Ivo Pogorelich Plays Chopin Prelude Op. 45

[dalecampbl8]

i love this piece so much...endless yearning

[davidhertzberg]

Exquisite playing. I just uploaded a mid-1960s recording of this work performed by Fou Ts'ong, who plays this piece considerably faster than Pogorelich. Its a beautiful performance but not nearly as introspective as that delivered by Pogorelich. (My upload of Ivo's 1981 DG recording of Op. 45 - which is almost identical to that above - is here: youtube*com/watch?v=PTIow3oi8f­w)

[1Thompsonmusic]

This is not Chopin.

[darkblueangel1956]

Bella lettura ma, ha fatto meglio e con più originalità nello Scherzo in do # min. op.39, nello Studio in sol # min. N. 6 dell'op. 25 e nella Sonata op. 35 in si bem. min. In questo splendido Preludio è un pò manieristico, quasi più liberty e "fauve" che romantico ! Ma si ascolta con un certo piacere.

[fledgehog]

i wonder if some of the people praising his playing in general, as a whole, have heard some of his recent "interpretations" (10 minute long Brahms 118/2, 40 minute long Rachmaninoff Sonata 2, 10 minute Ondine, 20 minute Liszt Mephisto 1). No doubt in his prime he *was* a genius pianist, but sadly that is no longer the case. There's good reason that he doesn't get much attention any more, and that's because his playing has become a bit of a joke.

[lenzub]

@fledgehog You're a joke lol. Go and play 1% of how good he is.

[tschaikowski]

@fledgehog Pogorelich has gone a path of discovery that also has been a bit experimental. He is trying to extract " music" to the maximum capacity out of the written notes. By stretching the musical material, there are indeed some new things to be found in there, but It's up for debate if humanity wants or needs to listen to his foundings. Still, I don't think his artistic integrity has ever been tainted. You need to learn more about art, culture and music before calling anything/anyone a joke.

[epessina]

Prelude in C-sharp minor, Op. 45 (sometimes listed as Prelude No. 25), was composed in 1841.

[KChopin95]

Ohh...I saw him live preforming in Croatia(Country of his birth) in capital city Zagreb. On 12.3.2011.He is still awesome, after 30 years, there is still something in him. With his talent, he excite everyone else, and give us an opportunity to enjoy in MUSIC.

Pogorelić we love you, and your AWESOME playing!!!

[epslastro]

@KChopin95

Lol, he was born in Belgrade.

[elboberto7]

I like playing this because unlike most chopin, no JUMP BASS!!!!!!

[Cuneglasus]

A stunning piece of music! Every one of Chopin's 250 pieces is as good as his next one, his consistency is unprecedented !!!! He never wrote 1 inferior piece of music, and dead at 39! Music, for me, is all about Chopin!

[maxhansendk]

Why does Ivo never play Chopins ballade No.1 ?

I know-But do "fanboys" know?

[elwisw]

@maxhansendk

Why?

[MrChristAlive]

Just fantastic! Shame the other recording from the famous Chopin compentition has been taken down.

Comparing this to Ohlsson's, this is pure genius! Ohlsson seems to forget what his left hand is doing and focus to heavily on the right hand melody... which is an easy oversight to make. But Pogorelich plays every note with utter integrity regardless which hand is passing over it. He has realised that this is the point.

[kazuya31]

you can always tell a real musician when even after the performance the music still has full posession of his mind and soul for the next 3 hours, which pogo expresses nicely in this concert.

[Ianthe22]

@kazuya31 Or the "fools" that get so deeply dazed by it:D.

[kazuya31]

@Ianthe22 you couldnt have been more right. he played this as if he composed it himself. his genius is so underrated

[Ianthe22]

@kazuya31 I don't think Ivo is underrated. He just has a personality that is very complex "difficult".

[kazuya31]

@Ianthe22 true again, but personality is the key to genius. if anyone thinks pogo is too eccentric they will never understand what true musical genuiis is. glenn gould was a biggr nutjob than anyone else, but i dont even have to finish this sentence!

[Ianthe22]

@kazuya31 So you rate people on how great they are by rating their level of insanity:D??? It is a very epic way to judge peoples piano skills:D. I keep myself to believe that we're all a bit crazy. But this doesn't make us genius'

[Bodi99991]

@kazuya31 . Martha Argerich called him a genuis and walked out of the jury when they eliminated him at the Warsaw Chopin Piano Competition.....

[0911926166]

@Bodi99991 why jury eliminated him in this competition???

[Bodi99991]

@0911926166 I think there were political reasons involved in him being eliminated. Not sure though. It doesn't matter if he won or not because what Argerich did made him real famous

[kazuya31]

Chopin is the master of using the full beauty of the suspended chord and the ninth chord. this piece is full of them and its wonderful.

[kazuya31]

Pogo is so brilliant, when i watched this for the first time it was like a new piece i never heard before!

And he feels the music so deeply you can see yearning in his face numerous times

[EtiduProd]

I don't get why this piece is not one of the most famous works from Chopin, it's really beautiful and moving...

[lovesGenet]

He was always a thinker asnd more mature than most His career is so iffy now.It keeps us all interested. this was 30 years ago. It seems this man didn't really want the life of a touring virtuoso. He came to west palm not long ago.I cant believe he was touring U.s. Intensely personal but a grat communicator.He had or has it all. Lang has a great mind and personalty.His Mozart might change your life.If u can make sense of it!His c minor concerto very strange.different

[wing42]

this is the most beautiful interpretation

[jockolong]

such emotion..

[marcphilos]

This man's soul is completely infused in every note. Perfection.

[klaaaan]

Rachmoninov had very large and strong hands. A number of stage manager's dreaded his arrival, cause there were times he broke some strings and hammer's.

[endorphin2468]

Aquarian clarity combined with an overwhelming transcended scorpion-like sexual power.

He helps me bring things to life in my own interpretations.

That is what I am grateful for.

[malma1]

...Also a sparing use of pedal... a sensitive dryness...

[teakbridge101]

His performance here is the most mature I have heard. Everyone, and I mean EVERYONE plays this too fast and loud. I don't know what it is about volume, but most piano students are cursed with gross fortissimos. Ivo clearly has matured here from earlier things I have seen him perform. The finest version ever, and one I recommend to all listeners.

[metallwater]

This IS BEAUTIFUL.

One feels like crying with him.

[normabelga]

It is amazing

[Gianjimmy]

io ho avuto l'onore di girare le pagine durante una esecuzione a questo fantastico pianista!

[malinikola3]

He's the most famous Croatian pianist

[winkandrun]

I don't like to hear him play, it's horrible, it's like...how well and beautifully he plays sort of lingers in you for a long time after you've heard it. The amazement never ceases, even though he's older and can play well. It still fills me with hopelessness as a pianist, and wonder as a listener...

[izeea]

wow he plays it so much better than i ever will.

[Scottondanet]

Annoying isn't it!?

[yourwickedwickham]

Hahahaha... :-)

Just enjoy the recordings :-P

[richclayderman]

@Scottondanet yes...you are.

[TheLeonardoSaez]

Que hermoso, estoy emocionado con esta joya de la música, la interpretación de Pogorelich es de antología e inmejorable sobretodo en el final, nunca nadie lo ha tocado con tal sensibilidad y sensación de abandono, son como las hojas de los árboles que se posan suavemente al caer en otoño y que contemplan la nostalgia de los recuerdos, aquellos momentos de la vida deliciosos que no volverán y que guardas en el sótano de tu corazón. Quiero morir con este video en mi último suspiro.

[TheLeonardoSaez]

Lejos la mejor interpretación de esta obra que nunca he oido, sensible, nostálgica. Nótese el final dicho en un hilo...insuperable! Bravo Pogorelich!

[TheWhale88]

PERFECT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Lebowski53]

He's got hands like bigfoot.

[izeea]

LOL, nice one

[hfleung100]

@Lebowski53 Who cares about his hands? As long as beautiful music comes out of them, then they are gorgeous hands! ;)

[jbs4em]

my favourite chopin prelude. honestly I prefer the argerich recording, but this is by no means a sub par interpretation.

[Argentino246]

you should hear michelangeli (a wonderful chopin recital on dg recorded in 1972 featuring a number of the mazurkas) - sublime...

[Haeronthegreat]

I think the slow tempo works in some places, but it just takes away from the beauty of some of the modulations IMO. They should be more exaltant.

[Lebowski53]

Shit hair but awesome pianist.

[perfection5712]

wow i cant believe it ...this looks alot more complicated on paper ! i cant believe it sounds so easy !! , for the record i know its not i have tried to play it before.

[WehttamNenait]

Its not that hard.

[juliaCSL]

I know the first time i looked at the score, whou. But after playing it for a couple of times I got used to it ... after all , its sostenuto. I won't say its easy, but its playable. there's one particular part near the end, I haven't got to play it properly yet though =) To bring out the chopin-ness is another thing

[perfection5712]

i got bored pretty much instantly and decideded to play he's a pirate insted :D great fun

[steinway1901]

I'm going to say something controversial, I believe it seems too precious, I yearn for Van Cliborn's sense of directness but this could be I'm reacting to visual information

[billyguns2]

Pogorelich is the last living genius and giant of the piano; this performance is as if he is composing the piece on the spot, such is the beauty and spontaneity of it. The ending was breathtaking in its suspended beauty and atmosphere! People who are used to dull, metronomic, unstylish, and unimaginative playing will of course hate it. Viva Pogorelich!

[Thunderflower367]

that's an interesting point you bring up about a piece sounding like it's being made up on the spot. i don't know, but is that a quality that is looked for? because i can see how it's good and very spontaneous withe feelings and dynamics, but i always thought that piece had to be practiced to perfection

[uffizzi19]

meaby you can show us how to play Chopin, yesplease91...meaby this great virtuoso is wrong totally...meaby pogo hace to be a ....anything except musician...show us..or...not talk about him....

[supermanifold]

this is exactly how this prelude should be played; everyone else has managed to fuck with it, and in a bad way, and i don't know why.

you go, Pogo!

[yesplease91]

pd: my english sukcs. :S

[yesplease91]

really hard to found a perfect way to play this. there are a few moments in wich i'll take him away from the piano, from the cadenza to the end, is awful.. thats not chopin, please!

[dmcII]

I play this piece (not nearly as well either...!!). The cadenza at the end is a killer. Its hard to play at this tempo and make it work but he does.

Bravo !

[TomBarrister]

Well done.

[54spiritedwill54]

He is a genious

[fosco85]

simply great

[eriksatie9]

I agree, I love how he plays chopin! it's amazing...

[misotoma]

My favorite musician, composer and improvisor has to be this, Chopin. Understanding how music works is addicting, and Chopin is the unexcelled music 'player' ever. So appeasing to my ears, it's a shame the world over cannot appreciate this beauty. But still all they live long.. thank God! their music and names aren't lost with time in history. oh yea and i love this Coda.. peace.

[scotcking]

It's a little slow for me. It destroy's the continuity of the piece. Ivo is a fine musician and I respect him greatly. However, for this piece, I like the tempo played by Michaelangeli better. Chopin's marking is Sostenuto, meaning sustaned, and while there is some flexibility in tempo, Ivo's tempo is a little slow for me. I feel that it is "over milked". I have recorded it here.

[jamtnas]

No, I think Ivo actually got it right this time. The Sustenuto marking suggests that it SHOULD be "milked" (read: sung).

There are far to many approaching this piece like an etude, or in some pathologic cases: like a flat-footed metronome walk (or jog) in the park, with little or no sense of melodic continuity - the one thing that matters in this case.

[kelleypb2008]

The tempo is far too slow, the performer emotes far too much (which may account for the overly slow tempo)... While tempting, one must avoid the urge to exude self-pity while playing Chopin...

[SalQrazy]

I completely disagree with everything you said.

[AngelinaTaylor]

You just don't like this one because you aren't "used" to it, not because it's bad.. If you open your mind a little you'll see how beautiful it really is.

[egotistic1]

how beautiful this performance is is a matter of opinion.

The guy is obviously world class that is not in question, some people including me just don't like his wallowing style.

However he plays it far better than me, and most people who comment.

[PhillipLWilcher]

I've come back to this.I had to! The hidden wonders of these redolently immortal and suspended pages by Chopin played by Pogorelich - like passing through the colours of a rainbow - I love it! I do think had it not been written by Chopin at all but penned by the youthful Scriabin it would have been one of Scriabin's finest pieces. That's the wonder of Chopin....

Phillip Wilcher

[dmcII]

This definitely a great piece & much harder to play then it sounds.

[PhillipLWilcher]

I can't listen to this glorious piece and not think of Scriabin.Can you? Indeed, if Scriabin wrote it, it would be have been Scriabin at his best That's the wonder of Chopin looking towards the future just as he did with his second Prelude. And here we have the wonder of Pogorelich's interpreatation - what a marvel! You know, the thing I so admire with Pogorelich is his ability to see beyond the printed page and illumine so many hidden treasures in the music.

Phillip Wilcher

[sviatoslavberezovsky]

one of the most beautiful piece ever written

[ProkofievRules]

I love watching his hands move. So nimble. Never hurried.

[YugoMix]

yugoslavia !! go Ivo

[alfasumo]

He was born on a piano!!!!!!

[AvaMaria70]

was he really?

[vnsn72]

Simply Great

[happygolucky2000]

why cant i see this video?

[jjp009]

Wow, he genuinely looks carried away and about to cry at 3:05 to 3:21. You can tell he's really moved by this piece and is probably not faking that emotion.

[cheeseclo]

wow. you're right. theres no way he's faking that.

[pawdaw]

So, so, so beautiful. I love how he plays the cadenza so softly........

[nibelungensohn]

pretty good

[thomas12311]

I have practised this piece for four mouth. And I think that I can play everythings but the emotions is not enough. I tried so hard to find that. T_T

[tooursuccess]

For those of you who like to hammer someone - try getting the control and emotion he gets out of this piece.

[cheeseclo]

haha. yeah. he's a great musician. to have such emotion for a piece is amazing.

[sagalat]

I agree with ejasiewicz. The profound crystalline control really works. Best performance I've heard.  Wait until you hear him perform the Brahms 118/2 Intermezzo

[Plazmatix]

Pogorelich is VERY good...I don't really have a problem w/ his "planned playing" as people derride....his dynamic control is marvelous and he's excellent at delineating the individual notes....look at how relaxed his hands are while he plays...I have a feeling that Marthe Argerrich would walk out of this forum of so-called critics also....

[bitchass888]

pretty good though"? there is no pianist ( a live) that can communicate like this guy.

every finger of his knows exactly why it was playing the way it was playing. master

[kefhoops]

very overrated pianist...

[yukyo85]

c# prelude is one of his acclaimed repertoire as his Gaspard is highly acclaimed, though most people say his weird and unique.

[ducati321]

I don't care what you music snobs say, his Cadenza is amazing... as the whole piece is. It's fooking perfect, (i'm sure he thought so too) lighten up...

[chopinspoland]

He is a genious

[lourak]

Pogorelich is always the master of his dynamics. He projects well at the lowest levels.

[ejasiewicz]

This is a masterful and emotional performance; great legato, not over pedaled, not played awash a stream of consciousness but actually phrased and delineated, dynamics budgeted with a beautiful plan in mind. The only thing really missing is a bit more spontaneity, unfortuntely.

[Perkeno]

<< The only thing really missing is a bit more spontaneity.>>

But that's Pogo's trademark, everything is well thought-out, every dynamic measured to the nth degree. When it works well, it takes you to another world. Anyway, it's always intriguing.

[cziffra1980]

I wouldn't say it's particularly well delineated. Whenever the melody begins with an octave, the line actually starts in the thumb not in the little finger. It also ends in the middle part, not with the other octave. I don't understand why nobody shows the line properly instead of letting the octaves cover it and merge into the melody. Pretty good though.

[Frenchandproudofit]

"Pretty good, though". This comment comes from the fraud Cziffra1980, the monkey-wannabe-pianist who infested youtube with both his worthless videos inflicting pain on the music of the maitres and with his equally "worthy" comments. (Phoney)Cziffra1980's commenting on Pogorelich is like a gorilla criticizing the thinking of a god.

[cziffra1980]

Quite. How about some views on my comment instead of pathetic abuse? It's a real shame you aren't able to express yourself through musical opinion instead of cheap, shallow abuse.

[cziffra1980]

The way you talk reminds me of a frustrated child who, unable to understand how to operate a toy, smashes it into pieces rather than try to understand it. If you ever receive any musical training then perhaps you'd like to discuss my very SPECIFIC analysis (something that is apparently beyond you, from your comments) and what you SPECIFICALLY dispute about it, instead of lashing out like a simpleton. Random abuse has no place in a musical discussion and wins you no points.