Kyung Wha Chung - Zigeunerweisen

[ToneDeafecation]

Superhuman.....this creature is a deity that decided on one of her off days to pop down to earth and show us what the fuck violin playing is all about.

[BentleyLeung]

悲哀感不足.激憤時也不夠粗獷.使人覺得只是照譜拉奏音符而已.­缺乏樂曲的內涵.聽得不痛快.

[MrHaksony]

정교미, 아련함, 애잔함 그리고 열정이 넘치는 자존감이 느껴 오네요. 역시 현악기에 영원히 남아 있을 바이얼리스트 정경화님 감사드립니다.

[MrHaksony]

정교미, 아련함, 애잔함 그리고 열정이 넘치는 자존감이 느껴 오네요. 역시 현악기에 영원히 남아 있을 바이얼리스트 정경화님 감사드립니다.

[icylakepaxphile]

very decent, elegant and sad...pure beauty!

[MrMatbam]

Such an all time classic that is executed to perfection!

[kevin612018]

快板沒有拉ㄉ很好 撥弦不是很清楚

但慢板真ㄉ拉超棒ㄉ 無論音色 情緒都超完美

[spikedardens]

i agree that this is not her best piece on record but she's in class her own when you "see" her perform.

[tudoryka79]

Did you read Nihilistic writters? Do you know what is all about.? To like or dislike is a choice indeed but this doesn't separate a true value from the kitsch. This is fake. It is version is half gypsy half sad WANNABE...it is fake. Is the same american techinical shit...it is fake...fake, fake , fake. Too much imposture and belive me , I am not saying this because of her assian origins...no , let me change the word so you understand better...it is sterile

[KerryDo13]

plz dont waste ur energy trying to criticize

the great technicality shown by KyungWha Chung.

With this technical level it really is a matter of preference to judge one's work.

I personally like this version a lot.

[nolie94]

fag

[themusicdr]

excellent version. love the subtleties she introduces in the timing - itmar golan is just the right accompanist. i loved his work w vengerov

the little woman from korea still plays big

[calloffthedogs]

stunning - very light and fleet of foot. Great intonation. Stylish interpretation!! five stars.

[sumimimi0]

she and sophie is the best violinist mnb123321. *(not my opinion)* what karajan said.

[themusicdr]

what utter nonsense. just b'cos "ur opinion" chimes w that of herbert von karajan does not make it any the less subjective. i really like kyung wha chungs playing but i do not say she is the best. in fact if push came to shove i would be v hard pressed to say WHO is the best i love so many violinists. all i will say is gen speaking (note the word gen) the old masters standard has not been reached.

[surfboy]

I love this version. Most polished one on here. her spicato is very nice.

[jpalenciamd]

she plays like a woman, refined, shy, she holds back, but she's in full control...wonderful!

[Penhandball]

Although this piece is nice with lots of bravura, I really like this delicate interpretation.

[surfboy]

The "Strauss" made in 1708 I think. My book is outdated, bought it about 6 years ago.

[mnb123321]

she's a perfectionist..it works well for most songs, but not for this one - you have to be able to FEEL this piece!

[freeqwerqwer101]

Chung, Muter and other big name classical violinist, have no idea how to play hungarian gypsy music. If you want to know how it should be played, listen to Jasha Heifetz or especially Robyn Lakatos. Lakatos is a Hungarian gypsy by blood.

[twofinedays]

Excuse me? Do you really consider Zigeunerweisen or Ravel's Tzigane or such 'gypsy' styled music is about gypsies? Sarasate was Spanish anyway. And if you should say a certain music shall be better interpreted by thoes from the same country of the composer's, Oistrakh couldn't do justice to Beethoven, Kremer to Bach, Perman to Sarasate etc.

[iluminada333]

free....101 is just blabbing jibberish...

[alexfer4]

bravo

[elaine0924]

not my favorite interpretation of this piece so far..i like perlman's ziger the best

i think she played it wayy too controlled

[ultimat3gangstarr]

I like Aaron Rosand's version, and of course, Muter's.

[violinmusicfan]

im talking about kyung wha chung

[violinmusicfan]

she was a prodigy. by age 9, she had already learnt the mendelssohn concerto and had performed with numerous orchestras in korea if i am not mistaken. this, coupled with her perfectionist streak, allowed her to take her technique to such a high standard.

[OriginalMoonbeam]

I am being complimentary to Ms. Chung..I just thought you might be interested in hearing the person who wrote the most popular edition of this piece play it..Zino Francescatti, who plays a LIVE, unedited, flawless performance-Mr. Francescatti wrote many editions for International Music company that many current muscians now play. It is a great opportunity to hear him play them personally.

[OriginalMoonbeam]

Hefeitz gets too flaunty?? He plays it note for note as written by the composer.How can that be considered too flaunty? Flaunty would be throwing too much extra stuff in and leaving the composer's intent. I don't think Heifetz could ever be accused of being "flaunty". I thought I was quite complimentary of Miss Chung.There are some who totally take total leave of the music, and the timing and do their own thing. Heifetz is NOT my favorite,Francescatti sticks to the music and plays with fire

[OriginalMoonbeam]

So many people make utter garbage out of this piece..while there are some better versions of it she plays it with class and not like a Las Vegas show tune. I enjoyed listening to her version. Music is a universal language and I don't think a person's country of origin has anything to do with whether or not they can interpret a piece correctly; that's utterly absurd.

[vlhere]

wow...she adds emotions in the fast parts too...thats soo cool coz many ppl jus play it blindly...

[zotgga]

This is truely a stunning performance. Someone said that it's not Gypsy like. Yes, I agreed to that. Even though the piece is called "Gypsy Airs", this performance is actually embedded with Korean feelings. The emotion of inveterate sorrow which pierces through Korean culture and its history. Just listen to 1:59-2:35! How hollow it is. Personally, I think this also coincides with Gypsy culture, not the oomph part, but the sorrow part of wandering around not having their own land.

[EnvyPerse]

Exactly, being "Gypsy" in style with gypsy compositions is not the only way to make it "beautiful" Likewise, you don't cook egg in just one way, there are several. You don't only make barbecue out of pork, it can be ham or steak.

It's sorta pathetic how some people quickly deduce that something is ugly because it did not follow the the norm - the what youa are used to. some people are just shallow.

And if you don't like it, then butt out

[Fr3derick]

What exactly are Korean feelings?

[ayso78]

a myth

[zotgga]

The reason why I think KyungWha is one of the masters is that she's able to express in her music the cultural background that she grew up in. She delicately delivers the sorrow and hollowness by her exquisite control and constrains. In the end (5:46) it becomes fast tempo but to me it doesn't sound happy at all. Even if we are weary from all that sorrow and hollowness, what else can we do other than carrying on? Let's cheer up, life isn't so bad. This is what I heard from this playing :)

[chungsungkim]

absolutely brilliant!

[hysmao]

I think only Chung's fast notes playing like Sarasate.

[DevilViolinist]

Oops, left-hand pizz is a bit dull. Other than that, great!

[shamrock929292]

what a fucking stupid comment

[arsaudio]

I couldn't stop weeping this playing and I ordered her CD.

Frankly I don't know much about classical music, I mainly listen some electric guitar instrumental playings like eric johnson, steve vai, etc. But when I listened Ms Chung's play, it just moved my emotion and I couldn't stop crying in front of my kids and my wife.

I think now I understand the true meaning of catharsis.

[digitalis]

amen! true catharsis..

[aznbryanc]

o-o crying? it's beautiful, but wow, crying seems a little much... did you have a traumatic past or something?

[turbletts]

I didn't realize Harrison Ford owned a Strad...I stand corrected! Now, that all the corrections are done...She is incredible!

[stubuddy]

Give credit to the dead too!!!! I believe she is playing one of the most desireable violins in the world. I think its called the ( Harrison Strad).

[Nozdolmu]

Her Violin in this recording is Guarneri del Gesu Rode

[stubuddy]

I stand corrected,I do know for a fact that she does indeed own the Harrison. Sorry for the missinformation on my part! I'm sure you are correct!

[stubuddy]

I am sorry ,and I stand corrected! I do however know that she does indeed have the Harrison Strad. Both are wonderful sounding violins.

[surfboy]

YEah, it's the Harrison Strad. Joshua Bell owns the Chanot-Chardon strad, and Anne Sophie Mutter owns 2 stradivarius': Emiliani and the Lord Dunn-Raven Strad.

[battleblades]

I don't know which strad Joshua bell used to own, but the one he owns now, and has for some time, is the Gibson ex-Huberman strad. A wonderful instrument. Is the Chanot-Chardon strad the guitar shaped one? He had that in his 20s.

[Classikev]

Which Strad is the one owned/given (rented to) "for life" to violinist Chee Yun by Samsung corporation? Thanks if you know. Appreciated.

[vlhere]

ya for life???? I thought it was onloan to her for a short time.

[Classikev]

No, I read in a newspaper article or perhaps on her website that it is on loan to her for LIFE.

[twofinedays]

). Even seemingly too slow and rather rigid last part can be justified in that sense if you take this 'showpiece' as an organic work in which various feelings are communicating building up together as a whole. This isn't the most brilliant Zigeunerweisen, but it certainly is most moving and complete performance.

[wraith985]

I think this interpretation loses a lot of the gypsy-music feel; there's not much oomph (for lack of a better term), especially in the last part. If you listen to Perlman's interpretation, which I think is far bolder and more "out there", you'll see what I mean. Still, there's no doubt that she's very very skilled, and the piece was played very well.

[twofinedays]

Chung isn't the most brilliant in terms of technique by which I mean she's not a typical Paganini, Sarasate, Wieniavsky player. But here, she certainly makes it her own. While many players (and listeners too) focuses too much on the last part of the piece and leave the longer first two parts rather carelessly, Chung has made the most heart-achingly subtle first part (not a cheap showy sentimentality).

[lorentho]

What r u talking about? Ms. Chung is not technically brilliant? wow.... I don't even know where to begin... Who's brilliant in your opinion?

[twofinedays]

well, I'm a big fan of Ms Chung, and thus by no means I didn't mean to say she has any technical problem. But it's true her bow does not 'fly' or 'run' as lightly as that of Heifetz, Rabin or Shaham. Indeed Chung herself has rarely recorded or performed Paganini, Wieniavsky or Sarasate. It's only a matter of style of each player, not necessarily a matter of qualification.

[andy921008]

really good!!!!!!!!!

[1singlet]

Without doubt- great violin artist!

[mozartjpn137]

She is so good!

[sleeplessintokyo]

indeed a lady like. god this tickles.

[Fr3derick]

How would any of you describe Mrs. Kyung Wha Chung's violin playing style in a paragraph or a few sentences.

[cenolbaj]

I never heard of her so far. Now I listened to several pieces she plays. I can say only one thing - for me she is the most amazing, passionate and heart touching violinist I ever heard. I am deeply moved ... She plays like goddess ...

[aznbryanc]

i'm too lazy to write a paragraph or sentence, but i'll list a few of the words that come to mind when i think of her playing.

intricate

accurate

expressive

passionate

beautiful

bold

and of course, AMAZING.

[jawidsharifi]

she is good

[musicStoneD]

sarha jang 's perform is so powerful kyung hwa -jung's perfor is so tidy.

[vint22]

i like this "dark" sound. is it Guarneri, what she plays? damn,it´s good:)3-rd part a little bit too slow:)but she plays with herself,from inside.

[kailiusa]

It is Sarasate.

[alkaster]

No, he means what violin she plays, not the piece. She plays a Strad.

[richygm16]

The "Kublelik" del Gesu.

[479492]

amazing, full of beauty

[137turners]

excellent.tremendous.I admire her and her family

[takamori400]

To 137turners, so do I. I am Japanese, and she is Korean. I understand her how hard it is to study anythig in the language which is not his/her first language. She worked so hard when she was in Juiliard, and she married and continued her career even her professor said she cannot married if she want to be successful as a violinist. She set a higher stadard. I respect her family; they are all world class musians. Her mother sold their house in Korea to buy a violin for her.

[kisaiscute]

Very true.

[paulscandyshop]

chang.........is one of the best

[bluedoughnuts]

Ms. Chung is a masterful player. Thankyou.

[blueeyeaquarius]

I LOVE IT!!! ABSOLUTE BEST!!!

[HenryOen]

I really don't like it played this way. There are far better interpretations of this piece.

[Hewhosucksatviolin]

amazing.

[violingirl33]

it sounds very nice

[azndudegabe]

this isn't about gypsies!!

[sonata1992]

Don't really care much for the piece. Though of course Chung is superb

[janvlnvlacellobass]

passionate, meticulous, sophisticated recording

[DualThunder]

brilliant violin player. though with a pieace like this, i think the end went painfully slow

[GreatPyramid]

I can't seem to stop crying when I listen to her play. There are no words, for sure.

[aljsmith]

i believe it's about gypsies, not librarians

[oeppevnvpeb]

it's gypsy librarian music

[iheartmusic79]

Too bad you cant see her playing. :( She is amazing!

[edvonschlecko]

she is really special. there are so many playing of zigeunerweisen, but her playing is different and very tasty!

[Nozdolmu]

Do you know that Ms. Chung had never played Zigeunerweisen live before she recorded it?

[g7b7h7]

There are no words...