Aldo Ciccolini plays Debussy (vaimusic.com)

[marracute]

I wonder if the 5 people who voted negative for this video could play this better than Ciccolini.

[corleone6457]

Sorry, i ant to finish by that:

Just enjoy to learn it and playing it. It's more important than anything and by the way, incredible version of Ciccolini!!!

[corleone6457]

SO, again there is no easy music. (Sorry english is not my first language)

[corleone6457]

Secondly, if for one person that kind of music speak easely for him, that's good for him, but other maybe need more time to understand it, it's not bad, it's just question of musicality.Myabe they understand well other pieces of music better. The study of "opposate sonority" of debussy is "easy" for technic but for musicality, it's take more time to repete that than find the good technic.

[corleone6457]

Hi

I am a student in the Paris conservatory in piano.

I just want to react for all the people how believe that's a n easy piece of music.

First, there is no "easy" piece of music, if you just want to play "fur Elise" on sunday for decompressing, it's an easy piece, but if you really try to do something with it, put personnal emotion, it's more harder. Cziffra had a very nice recording of it and he told about it than it's take several recording to have the good one! He was a good musician.

[jembelwyn]

I'm about to learn this piece-I'm so excited! It's so indescribably beautiful. And, I think it's okay to learn it after four years of piano training. Everyone moves at their own pace. Personally, I've been playing about nine months, but that's just me..My point is that it shouldn't matter when you learn it-what matters is that you enjoy it and just have fun with it! :)

[newFranzFerencLiszt]

what a wonderful impressionist painting I see listening to this...

[Bellevp]

No, this is defenitely not an easy piece to play. I play the piano for 14 years now, and I follow 10 years of piano lessens, and now I'm learning this piece... So no, you can't play it after 4 years, unless you're very good of course... I think I could already have played it in my 8th year of paino lessons but not earlier... The rythem is really hard and the melodie is also difficult... But of course it's a beautiful piece!

[PinkLazors]

@Bellevp yea you're right.. i learned this piece i think 2-3 years ago. back then i had followed lessons for about 7-8 years :), but you'll always notice things that you want change, learning the notes isn't very difficult, you need to take some time to understand, to feel the rhytem.

it's and endless piece of piano work mucho props to Aldo Ciccolini :)

[juttkeys]

this is good but isnt the best version by far, and bollocks to all the snobbery comments

[kalatravat]

so classy

[piano3479]

the timing is just a little wacky

[1819yas]

最高です！

[DBFful]

not much if you have been playing for.. 4 years should be easy

[juttkeys]

@DBFful easy after 4 years?? dont be such a condescening idiot, you fool

[sebustienus]

is this a difficult piece to play ?

[StephaCicos]

grande Aldo!!!

[jeangodecoster]

I read some comments about the piano not being ideal for this music.

It should be noted that Fazioli pianos are amongst the best in the world, and despite Steinway being the most known brand, less care is put into their manufacture than Fazioli's. Moreover, Ciccolini almost exclusively plays on Fazioli. There is a good reason why the world's best Debussy performer plays on this brand: it's the best for that kind of music.

[ANNAHMELIA]

Bellissima interpretazione. Grazie molto !!

[manthasagittarius]

What a lovely interpretation. This is scored originally for a small wind ensemble; I once played it (bassoon part). If you get a chance, try to hear it that way too. This performance captures on piano the beautiful, subtle color shifts you get with the winds -- delicate and serene. Thanks you for posting this.

[Vantheman91]

@manthasagittarius I'm sorry but it was written originally for the piano.

And I think this is by far the best rendition of this piece on youtube.

I can only dream (haha) of playing this piece like him.

[manthasagittarius]

@Vantheman91 You're right, it was written for piano. Now I'm wondering if he himself was the one who scored it for winds, since I don't find it listed under his chamber works even as a re-worked score. But I have played it, and it takes beautifully to all the colors implicit in the piano voicings.

In any case, this piano performance is indeed ravishing.

[musicalkayla16]

jaw dropping.

[moycalder]

Extraordinaire!

[MuzikLady22]

Love it! Did you ever hear Tomita play Debussy? Amazing too!

[albianco]

I wish I were You, Aldo.

I love Piano!.

Watch my Music Videos if You want.

Search by ""Aldo Piancone""

[grd9rcm]

I've reviewed this video around the 1:16 minute mark and, although it's hard to see, the first note he plays with his left hand in Measure 27 (urtext score) looks like a low A. It is supposed to be a G. Big deal, eh.

[Etnecserc]

Well you can see he has no notes. He is playing by ear and by feel.

[deadheadchemist]

Well, I'm pretty sure he had the sheet music when practising this piece. Which i'm positive was full to the brim with annotations of musical direction. A lot of thought has gone into the performance of this piece please don't diminish that by reducing it to mere "feel".

[Etnecserc]

Who's diminishing it? A performer can sometimes be certainly better than the composer - Liszt for instance who played the compositions even of some of his students and he improved upon them if he "felt" that way. Why do you diminish feelings? Are you the kind who listens to music according to calculated cadences, intervals, etc. You must make a boring companion at the concerts. I'd prefer the company of my notebook computer..

[testerama2009]

most professionals never use sheet music at all in performances......very very rarely....

[CUNxtTues]

That's false.

[testerama2009]

I beg to differ CUNxtTues. How many performances do you see where the pianist is using sheet music. It IS rare, for the most part. When the piano is the accompanist such as for a solo instrument, take a violin sonata for example, you will usually see the pianist using sheet music. But when they are the center of attention either solo or during a piano concerto and such, they WILL most likely not be using sheet music. Hope this clarifies the whole argument. Thanks for the constructive criticism

[CUNxtTues]

I went to the Boston Symphony this past Thursday and they did a few featuring piano, a Ravel concerto and a Carter piece. The pianist used sheet music for both.

I'm absolutely positive he has them memorized, but it serves as a rough guide. There's absolutely no way he is sight reading. The Carter in particular was very jumpy and ranged over the whole instrument.

[CUNxtTues]

I remember being slightly nervous for him, wondering if he would have any time at all to actually change pages, since he had no assistant. That I was unfamiliar with Carter probably had a lot to do with it.

Anytime I've performed I have prepped enough to go without a net, but it's just nice to have. I'm no pro, but there's nothing to lose by having it in front of you.

[JChangPianist]

@CUNxtTues

Sheet music during a performance is generally not used because it distracts from concentration. Tunnel vision on focusing on the harmonies and colorful tones you make are the only thing a pianist must think about. Even if you memorize the piece and think of the sheet music as an "insurance" of sorts, if you play with the sheet music, it is a bit unnerving not too look at it, and when you do, your concentration falls on notes, and not sounds.

[testerama2009]

i agree....it just doesn't sound right either....that doesn't take away from the overall greatness of his performance though I will admit.

[VladtheEmailer]

Ha! Mistakes? Who cares! How ridiculous to even bring something like that up. This is probably the biggest problem with classical musicians, they strive too much for the impossible....perfection! I can program a computer program for that if I want. This performance is beautiful!

[AdamMagnus]

Agreed! Perfection is dull, mistakes inject flavour.

[notbluenotbrown]

This is a performer who understands Debussy's aesthetic. A lovely, intimate performance. I'd rather listen to this any day,rather than have to suffer some boring, artistically clueless, monkey trained performances that are on here. No disrespect, of course - - it's all a learning curve. It take years to develop this kind of insight that Aldo has. It's like having a nice visit or interview with Debussy himself

[TijmenDal]

The piano they chose for this performance doesn't quite match the flavour of the song if you ask me. The sound is too warm and not 'floaty' enough (as you'd expect in a dream), they should have gone for a dryer sound...Oh well...

I'm not to imperessed by his performance in general. As Hayden already stated he makes some mistakes and there's not enough tempo/volume changing in my opinion. Overall it isn't bad ofcourse...but this is no reál player...

4/5

[ilovefazioli]

I'm sorry to say you're wrong about the piano. They seem to be known for being one of the best pianos in the world. Handmade, and tested one by one before being delivered. I performed myself in one of these pianos and its sound is the brightest and most unique I've ever heard.

[LazyBastard69]

i agree. it sounds very nice. so you were actually performing IN the piano? wow that must have been one hell of a modern piece :D

[testerama2009]

performing IN the piano would be a feat that only John Cage, or Chuck Norris lol, would ask of you to do lol! youtube him. He is amazing. Especially in some of his pieces where you place nuts and bolts and other stuff on certain strings of the piano to create a very eerie timbre unlike any other sounds you've ever heard from the piano lol.

[LazyBastard69]

@testerama2009 yeah i know John Cage's stuff. Quite cool and percussive sounding.

[haydn4ever]

i'm playing this piece now, and I know he is a professional, but is his defense, this is NOT an easy piece!  LOL! I miss that SAME not at 1:16 ALL the time......I don't know why, but MAN..I feel SO MUCH BETTER NOW!! He missed a few notes, but life goes on, the piece is absolutely beautiful, and the message came across loud and clear!

[nostalgiacreep]

left hand arpeggio at 3:48 sounds wrong too. this is a more subtle mistake but it still doesn't suond right. christ! i can't even play the piano!

[skymods7]

Reverie(French) ... Dream(English) ... 夢(Yume : Japanese) ... Debussy's title is so poetical.

This tune reminds me "Dream within dream" , it's the poem by Edger Allan Poe.

[fujicity]

失礼ながらアッシもお気に入り登録してしまいました。ＴＨＸ！

[nostalgiacreep]

1:16 sounds like a mistake - i know its supposed to be dischordant but it sounds like the wrong dischord?!

beautiful piece anyway, debussy is my personal definition of a genius

[AbanicoVIBES]

nope, this is an augmented chord on f.

heard again on 1:20

[nostalgiacreep]

the bass note is different the two times the chord is played in this performance - in every other performance i've heard, its the same both times - i always thought of it as a painful point, made twice. but always the same painful point!

i call a bum note. it looks to me like he strikes the wrong note bass note at 1:16 and then very quickly but weakly plays the correct one afterwards, like a flam.

surely someone else can see this is a mistake?

[grd9rcm]

You're right, the first LH note sequence has a mistake.

[grd9rcm]

You're right, the first LH note sequence has a mistake.

More mistakes around 3:20 too, when the melody is shared between the LH and RH.

[nostalgiacreep]

thankyou! i thought there were more mistakes too, but i was having a hard enough time convincing this lot about the first, really obvious one.

i'm not criticising - i cannot comprehend the incredible level of consistency you see with some performers. some players leave me speechless, they seem superhuman. but nonethless - this performance features mistakes.

i think he does some things like miss out some octaves and even plays the wrong chord in one place. maybe i'll check properly later. :D

[nostalgiacreep]

lol, you sound rather upset. cheer up!

i KNOW well enough for myself, thank you very much : ) but look at all the other people spotting the mistakes too! i think we have a consensus.

hint - throwing insults around makes you look petulant, and possibly a little foolish :D

[giveitupforcheerios]

Big words for a small mind. In my opinion, 'I think' doesn't always mean you're guessing. (hate to get into fights :D)

[hivertpeter]

no problem

[PSUThespians]

I completely agree with both statements.

[mcfdiamond]

Debussy is Perfect.... Reverie, Clair de Lune, Arabesque 1st, I don't know which one to choose as my favorite.

Aldo Ciccolini plays really good!!!

[babygotbach22]

i adore this version. thank you

[Notoshtosh]

I really should proof read my comments: I meant Chopin, not choping, who's that?!?! woops!

[Notoshtosh]

I saw this guy play in the Champs Elysee theatre in Paris last April. He was amazing. He played some Choping, some Mussorgsky, and I was completely in awe of him.

I understand that people are interested in wrong notes that are played, I am too, in a voyeuristic way, it's satisfying to know that professionals are mortals too, but please don't focus on it. the real sign of a good performer is someone who covers their mistakes well, like Aldo did in this :)

[BraveHeart832]

Adoro Reverie di Debussy, un ottima interpretazione davvero i miei complimenti!^^

Bellissima.

[AlainLeboeuf]

ENFIN , un dosage intelligent du son et de ses harmoniques , on peut vous écouter et vous parler techniquement

de ce dosage ? ??

[cciemail]

I have the CD version of this (Debussy: Dreams on EMI Classics).

This DVD was probably recorded in one take, so it has a few minor mistakes.

In the CD version, it is played with no mistakes

[trorwood]

i dont know a thing about music, im just a painter... but this is beautiful. An inspiration. but what actually tugged at my heart strings was Satie...

[midniterider4559]

i agree. it is the most beautiful song i have ever heard.

[cynic150]

like many top virtuosi, he is try ihg to be too clever and "musical" by pulling the music about wilfully, but then missing the point and it's intrinsic simplicity. There are even errors in bars 45-6 where he moves the left hand chords forward two beats. Tut-tut!

[disturbiapixie]

you're the only one here "try ihg to be too clever" (with the result of your being rather overly simplistic)

[Animatronica]

Class!!

[Stellstelladelnord]

Molto bello...

[mastropazzo]

che sorpreeeesaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa­aaa

che ci fai qua???? Ma lo sai che ho studiato con lui + di 2 anni?????

saluti :*

[Stellstelladelnord]

Hai studiato con lui? Mizzica!

Ma scusami, mi interessa sempre la musica.Tu lo sai! Perche mi chiedi cosi???? ;)

Stella che canta e suona, un po cosi-cosi

[mastropazzo]

ok ok....allora bisogna pensare a un 4 mani a meta' strada tra oslo e helsinky ;))

[TFSBird]

@Stellstelladelnord yeah! Wuff wuff!

[buffalocrotch]

Love this. Aldo plays it to perfection. I used to be able to play this, I might just havta get out my old sheet music and give it another try.

Vaimusic - thanks for posting this, you made my day better! Brings back memories.

[hiloboy3450]

Mr. Ciccolini's rendition of Debussy's, Reverie, was lovely. This song was written during the Great War (1914-1918)

[NordicHealingLight]

Sorry, but Reverie was written in 1890. You are 24 to 28 years too late in your dates for this piece.

[wsjjswwsjjsw]

This is my favourate musical piece perfectly played.

I heard it when I was very very young, and I cannot find an interpretation that echos the sound in my meomory for many many years. Then I bumped into this one and it is like yesterday comes back again.

Bravo! This is how Debussy should be played.

[maxi10princess]

I can't agree with you more. The same thing has happened to me.

[64Havoc64]

I believe at the beginning of this piece debussy says to play very sweet and very expressively, and guess what? Thats exactly what he did! Slowing down and speeding up doesn't demonstrate a lack of technical knowledge but of emotional skill and understanding of the piece. You could FEEL what he wanted you to and thats the point of the music. Go take some more lessons

[chiarapetrachi]

porca miseria, bellissima interpretazione...

forse ci volevano piu pause di qua e di la, ma e' perfettamente..saltellante.

mi fa pensare ad un bambino di 10 anni che saltella.

[B4BB1]

Beautiful.................one of my favorite Debussy pieces.

[kingstravinsky101]

you dumbasses need to stop bitching at wrong notes. he didnt fuck up the rhythm, he didnt fuck it up with pedal, he didnt use dumbass fingering, he just played one or two wrong notes.! you people that get all worked up on one wrong notes need to understand that when a composer writes a piece he just wants the feeling and character to get to the listener, do u think debussy cared about one note!?!?!?!?! you act like he spent hours on each note!

[simnos1]

Well debussy did select choose his notes VERY carefully. But you're right, the emotion and the phrasing is what's important.

This is probably the best I've heard this played.. I'm just learning this piece atm.

[libetta]

Debussy music on a Fazioli piano! what could be better!?

[segattacicova]

Why are you all iteressed on wrong notes? The great aim of a musician is COMMUNICATE PERSONAL EMOTIONS, not playng right notes!

[VladtheEmailer]

I know, what a bunch of idiots!  I agree with you.

[v4liumfrance]

veryvery good ciccolini

[honest4truth]

honestly, i would rate this a 2/5, maybe a 3.

some notes sounded wrong, some where too sharp when they were supposed to be more calm, and in some parts he was too slow while others where too fast, i barely enjoyed this, however its not the fault of the person who uploaded it, so i will rate a 5/5 for the effort, but the peice was bad, sorry

[niceguy2685]

Is this a professional concert, only important harmonies are missed, at 1:43 the right hand is supposed to descend so an F# is played with the Bass D not continue the pattern, then the follwing sequence misses a Inverted c#min chord at 1:47/8. Im jsut suprised at the errors here.

[estudiosinluz]

I am glad that you point out the mistakes, it interests me what mistakes proffessional make. But you can't be surprised, everyone make mistakes.

[niceguy2685]

Yeah, I mean Im not mentioning it because Im saying hes crap he plays is beautifully, I just find it incredible how when its being filmed for DVD that they allow it to be wrong, not a great reflection, and someone previously said they play it off memory, which is what most do, but the chances are he will revise it before hand.

[estudiosinluz]

Aah yes, maybe they are just enganineres who can't hear the wrong notes.

Its like Alfred Cortots recordings.

[Pattyoday]

That was just beautiful. He plays with such natural grace and passion.....:-)

[vnsn72]

Bravo Aldo, non ti smentisci mai

[libetta]

oh my it's a FAZIOLI!!!!!!!!!!

[nadyart]

Is my impression or this piece is full of wrong notes?

[niceguy2685]

Your indeed right, to someone who has never heard the peice you would not know, but as I have written he has repeated patterns that should have a variation, which to a Debussy critic is highly noticable and Im amazed that this made it ontop a DVD!

[prismsmiles]

It could be, what often happens to professional musicians, wrong memorisation. Having played the piece out of memory for so long, they are sure that all the parts are "correct" when there might actually be a few deviations from the original score. Walter Gieseking, the maestro, is a good example.

[ivesklein]

bravo maestro!!

[ivandispirito]

Great music...it is not easy to play with the right feeling and interpretation. I like this performance. The other videos about this music are not good. Bravo, Ciccolini!

[1frankn]

my favorite interpreter of Satie. It's nice to hear him play Debussy