some body into it.

[deathxxmarch]

I don't care what anyone says, I liked it and i'm impressed! (this is coming from a violin instructor)

[brookmcg]

cmon guys if you are going to judge, then do it where your opinion actually counts and comes with value. if you are going comment then prove that you, yourself can do any better.

[pianisteugene]

good job! ^_^ but need more energy.. u sounded not energetic enough..

[cellolove7]

Not true.

[makuletboy]

Wow....thats WAAAYYYY too pretty and girly to be Shostakovich. This isnt Mozart dude. This is RUSSIAN music!!! Dig into the string. You should should be breaking bow hairs. You werent with the orchestra numerous times. And intonation was off. There is no emotion in this at all. Im sorry to sound so harsh but I recently graduated from Interlochen and i know for a fact that this doesnt get you into the best Conservatories in the Nation.

[cellolove7]

Oh, shut up. That was close to perfect.

[makuletboy]

Wow....thats WAAAYYYY too pretty and girly to be Shostakovich. This isnt Mozart dude. This is RUSSIAN music!!! Dig into the string. You should should be breaking bow hairs.

[fabianordoez]

chever

[DisgruntledPancake69]

i dont think ur pitch was bad, it was ok. Just your playing / vibrato wasn't sufficiently energetic (in parts) cuz for shostakovich u really gotta be wild and crazy. but overall good job :-)!

[Brutalcellist]

good sound (or wonderful instrument?), bad pitch.

the sound of the horn is fantastic. lol.

at 6.44 this guy doesn't remember the part ahahahah

[k73f]

wow..

this is really good!

i have never seen the sheet music for this piece but i heard pieces of this son before and it sounded nice. you did an amazin job :)

im a 15 year old cellist so yeah lol.

not my fav cello concerto, i would go for dvorak :D

[coasterlover456]

Is it just me or did he skip a beat after the 8th note passage...

[asteri383]

the sound is nice, although not very intense as much as this concerto requires. It definately needs more colouring , but ONLY by using bow speed, not bow speed pressure. More piani and pianissimi, and more forte and fortissimi also necessary!!!!Also, at 4th position, the elbow of the left hand should be higher, approaching the high position much easier.Apart from all that, well done!!

[mrn93]

if a person can play this concerto then obviously technical matters such as arm height are not an issue.

as far a bow speed etc. thats fair game since that is interpretation not technique

[cokapena]

... just because he can play the piece means his technique is sufficient? you are very wrong.

and theres a line between basic technique knowledge and "interpretation"

[mrn93]

Speaking of general knowledge, it is general knowledge that technique must vary from one person to another.And if it does not interfere with their sound production, in a negative way, then there is no need nor reason to change it.

and if you don't like they sound that he produces, then it is your choice to not to listen to him.

But to sum this all up, at his level everything that he does technique wise is done for a specific reason.

[cokapena]

at his level?

i say its pretty low and i also say that your "knowledge" is also very... low.

u dont really know much do you?

[mrn93]

for one thing i know that you never learned how to have a reasonable argument, because undercutting the other persons intelligence is not the way to win one.

but back to cello, i wish to say two things. First the camera is at always at an angle that is not good for observing technique. Second his fourth position is in tune.

[cokapena]

and ur just a smart ass that just likes talk a lot.

the basic fact is that if you think his playing is "sufficient" for shostakovich. u are dumb monkey.

u obviously dont know music well enough to actually understand music when you hear it.

all u are is talk.

[mrn93]

I never said that its musically great, in fact its not. But i am speaking to his technique not musicianship. For example Yo yo Ma is a great virtuoso but, not the greatest musician. Same concept applies to this person, although Ma is a much better musician even if he's not the best.

And as far as me being all talk goes, I don't see any proof that you know what you are talking about on your profile either so...

[yupp40]

no, his technique is not perfect, and no, i dont think he is ready to take on a piece like this, but honestly, is it necessary to be so venemous when making a comment?

[hiccupofirony]

actually, some of it is way out of tune after listening. i guess you were right, it's not a tune after all.

[alphatan2]

whats the name of this tune??

[zapasiewicz]

it's not a "tune" and the name is Cello Concerto no 1 in E flat minor by Dmitriy Shostakovich

[hiccupofirony]

of course it's a tune. it's in tune isn't it ?

[zapasiewicz]

hehe, yes it is "in tune", you owned ;)

[mapipolo]

Better make that "E flat MAJOR," zapasiewicz. ;-)

I know, I know; it's an easy mistake to make when practically all of the composer's output sounds minor... even when it's in major. Ya gotta love Shostakovich!

[BenChanisAmazing]

Don't bother to reply to my previous very true comment, because I won't ever look at this sucky video again and therfore won't reply back to your reply.

Feel free to leave rude comments on my page, see if I care.

[BenChanisAmazing]

Absolutely NO flare at all. None. AT ALL. Horrible cellist and orchestra.

Nathan Chan could probably site read this and still play better than that person playing cello in the front.

[pakgab4]

I totally agree with you! Except fot the orchestra....

[MelloCello]

I made that SAME mistake towards the end!!!

Other than that...wonderful flare!

[Pricher1991]

Where's the difference?

[Tenisar]

Kovich, kovitch.

[munkybrain]

oop this kid actually sounds really good

[spidermonkies008]

The orchestra is horrible.

[thinker93]

pretty freaken good; how old is this guy?

(thats right, I used a semicolon!)

[miglspam]

The playing sounds very good and all, but please tell your camera man to just take his hands off the camera when he's sitting on a shot... I am so dizzy now from all the back and forth in the video!

[cellopaddy]

Just 2 things left for you--

1. Your vibrato can 'occasionally' slow. Sounds nervous if you vibrate that speed all the time.

2. Intonation is a life-long battle.

Great Job!!!!!!!!

[axel210]

how embarrassing.. the conductor had to bring out the chair..lol

[zaokoyechatma]

it really sound pretty bad u have a midget flute play the wrong key

[andreagiuseppe]

I dont know if it was the cello or the recording but the lower register sounded surprisingly bright.

[Arodang]

Could be the string, sounded steel core to me

[sarahlis]

and the only 'correct' way is the way the composer had created it and since no one knows for sure what was going through the composer's mind at the time everyone could be wrong when compared to that. and so it is based on one's own personal interpretation which is never wrong because it is one's own

[AbsoluteZ3R0]

What was that? Did you say that "since no one knows for sure what was going through the composer's mind at the time everyone could be wrong when compared to that"? This concerto was written by Shostakovich for the cellist Rostropovich. Shostakovich and Rostropovich knew each other and Shostakovich helped Rostropovich directly with this concerto, so he definitely knew what was "going through the composer's mind at the time".

[sarahlis]

hey you can't criticize someone else's interpretation saying it's wrong! it's THIER opinion & if doesn't match yours or the other professionals then it's perfectly fine b/c it's not their interpretation that is being played - theirs is theirs and his is his own - if you ask him & he has horrible reasons behind the way he took the music then fine but music is meant to be played however the musician feels fit

[AbsoluteZ3R0]

On the contrary, me knowing that this interpretation is poor only shows that I've had a lot of musical experience and have heard much better. Had you shown me this when I had just started playing I would've thought it was impressive, but now? Eh, not so much at all. Perhaps you should listen to Rostropovich play this and you're opinion will change.

[zaokoyechatma]

i think you did good but not better that ha na chang

[revolverfly]

oi oi! nicely done. je voudrais ton facebook. :) i cant find it...

[jawkneejavier]

you outplayed the orchestra (you sounded better than the group). great job.

i guess more fire playing-wise? but then again, the performance was on a very high level.

[aznmusicmaster]

it's good, but i like Han-Na Chang's version a lot better :P

[zaokoyechatma]

me to

[celloguy]

Great job! Mr. Tschaikovsky clearly has very little idea of what he's talking about. Sarcastism indeed!

[zreaves]

I wish my horn player sounded that good when I played it! Haha!

But I had the same problem you did with the eighth note section. It's very easy to get ahead of the orchestra. But you knew the piece well enough to get back on track. Great job!

I've got my performance of it up if you would like to watch it.

[Tschaikovski]

From a technical point of view, its admirable. You've done all your technical excercises, but how about the music? The performance just obviously lacks colour, variation of nuance, and most importantly in Shostakovich, that ever-existing note of sour sarcastism. I hear Notes, not Music, being produced. The performance was very mechanical. Improve on the content of the music! What did Shostakovich wanted to say in his Concerto? Go on! Delve more into the music, and more Depth could be grasped!

[kaikobird]

... Right.

[ovad1122]

Also I would like to comment that some intonation issues and that last chord of the song was a lil whack i guess... maybe you played a clam but I'm not sure. Also where did you get that compostition from? I have searched high and low for it and can not find the score/parts which i need to even think of booking a performance.

[ovad1122]

The Violoncello Conterto No.1 writen by schostavoich was composed for Mistlav Rostropovich. It is said that this piece (all movements) were memorized by him overnight. The recording took place around 11:00am where he maybe got about 2 hours of sleep prior to memorizing the piece. He truely was amazing and we miss him already! :'(

[pbaron23]

How old are you? :) can I ask?

[sonofgondor1219]

i dont think he uses enough of his bow, and often stays too close to the frog. I think he took the exposition too fast; it sounded like the orchestra was having trouble keeping up with him the whole time. needs work, but overall; not bad.

[lyndamt]

Isn't it the conductor's and orchestra's JOB to follow the soloist?!?!?!

[fred512]

Did shostakovich wrotes this concerto for rostropovich?

[limbo18]

haha nICE! u play a lot like rostropovich

[limbo18]

his playing style that is... haha :)

[OverclockedCellist]

I started it somewhere around January '07, but I had to stop work on it for a while to work on TMEA All-State audition repertoire. After that I was in big trouble because this performance was coming up and the piece wasn't quite ready so I worked pretty hard and it came out OK in the end. So around two or three months, I think. Should've spent more time on it :D.

[pbaron23]

Hey!! NOt bad;) and the other parts?:P

[OverclockedCellist]

I'm ready with the second, third and fourth movements, but most orchestras only wanna do the first ;). I'll keep you updated if I'm playing a concert with all four.

[Thomascello]

o someone who doesn't know the recording of Heinrich Schiff :-)

[Faure45]

hahaha the chair thing cracked me up bro; kudos on the shoshty! well done! :)

[kolnerotger]

really good, greetings from catalonia!

[garyeestra]

Great job OC! btw this is px.

[WI800]

Awesome, great work man, now I know what you look like, not just your face I mean lol.

[thephreek]

OC THE CELLO MASTER!!!!!

[baroquegeek]

*sigh*

Tempo issues between the cellist and orchestra. The cellist is trying to get the orchestra to move a tad faster.

However, the cellist is quite good and the Orchestra has a nice rich sound to it. Bravo all of you!!!

[larrybagina]

shut up

[Vostavas]

GO HORN!!!!....oh yah...and cello!

[ghyo1]

Congratulations, Nathan! Great job!

[shoma263]

kool

[Xoolio31]

the best thing i ever saw :o

[ForceUser]

Very nice!

[someidiot23]

WOW man!! BEAUTIFUL job!! You are very good and talented.