Pt. 1 Rostropovich Prokofiev Sinfonia Concertante

[randomprimate]

hardest song ever written for the cello.

[noellybobelly]

Meh....he's amazing.....not a fan of this piece...my opinion. But ya he plays the crap out of it. This music kinda creeps me out..LOL

[Mizzles240]

I had to dig in to my college fund to buy this sheet music....

[Camilesbeiss]

increible



[thefemalecelloplayer]

no one will ever play this better than him.....

[Philboy50]

wow, that oppening was so strong

[Clarinet4Life1]

7:47-7:58 that conductor looks like he's directing air traffic. xP



[JC5268]

03:58 the clarinets seem to be zombies -- dead

[aabaker22]

Cool fact: Rostropovich himself wrote the passage from 6:56 - 7:11

[pansyjustinchan]

thank you so much for uploading this. rostropovich plays with some real cajones >:D i can't stop watching this.... its SOOOO gorgeous!!!

[elmachucho]

Increible! .....Espero que esto jamas pase de moda.

[sweatinggrundle]

7:48 is so epic. shostakovich thought this was prokofiev's greatest work

[koeloekai]

GOD OF CELLO!!!!!!!!!!!

[caisajolie]

No other cellist equals Mr. Rostropovich (maybe Cunningham?). You will all be jalous: my brother used to play with him at the age of 13 in Paris salle Pleyel. I'm so proud of him!

[aamish911]

who is cunningham?

[caisajolie]

Hello aamish911,

I foud a video of Wells Cunningham on youtube while googeling my brother (a professional cellist too). I was totaly in awe when I listen to his interpretation of the 24 caprice of Paganini and Handels Passacaglia for cello and violin. I think this guy is just extraordinary. But it is only my opinion. But have a look and enjoy. He also plays the guitar like an Angel. Would be nice if you tell me your opinion on him after you see his video. Sorry for my bad english.

[aamish911]

O yes I know Wells Cunningham. yes he is a very talented person

[kcmusisk]

And the conductors name is Okko Kamu, a renown finnish conductor...

[sweetestinyection]

♥♥♥Slava!!♥♥♥

The best cellist of all time. =D

The magic was in his hands, his devotion, his feeling, the way he played.

Besides the Vodka, the second jewel that Russia gave us.

[diblasic]

I just love this video, but it's a pity about the 1st note and last note of the last movement.

[RandomMuch1337]

Wow. He co-composed this piece, then played the hell out of it. Gotta love Rostropovich

[makuletboy]

Gotta love the first entrance of the cello solo....Slava plays this piece with such power and musicality. Its almost frightening. Bravo Slava. Bravo.....

[cellobren]

What the hell is the conductor doing at 7:53? Some sort of rainbow?

[Ltlevim]

That happens to be a third beat.

[chriseok]

LOL

You win sir, but I concur with Ltlevim.

[Seoul2rain]

hahahahahahahahhaha....oh man...agreed.

[goober8729]

What is he doing on the podium period? He's staring at his score the entire time, sets frantic tempos, and his beat occurs SO high it looks incredibly awkward.

[OzzyKingofKings]

Proof that Slava could still play the most difficult cello pieces ridiculously well even when he was getting up there in years.

And this piece is one of his specialties.

I must say, though, I do prefer his earlier recording with Sargent (simply brilliant), and am very fond of a heartwrenching, very exciting reading by Daniil Shafran in the 50s.

I've also come across snippets of the premiere performance of the piece with Sviatoslav Richter conducting, but can't find it in its entirety. Help?

[cellogeek95]

he is actually just 42-43 years old in this video, he seems to be older, but it´s a splendid performance! ( or at least he plays good, not the orchestra!)

[petpetfood]

I fell in love with Prokofiev when I heard this piece. He and Shostakovich wrote such beautiful and heart-wrenching music, it's flawless.

[mestisapnoi]

wow! theres such a difference between the interpretations of maisky and rostropovich. rostropovich sounds more romantic here and he takes more time on certain passages. it's very interesting.

[mynameismaurice]

maisky is notorious for ignoring tempo markings, so you can be sure what differences there are between the interpretations are the difference between what prokofiev intended and, well, not

[CelloNerd314]

A wonderful piece. My first time hearing it too - and I am a cellist! Wow.

[iWyke2]

Prokofiev and Shostakovich both express anger and bitter-sweet melodies in their music. Mainly because of the USSR forcing them to either destroy or change their musical works.

For example did u know that the Romeo and Juliet ballet had to be rewritten b/c it was considered counter-revolutionary to the USSR

[raulishnikov]

@iWyke2 Did you Know this piece was written at Piatigosky request 2 Prokofiev to write something for cello, and then when the 2 movements of the original piece were sent back to Prokofiev with some comments and suggestions to polish the final score, Prokofiev was already back in Russia ant the soviets call that piece the worst work by him due to his foreign influences, and that original piece turned out, rewitten as this sinfonia concertante? (just learn that in Pitigorsky's book "cellist"

[giordaniotto]

This video is a document of an Era , ... 1970 rostropovich still captive of the Soviet , ...a world of myths with its soundtrack! .... great performance.

[fiddlinmatt]

if it makes you feel better, it's been reasonably well documented that prokofiev on occation would ask people for motifs and small scale ideas and use them in his works, or have other people do some of his orchestration. But I don't really care much. I really like his music. And the truth is, it is a different kind of listening. One the appreciates dissnonance and "less friendly" approachs sounds, harmonies, and rhythms. We can't all be vivaldi, and not all great music has melody clearly defined

[gpahdnon]

Yeah, you have to get used to it before you can feel its message. I don't blame you tho, it's just a question of education.

No need to down thumb him to death haha.

[chillisnake]

I give all my credits to Rostropovich as well. one of the best ever in my ears

[Pianoloverok]

This is great!!!!!!!!!!!!

[pegasus09196]

I think this is amazing...

[Hachechulo]

To tell you the truth, I think that it is wonderful that Prokofievs music can have such a visceral—albeit somewhat philistine—reaction given that it is considered repertory by most orchestra, soloist and chamber players. Keep listening, friend. Im not saying that you will one day come to like his music—personal aesthetics, are just that personal—but perhaps one day, after giving this kind of music a good listen, youll come up with something intelligent to say about your dislike of it.

[RandomMuch1337]

It's because your ear is trained to listen to western music. It takes time to appreciate works by Modern compmosers like Prokofiev, Shostakovich, Mahler, Stravinsky, and etc. I wouldn't blame ya tho. If I heard this piece about two years ago I would've hated it XP

[RabidCh]

I bought the recording with Malcolm Sargent conducting and I didn't appreciate it until 3 months later, although I have liked Prokofiev for years.

[AbsoluteZ3R0]

Wow, that's a pathetic comment. This music is incredible, you're just retarded.

[philly4life36]

u have no idea wut ur talking about

[vcupiano]

I just remembered that I have a recording of him conducting the symphonies # 5, and 7 of prokofiev....pretty awesome

[vcupiano]

what the hell are you talking about I can't look away!

[Kurtyoungblood]

Hardest Cello Concerto.

[philly4life36]

agreed

[xylenz]

I never liked watching Rostropovich He always looks so serious when he plays, like he's angry with the music and the cello. Mischa Miasky makes it look like fun. Rostropovich makes the most delightful music look like a dreadful pain to play.

[bckm54]

I suggest you close your eyes and LISTEN to the music. You might find that it doesn't matter if he glowers or laughs - the music is beautiful and so is his interpretation. Works for me... :)

[zaclavender]

true, but the cello is just as much a visual art as it is a performing art

[calderi0]

What the hell are you talking about? That is completely untrue.

[calderi0]

Oh, my comment was directed at zaclavender.

[junho1202]

music is not for watching, it's for listening

[uhsayer]

however, posture while playing any instrument still is important, even while it doesn't affect the sound

[goober8729]

I disagree; a good posture while playing the cello will open up the sound, while a bad posture makes it much harder to achieve good tone quality

[bzyakalka]

Rostropovich Prokofieva igraet luchshe vseh. A orkestr adovii)

[AbsoluteZ3R0]

I can only imagine what may have been on Prokofiev's mind when he wrote this. If there is one good thing that came from Stalin's tyranny it is the music written by Prokofiev, Shostakovich, and Khachaturian.

[Mark91Gilenson]

wow they so don't deserve him. What a Great Cellist- What a moronic Orchestra.

[fiddlinmatt]

yeah they really don't. He just owns them

[vegettogohan]

His playing is beyond criticism

[LyeraNY]

everyone notices the orchestra haha. They're totally dead. Sometimes you can see that Rostropovich's not liking it haha

[goober8729]

Or that he's terrified the conductor's going to let it all fall apart....honestly I feel like there are parts where Rostropovich is conducting more than the conductor

[Hopfensperger]

Man, the orchestra is terrible! And yet, to see Rostropovich performing this is a real treat. A superb rarity.

[rasputin1357]

Yeah, I agree, the orchestra is pretty pathetic. Sadly, this is th only video I have ever found of the Prokofiev and the added bonus of Slava playing it makes it easier to ignore the orchestra.

[goober8729]

Maybe Rostropovich is friends with the manager or something

[rasputin1357]

The Orchestra of the Living Dead!

[xXTiberiusXx]

@rasputin1357

2nd chair cellist ! left 4 dead :(

[cellocarrot]

What orchestra is this, by the way?

[xbasket12x]

@cellocarrot The orchestra of the Living Dead from the Underworld.... XD

[MrAjleask]

@Hopfensperger What's wrong with the orchestra? they sound fine to me.

[Hopfensperger]

@MrAjleask rofl

[MrAjleask]

@Hopfensperger You can't think of anything wrong with the orchestra? didn't think so, maybe you shouldn't say their pathetic when in fact they play this piece quite good.

[Hopfensperger]

@MrAjleask Listen to their tone on the first note.

[MrAjleask]

@Hopfensperger So 1 note in the whole piece is bad? okay, they must be crap lol

[Hopfensperger]

@MrAjleask You're a real genius.

[Hopfensperger]

Why have I never heard this performance before?!

[joylee123]

cuz ur an idiot..... ^^;  that dvd has shosti concerto no 1 on it and like extra stuff where he's playing with his wife... AWESOME dvd. go out and buy it. totally worth ur money.