Sunday, October 08, 2006

Yundi Li

Recently I missed this years Chopin competition winner Rafal Blechacz playing the first Chopin piano concerto in Zurich. I heard the concert was excelent.
Last week I had a chance to hear Yundi Li also playing the first Chopin piano concerto with the Zurich Kammer Orchestra. I could not really get warm to his music, but I liked the encore of a Chinese composition. You might (or might not) be able to listen to the encore here.

Yundi Li giving autographs:


I did not know he lives currently in Hannover (a city I have been to quite often and like a lot, but is not really a world city, despite CBIT and a very beautiful downtown - and in some interview he mentioned no one recognizes him there at all) and also that he was born in Shengzhen (nearby Hong Kong), which I had just skipped traveling through a week before. Too bad - there was enough opportunity for a small chat, but I wasn't to excited about his play and except Lang Lang nothing else came to my mind:o).

Here is an interview with Yundi Li in German at klassik.com:
classix: Gibt es Dinge im Wesen der Europäer, die Sie gar nicht verstehen?
Li: Manchmal eine Form von Gefühlskälte und Reserviertheit, mit der ich auch in Deutschland Probleme habe. Deshalb telefoniere ich so viel mit meinen Verwandten und Freunden in China. Die Menschen in Europa wirken immer sehr beschäftigt, manche dabei aber auch verschlossen. Ich will nicht zu sehr verallgemeinern, doch wirkliche Freunde habe ich noch nicht in Deutschland - außer vielleicht meinem Steinway-Flügel!

For comparison, Lang Lang early last year also in the Tonhalle after a solo recital:

Never before have I seen so many people crowded around an artist. BTW, he will be in Zurich again on 28th of November with a nice solo program (Mozart KV 333, Schuman op. 17, Granados).

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