Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Pianist Corner Why Didn't Jose Feghali's Career Take Off After Cliburn?

They do pay that.

And, need we add, most people in such positions are able to do private teaching on the side, if they feel like it, and earn considerably more (if they feel like it).

Those are very handsome positions, way better than it appears you imagine.


I know that you didn't, but the juxtaposition made it look suggestive.

Well - assuming the individual is married, is the primary breadwinner and doesn't live in California , perhaps a small family and small house.

But seriously, my observation over the years has been that full professors and assistant professors are usually able to support a family and buy a house. On the other hand, a lowly college piano instructor (which I was for a period of time) barely makes a living wage.

First off, you have to be "a star." Not some dopey guy with big hair and coke bottle lenses. You have to have personality and be able to talk about something other than piano playing. You have to be presentable. It helps to have at least average good looks. You have to be dependable (limitations on the drugs...). You have to have the backing of a good manager or booking agency...ah, the list goes on.

Entertaining, but not relevant to the question here.

Yes, tenured faculty can make a living. Not a decent living, but a living. However, the vast majority of music faculty are all in the "visiting lecturer" category, like yourself. And those people don't get paid anything, as you said. Increasingly, tenured positions on music faculties at universities and colleges are going away, and have been for quite some time now.

Actually, those things have been increasingly relevant since the advent of the Internet, in particular how one looks. You'd better be handsome, look good naked, and present well on video if you want to launch a career these days. While Lisitsa is an amazing talent, it has greatly helped her career that's she's also a photogenically beautiful woman, looks great in whatever she wears, usually dresses well enough that a stylist must have helped her, and is perfectly comfortable on camera either talking or playing.

Greg, pardon my saying so, but you're missing one point after another. You are stubbornly not taking in what is being said about the pay of someone like Feghali, and you didn't realize that my last post wasn't about pianists in general but about Feghali.

Mark, you are absolutely right.

But will it hurt if one makes a general comment here?

Thanks.
But I'd say then start a different thread.

With the title that you gave this, things appear to be about Feghali. Especially when the post that you're replying to was about him.

P.S. Also maybe take another look at the posts about the salaries etc. Your posts are like those didn't happen.

Again, I guess it depends on what you consider to be a "decent" living. Seriously.

Mark,

I give you full permission to ignore anything I write that you don't consider on topic. I will not take the slightest offense, nor will anyone else I imagine.

Actually, with the exception of Olga Kern and Radu Lupu, NONE of the other Cliburn winners have had extreme success at the international level.

Cristina Oritz, Ralf Votapek, Jon Nakamtsu, Vladimir Viardo, Stanislav Ioudenitch, Simone Pedroni - are all names of partial/complete oblivion as far as superstardom is concerned, and they were all 1st prize winners.

Nakamatsu has done okay, comparatively. He's not playing with the NY Phil every weekend, but he still plays a lot, goes to a summer festivals, and has some good recordings.

Feghali is an incredibly nice person. I had a lesson with him at the Cliburn Institute and he was very helpful. His students have done some great things, too - lots of competition wins and orchestral appearances. As Kreisler said, it seems that he's happy teaching and performing when he wants to. I also feel that there's a time limit on heavy touring and concertizing. Nonstop jet lag takes its toll on you after a while.

...and my university job pays enough to own a house and raise a family.

It's interesting that Radu Lupu's career didn't really take off until he entered and won the Leeds - after his VC win.

However, Cristina Ortiz has had (and is still having) quite a good concert career in Europe, making several recordings for EMI and Decca (including all the Villa-Lobos concertos) and regularly playing in the major European cities, including London.

There are many concert pianists who have a good career only on one side of the pond.....

Will, it certainly helps that Lupu is one of the most interesting pianists of the last 50 years.

And of course, there is just plain more work for pianists in Europe than in the US.

.. are you sure?

Radu Lupu is smart. I have a couple of his really good recordings. But he looks like Dracula (see previous post)...

Hardly

Besides, he's from Romania, not Transylvania.

Check out the students (graduates), are they the same level as those of from big conservatories.