Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Pianist Corner Should performers smile when they come on stage?

Not many seem to do this, but I have seen it immediately win over the audience(or maybe it was just me?). The few I can think offhand that do this are Mei Ting Sun, Jose Ramos Santana, Horowitz, and LL. Most pianists are relatively unsmiling when they first come on stage.

What do you think?

I wouldn't say they "should." It's good if it fits the personality of the performer, but if it doesn't, IMO it's worse than nothing (as if anything else uncomfortable or unnatural for the person). I think some kind of 'engagement' with the audience is good, whether smiling or something else, but I'd say the only bad thing is a demeanor of complete detachment. Anything else is fine.

The only major performer I've ever seen who was a negative in this respect was Lazar Berman, and even he wasn't that bad. He would just come out and take one quick bow, perfunctorily and expressionlessly; likewise on the 'curtain calls.' I found it more amusing that anything else. I figured it just meant that he didn't care for that part of what he had to do.

I would prefer the performer to smile, but that's just me. I like to smile coming on stage.

In general, I feel that pianists do not deliberately cultivate a stage demeanor. What I usually see in recitals, from amateur to high end professionals, seems to be a kind of stage demeanor by default--doing what comes naturally--even if it appears ugly and unflattering to the audience.

To smile or not? I can't answer that for you. It depends on the venue, the sense of occasion, the music to be played, place in the program, and many other considerations--as well as your innate personality. Having said that, I think it's a very important beginning question for anyone whose business is going to involve being on stage.

Tomasino

"... ugly, unflattering and rude..."? Really?

Regards,

In that case, they shouldn't even bother to play in front of an audience. Seriously.

Back in the days, I always smiled when walking out on stage - and I was sincere.

And on the rare occasions when I played extremely well I treated the audience and myself to a big GRIN.

I have a relatively radical take:

They should smile. They should talk to the audience. They should introduce the pieces they're going to play, talk about them a little bit. The evening should be more than bow-play-bow-walk_offstage-return-repeat. I would like to see the classical world take a note from the small-stage indie pop world and relax some of the ritual formalities of the experience.

Depends on the condition of their teeth.

I think you are right. I took a performance anxiety class and we were told we should smile before (and hopefully after) we play to engage the audience and because it makes you, the pianist, feel more positive about your performance.

It has worked pretty well for me but I've had one summer instructor, (Bruce, I'm talking about Anna), who is an exceptionally gifted pianist but is terrified of performing. She smiles before she plays because she was taught to do that, but on her it looks more like a forced grimace. So maybe smiling isn't for everyone.

I like it when they smile. I don't know if anyone has a nicer smile or stage demeanor than Horowitz did, from the youtube videos I have seen of him.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6YCSeeMN4I&feature=fvwrel

I've always done that, and over the years, I've seen that more and more pianists seem to. I don't know if I would have felt free to start doing it when I did if I were at a 'more serious' level; I think being "just an amateur" made me freer to do whatever.

The fact that this is even a question speaks volumes about the State of Classical Music.

Yes, if they are Liberace. No, if they are Gilels or Richter.

Yes, it's perfectly easy for me to suggest it as an armchair amateur; a much scarier thing to do as an aspiring concert artist. Still, I would have thought that there is so much idiosyncrasy and against-the-grain genius among the truly talented, that some great pianists would have found this kind of informal dynamic to be an important part of sharing their artistry.

-J

LOL

Pianists should be true to themselves and not put on an artificial smile - certainly not before launching into some gloom-laden work (like Prokofiev's Sonata No.8).

Some pianists play like their stage manner - Michelangeli walks on like a God (or at least an Italian aristocrat), regarding the audience as a mere annoyance to be put up with when he'd rather just play for himself. And his playing is of course glacial perfection.

Others show a great disparity between their platform manner and the way they play: Mikhail Pletnev walks on stage slowly and shyly, almost as if he was embarrassed to be performing, but then does the most outrageous stuff (like playing the start of Mussorgsky's Pictures with one index finger, as if he'd only just learnt to play piano; or playing Balakirev's Islamey as his 3rd encore)....

HAH! Totally true.

i like a smile ... why not.

I also love how Argerich.. strides out, plops down at the piano and immediately starts playing.. i think that is the most charming and delightful in all piano-dom. she doesn't smile unless she just happens to be smiling.. no artifice.

I think it's best to be natural but that's not always what's popular.

rada

far better is when they cry on stage then smile. It adds some drama to their expressiveness. Smiling is risky, maybe they laugh at audience? who knows...