Ivry Gitlis Mendelssohn Octet

[samueljamescollins]

Look past anything lacking. Gitlis always played like a crazy man with a real interesting personality, he does the same here. And he's playing about as well as anyone ever has at 85. Obviously if Milstein had still been playing at 85 he would have surpassed this, but whatever..

[daniel3231995]

Sorry to say that Gitlis sounds absolutely disgusting and horrible here...Way past his prime.He shouldn't be shredding up the first violin part like that.Also,this is a chamber piece...supposedly anyway.Doesn't sound like it anymore.

[VictoriaVictorialand]

I think Mendelssohn, as well as any other composer would be thrilled to have someone like Ivry plat their pieces any way he decides to play them.

[jin12345678]

many premier soloists aren't as good chamber musicians. I mean is anybody surprised ivry gitlis isn't as good a chamber musician. his style is so frenetic and flashy.

[epessina]

PREZIOSO IVRY !

[tlcooper93]

I did forget to mention that this was a joy to hear, because I love this piece, and this violinist so much; some parts he plays very very well, but others don't seem to be in Mendelssohn's style.

Just an addendum.

[tlcooper93]

As much as I love Ivry Gitlis as a violinist, he is not playing Mendelssohn and he is not playing like a chamber musician should play. I am not saying I'm a pro, or that I have any authority, but I think we can all agree that this is not what Mendelssohn was going for with this interpretation of the first violin part.

[Mendy7952]

Those with negative comments seem to be a bit ignorant of this artist's style all along throughout his career. He was never a guy who played like the others. He always played in a very exaggerated and affected manner. That said, all of the negative posters PLEASE post your violin videos here or remove your comments.

[noahfranz]

terrible

[vlnbot]

compelling!

[ghettowizard]

Ivry is what, 85 in this clip?

I'm sorry for all the people that are unable to look past certain things that have crept into his playing as he got older. Because he's the closest thing to a genius that we've got nowadays.

[browncello]

Well said!

[jamesraven75]

@ghettowizard

It's true that it's a greatly personal performance reflecting his years and experience but the fact is the tone is acidulous and he dominates the performance.

[lordhenrywotton69]

gitlis genius

[priscianusjr]

Commenters freaking out about exaggerated accents are fixating on one detail and ignoring the big picture. Intonation, tone, rhythm, and of course, overall musicianship and feeling -- all there in spades. Plus, the sound quality and balance of this clip is none too great. The exaggerated accent of your musical mis-perception is much worse than anything Gitlis is doing with his bow.

[browncello]

How very true!

[tjqudrhks]

@priscianusjr

lol are you stupid?

its mendelssohn, son. he plays it like tchaikovsky violin concerto.

[tudoryka79]

All you guys thinking how special and cool is Gitlis you should grow up and open your ears...Ivry is playing like shit here...he was a great violinist before exagerating everything...this is lack of respect for the composer and art...you dont play this piece like a clown...old one on top...some people should understand where to stop

[Personwithface13]

It's actually painful listen to all the random accents. Why must every note be so grabbed? It sounds like he's trying to kill it.

[leoscello]

bullshit!! crappy playing from gitlis

[hnk777]

It seams to me that age has not effected his playing negatively. I have the impression that if anything there is more freedom because he has had so much experience.

[violinhunter2]

Gitlis plays like only Gitlis can - always full of emotion and life. No fear. He has never played like a marshmallow. Bravo.

[MatitiahuB]

Gitlis still play the violin, what is wrong with age?

He is a virtuoso and an individual. I wish that Mr.Violinfanatic will have the same life energy as Gitlis, Menuhin and Milstein because if not,he will be dead at 50

matitiahuB

[battleblades]

This is magical. All those other comments people have left are sickening. They think that Gitlis cannot play. Every note he plays has its own musical DNA. You say he plays too loud....okay. That's a point. However, his hearing must be none too good so he has to play louder to play in tune (which he does spectacularly), and the first part was meant to be played like a concerto, as Mendelssohn himself said.

I love this. If you hate it, get out and watch someone else perform! It's simple!

[rxlgh72]

Mr. Gitlis's idiosyncratic and at times vulgar articulation is probably symptomatic of a loss of bow-arm control that afflicts many violinists as they age. Menuin suffered from this problem, and his later live performances were hard to watch as a result. Gitlis's great musicianship still comes through in this video, though, and the overall performance is compelling and interesting.

[ipmoic]

THere is a sadness to old violinists. Pianists are immune if still hea;thy. Cellists too play longer and better. But violinists usually decline past age 70 with, of course, exceptions. Nothing was sadder, albeit wickedly funny, to hear the 90 year old Joseph Fuchs in Carnegie Hall. Heifetz stopped at 72 I think. Like an athlete, the hardest thing to know is when it's time to stop performing.

[no1098765432]

i think you should all respect this amazing musician who is now just having fun with music in his old age, never forget what he has done!

[wykowski]

too much sforzando colonel sanders!!!

3:12 listen to his crazy playing

[AllUrUtubeRbelong2me]

Fantastic!

[kgskaug]

You have to filter out a lot of distractions to acquire the worthwhile musicianship in this performance... but yes, I can hear it's there. This video IMO conveys mostly a "you had to be there" message :-).

[pviola314]

i think the point is he could very easily play the textbook way but he chooses not to. It boils down to whether one likes it or not.

[otterhouse]

Wat lijkt het mij gaaf om met zo'n levende legende samen gespeelt te hebben... Waar heeft hij het zoal over gehad? Jammer dat ik niet wist dat hij in Nederland was, had wel een handtekening op een platenhoes willen hebben :)

-----------------------------

Rolf, Netherlands.

I am a collector of classical 78's and lp's

Click "otterhouse" above to see (and hear!)

some of my collection.

(Gioconda de Vito, Berl Senofsky, Vlado Perlemuter,

Carl Schuricht, Gina Bachauer etc)

[ziriyab]

I expect the group have spent a few days studying this piece with Msr Gitlis and gained a huge amount of insight from his amazing career. Also, although there are undeniably a few 'bumps' here and there - his violin playing will still sound far better than this at a distance. And I hardly think the colour of his SUIT reflects his attitude to music-making - he had possibly just played a solo?! How wonderful for great musicians to be sharing their vast experience with the younger generations!

[jascha1978]

i agree with most of these comments, i enjoy mr gitlis' music making very much but this is awful chamber music playing and i'm glad people can't get away with this crap any more

[fiddlestickies]

and the most important thing, that he obviously is not playing chamber music, as evidenced by the fact he's sitting around 300 feet from the poor second violinist while wearing a different color suit from everyone else. He's just not paying attention. I don't care that he is 85, that's no excuse.

[gianluigizampieri]

I adore this man!

All bad comments are shit, pls get informed about WHO he was (and is) before talking.

[fiddlestickies]

Look, I'm not saying that he was a bad musician. I never much liked his playing, but I really respect that he has ideas about everything. And honestly, the thing that bothers me the most isn't the fact that he really can't play the violin any more. The things that bother me are: The musical line is so chopped up you can barely find the phrase, he plays fortissississimo constantly, every single entrance has a massive accent(going along with the chopped up phrase idea),

[Violinfanatic]

He can't play the violin anymore???? Where are your ears? Essential Elements Bk. 1 is not being able to the violin. And he is 2,000,000 times past bk. 1.

[cgd147]

omg the people who leave stupid comments are so sad. Hes 85 for god sake- pretty awesome for 85- plus the recording quality is so crap. Ivry was/is amazing. A true musician.

[violatione]

Violin is like football. You have to know when to hang up your bow. Or you risk destroying your legacy.

[stradivari147]

Ok, so does this mean Ivry can not play ever again? He is playing in front of friends, not at the Barbican or the Royal Albert Hall ! And besides if you had any knowledge about violinists you would know that Ivry Gitlis was amazing, and you should remember that before leaving stupid comments like you have.

[violatione]

Ok first of all I play with high caliber performers constantly. I know who Ivry Gitlis is and how he used to play. But there is a level of professionalism that you should reach before taking the stage. And it doesn't matter how well you once played. You are only as good as your last performance. I'll talk about anyone who has a bad performance so don't call my comments stupid simply because you disagree.

[Violinfanatic]

First of all, Yehudi Menhuin and Milstein performed well past age 70. Rosand still performs today at the grand age of 80. Gitlis and these other wonderful "ancient" giants get respect for not only still being able to play superbly through the ailments of old age, but they also maintain individuality and great technique, putting them way above the younger generation. Your comment wasn't stupid, but it was disrespectful (and foolish) towards those deserving the greatest amount of respect.

[Violinfanatic]

Oh, and none of them ever destroyed their legacies by choosing to continue to play through old age. Menhuin's playing declined greatly during his old age, but that didn't ruin his legacy. Perlman's health is starting to get in the way of his playing, but I doubt he will ever be deterred by it or forgotten for the amazing violinist he is.

[redviolinistuk]

yeah but gitlis' played always sounded like a cat being strangled lol..

[violoniste77]

terrible~!!!how's possible playing with him????

[lelio29]

el es una leyenda......tu no tienes ni idea,,,,,,,ese es el mejor sonido que haya escuchado....

[jeremyfindlay]

Anybody who laughs at this video should ask themselves if they have missed the point. An old master playing and expressing himself with chamber music should no longer be judged by technical standards but rather by what he represents and how he shares his art with his colleges and his listeners.

[Violinfanatic]

Thank you very much

[trojannyc]

Nevermind the fact that Mendelssohn said the first violin part was to be played like a concerto....

[zarkingtaters]

You have to keep in mind that, given that he's something like 85, his hearing can't be all that good. Plus the fact that he *always* is trying to make a statement, might make it so that he doesn't know what he's doing (it's chamber music, not a solo!) but thinks that he does. Cut him some slack, he's an awesome violinist at least. And you have to give the other people props for doing a good job trying to 'blend' with him.

[zarkingtaters]

Or maybe they're all not trying to blend with him and really pissed at him haha.

[fiddlestickies]

Honestly, this is one of the most sickening things I have ever had the misfortune of hearing. Forget the fact that he can't play well anymore, he's playing with the phrasing of a 5 year old bashing and hacking at his instrument. Its just terrible.

[HeifetzBeatsOistrakh]

amen! you know, though, once you get over the sickness of it, I've found it's really fun to laugh at. Whip this video out at any party with musically knowledgeable people, and it's an instant success, with uncontrollable laughter as the inevitable result!

[Apalexpe]

I don't think musically knowledgeable people would dare to make fun of one of the greatest violinists ever in history, who at his 85 years still sounds amaizing!!!! I just think that instead of laughing people should admire but I understand there is still a lot of ignorance around...

[georgianamuraru]

amazing this guy...he's playing like himself....

[utubegeek17]

Amazing phrasing... and HOW OLD IS HE HERE?

wow.

[Yavorin]

That's pretty good for an 85 year old. Now I'm wondering what Heifetz sounded like at 85.

[kannaa]

This is terrible, Ivry Gitlis is a good violinist but he is not a chamber musician. It sounds really bad, is he using vibrato at all and does he know that there are 8 solo parts?

[martin12tut]

great that i can see this! i wanted to be there but couldnt. still want to see him live!

thank you

[jhkruer]

Pure genius! It's great to know that Ivry Gitlis still is sharing his unique playing with us today (especially young people). Even at his age he can still show us young upstarts a thing or two about violin playing. The other people must have had quite an experience keeping up with him but it payed off! If you have any more footage of Gitlis please share it with us.

[jhkruer]

Pure genius! It's great to know that Ivry Gitlis still is sharing his unique playing with us today (especially young people). Even at his age he can still show us young upstarts a thing or two about violin playing. If you have any more footage of Gitlis please share it!

[violinguy123]

"Pure genius!"

You're kidding right?