Nobuyuki Tsujii in England, May 2012 part 3
(Continued from Nobuyuki Tsujii in England, May 2012, Part 2)
Sensational performance in Bristol, England tonight, May 29. It was a privilege to be at this concert.
The hall was stiflingly warm, the stage was cluttered, but Maestro Vladimir Ashkenazy and our beloved Nobuyuki Tsujii pulled out a stunning performance of Chopin's Piano Concerto No. 1 with the Philharmonia. The audience rewarded them with a thunderous applause, with shouts and cheers. Nobu rewarded us with an encore of Chopin's Nocturne no. 8 Op.27 No. 2.
The reviews, though not published in England's major papers, were very positive. Read on.
Also, I wrote a piece to collect my thoughts about the England concerts of Nobuyuki Tsujii, and what I learned from them. "Much has happened and much has been learned in those two weeks. I have gained a new perspective on this remarkable young artist." After London - new thoughts on Nobuyuki Tsujii
Nobu's No. 1 fan got her wish - a photo with Tsujii-san in tux!
Tsujii-san, resplendent in tux, with mother, gracious and radiant Mrs. Itsuko Tsujii, backstage.
Maestro Ashkenazy congratulates Nobu after the Chopin 1 .
Maestro Ashkenazy directed Nobu to bow to the audience seated in the back, which drew an even bigger applause.
Maestro Ashkenazy led Nobu off stage, choo-choo train style.
The audience didn't want the train to leave the station.
Mrs. Itsuko Tsujii was radiant backstage.
An unforgettable image
Nobu backstage with a Philharmonia/IMG representative, who congratulated Nobu on his Chopin 1: "You made me a believer of this concerto."
Ashkenazy and Nobuyuki
Anecdote:
At 6:30 on the day of the performance, I was in the box office in the lobby of Colston Hall, speaking to people about the arrangement of meeting Tsujii-san backstage, when, out of the corner of my eye, I spotted a silver-haired gentleman in street clothes not far from me. It was Maestro Ashkenazy picking up a ticket (for his wife?). All eyes were on him; the people I was talking to stopped everything and just stared at the maestro in wonder. Afterward, they said that Ashkenazy had never come down into the lobby to pick up the ticket himself.
I sense a real bonding between Nobu and Ashkenazy. Ashkenazy -- an all-time piano great -- is adored by many Japanese classical music lovers, including Nobu's mother and piano coach, and almost certainly Nobu himself. It meant a lot to Nobu, his coach and his mother that Ashkenazy praised Nobu's performances.
Tweets:
Ashkenazy, the @philharmonia and Nobuyuki Tsujii at Bristol's @Colston_Hall tonight: mug up on the Philharmonia here http://www.bachtrack.com/reviews/listrelated/42/performer-all
Tonight #ClassicalMusic in #Bristol: The Philharmonia Orchestra conducted by Vladimir Ashkenazy and Nobuyuki Tsujii #pianist @ColstonHall
今日はコルストンホールで辻井伸行くん＋アシュケナージのショパンを聴いてきました。見事な演奏でした。少々デッドなホールの特性が逆に活きて、サロンで聴いているようなコンパクトな距離感。音の粒の美しさも際立っていました。友人に紹介してもらってお二人にご挨拶もできた。いい一日！ Today I listened to Chopin + Berlioz, by Ashkenazi and Mr.Nobuyuki Tsujii in Colston Hall. Performance was stunning. I came to appreciate the old and delapidated concert hall, its compactness gave a feel of being in a salon. The beauty of the grain of the sound was outstanding . .. A good day!
Philharmonia @philharmonia retweeted (my tweets) to its 7,671 followers:
Another stunning performance of Chopin Concerto 1 by Nobuyuki Tsujii, with the Philharmonia & Ashkenazy @philharmonia http://pic.twitter.com/8QEDPPFs
The encore played by Nobuyuki Tsujii last night was CHOPIN Nocturne 8 Opus 27 No. 2 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ny0JU4-qKkU
On May 31, Colston Hall @Colston_Hall tweeted:
Review of @philharmonia, Ashkenazy and Nobuyuki Tsujii from @backtrack. Glad they were as moved as we were by Tsujii's astonishing playing.
Nobu's recital report http://www.nobupiano1988.com/recitalreport/index.html shows this photo of Nobu being guided to the piano at the concert.
12年5月29日（イギリス）
ブリストル
今回のヨーロッパツアーの最終公演。
ロンドンから西へ約180㎞、ブリストルのコルストン・ホールが主催するクラシック・コンサート・シリーズ、フィルハーモニア管弦楽団の演奏会に出演しました。
建物は古風なホールとモダンなロビーが対照的。1800席のホールはほぼ満席で、ショパン：ピアノ協奏曲第1番の演奏に長く熱い拍手が送られました。アンコールはノクターン第8番。
May 29, 12 (United Kingdom)
Bristol
Final performance of Europe on this tour.
I appeared in concert about 180 km to the west of London, Classic Concert Series sponsored by the Colston Hall in Bristol, the Philharmonia Orchestra.
Next to the vintage concert hall is a modern building. The 1800 seats in the hall were almost full.
The Chopin concerto received a passionate, long applause, and I was asked to perform an encore: Nocturne No. 8
On May 31st, upon my return to the U.S., I found two positively glowing reviews of the performance.
More Please: Ashkenazy, Tsujii and Philharmonia Orchestra in Bristol"
by Alexandra Hamilton-Ayres on 31st May 2012
<The part pertaining to Nobu reads as follows:>
It has rarely happened that a musician has given a performance that has ended my attempts to keep my notes flowing, for fear of missing a single moment. Nobuyuki Tsujii was that musician. Blind since birth, his heightened awareness for sound made the quality of his performance sensitive and emotional. Not only was the sound beautiful, but he was absolutely fascinating to watch. On the piano he comes across as natural and is so physically involved in the music. To find the keys, he worked from the edge of the piano, feeling his way into the correct position. Tsujii, Ashkenazy and the Philharmonia performed Frédéric Chopin’s Piano Concerto no. 1 in E minor to huge applause – so much so that Tsujii went off stage and returned to bow three times, guided by the shoulders of Ashkenazy. The audience didn’t stop clapping until he sat down to give the most wonderful encore of a Chopin piece for solo piano. At only 23 years old, having been brought to fame in 2009 at a piano competition, there is almost no doubt that Nobuyuki Tsujii has a huge musical career ahead of him.
"Incredible, faultless performance"
This is Somerset http://www.thisissomerset.co.uk/Incredible-faultless-performance/story-16235763-detail/story.html
In all my years of concert-going I have never witnessed such silence and concentration as there was during this incredible performance. The deafening applause at the conclusion was thoroughly deserved and persuaded the soloist to play one of Chopin's dreamy Nocturnes as an encore.
This post came up on June 7, on a classical music blog
ttp://classical-music.euroresidentes.com/2012/06/giants-of-keyboard.html
Giants of the Keyboard
Brilliant young pianists are almost two-a- penny these days. Starting at an impossibly early age, winning numerous prizes, they quickly climb the ladder of fame, undoubtedly deservedly so, but for any ordinary listener and occasional concert-goer as I am, it’s hard to keep up with them all. They proliferate (violinists too). I have recently heard two such pianists in Bristol, neither of whom I had heard or heard of before, and am now enthusiasts for both.
... <paragraphs about pianist Kit Armstrong, who is 20 years old, part British, and has studied at various famous institutions as well as under pianist Alfred Brendel>
The Japanese pianist Nobuyuki Tsujii -four years older than Kit Armstrong -was born blind. He began learning music by listening. His mother says that at the age of only two he played “Jingle Bells” on a toy piano after hearing her sing it. He began to read music in Braille when he was seven years old, but learning music in Braille is laborious. Now he practices from a recording of a volunteer reading aloud every musical note in a piece. He too is a composer.
I heard him play Chopin’s 1st Piano Concerto with the Philharmonia Orchestra just over a week ago, and he had the added advantage of the conductor being Vladimir Ashkenazy. He came onto the platform led by Ashkenazy, holding the conductor's shoulders, helped to face the audience and then find his seat. It was a superb, impetuous performance. That he could learn the music and play it without sight was miraculous and of course the audience was won over by the situation as well as by the accomplishment of the performance. The encores – for both pianists – were almost a matter of form – if they hadn’t responded we might still be applauding!
My comment:
I am a huge fan of Mr. Nobuyuki Tsujii, and had the privilege to be at theAshkenzay-Tsujii-Philharmonia performance at the Colston Hall on May 29. It was heartening to witness the warm reception received by "Nobu" in Bristol. Please allow me to point out that Nobu is 23 years old - he was born on September 13, 1988. His well deserved success is a remarkable story of sheer brilliance cultivated by unconditional love and support, and very hard work on his part. I invite you to read more about him on a web site that I created for his international fans: https://sites.google.com/site/nobufans/
May 29, 2012, earlier in the day
Nobuyuki Tsujii will perform Chopin's Piano Concerto No. 1 with the Philharmonia and V. Ashkenazy.
The Colston Hall in Bristol, where the concert will take place.
Related article: After London - new thoughts on Nobuyuki Tsujii