Rach 3

this is a follow on from the last post ....


i have since fallen in love with Rach 3 and when i need a punch of inspiration i watch (백혜선) Baik HyeSeon's performance of the Finale Alla Breve (3rd movement) with the Russian National Orchestra. i stumbled upon it one day a while back and downloaded it and have watched it repeatedly. Here it is (broken into two videos) on YouTube:

... [searching for the links on YouTube for you] ...

OH SNAP! I just found the first movement posted 1 week ago on YouTube, thank you ProfessorHigins. so i will try to gather all the videos of all movements of the Rach 3 performed by this talented woman. people, if you're like me you'll be shocked as H E double hockey sticks that this piece is over _40_ minutes long. The woman is playing the piano for over 40 minutes. An athletic performance~

I bought tickets for myself and a friend to go to an orchestra last month. There I got to see Mahler's Symphony No. 1 performed by 13 principals of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and 100, hand selected up-and-coming young Korean musicians lead by Swiss Charles Dutoit - Conductor of the Philadelphia Orchestra and the Royal Philharmonic - at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts last month*. only three pieces were performed. when we arrived i grabbed a program and saw that the performance was split into a 40 minute segment and a 60 minute segment separated by an intermission. i quickly assumed that there would be one piece performed in the first 40 minute segment and then the last two pieces would be performed in the last 60 minute segment. WRONG. Mahler's Symphony No. 1 is a 60 minute piece. people i sat there, in the second row and watched an entire orchestra play music for 1 firggin hour. no commercials.

it.was.amazing.

OK, enough jibber jabbering. without further ado ....

The Rach 3 by 백혜선 and the Russian National Orchestra
(i ♥ youtube)

NOTE: if you watch nothing please at least spend 8 minutes on the first video of the Finale Alla Breve. towards the very end is my favorite part but you cannot experience its richness and sadness without listening to the part that leads up to it. ^^ and then, once you've seen all of the first video of Finale Alla Breve, you've got to see the second one where she kicks the piano's ass. no kidding. this woman is burning calories, let me assure you of that.

Allegro Ma Non Tanto
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qJO6gU_xM7Q - 8 mins

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_i76_lJq9HI - 9 mins


Intermezzo Adagio
[not yet posted :-( but this is an 11 and a half minute movement]

Finale Alla Breve
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l9esulkAKjk - 8 mins

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8QRuLZ7bcGM - 5 mins


*it's so hard to talk about classical music. none of the words are short and easy. there are like 22.3 words to describe one event. it's nothing like being able to say, "tonight, live at Wolftrap, Pink" which everyone can get so easily. with classical music you have the original composer, the bizarro nameless names like "No. 1", "No. 2", "No. 3", etc. which the composer's called their pieces, which by the way are broken down into 3 movements, which themselves have their own names, then you have the names of the performers performing the composer's piece and then there's the guy that conducts the whole thing (and don't forget about mentioning his credentials and where he's from) and if there's a concerto piece (music written for an orchestra and a solo instrument, for example a piano concerto or a violin concerto) then there's the name of the concerto soloist and his/her credentials, and then there's the name of the place where it's all said and done, and then there's the name of that specific musical event. whew. a dissertation is needed just to tell people what the hell you spent your money on! ... but so well worth it!