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A very harsh reading of the Scriabin, IMO.

I agree, but a lot of people like Scriabin this way. I actually got banned from playing Scriabin in college. Not harsh enough.

Can we tell the difference between Belyavskiy on the New York Steinway and now Yang on the Hamburg? Belyavskiy was definitely getting a bell-like tone in the Eroica variations. What is due to the player's own touch vs. the piano technology seems like an open question.

Very convincing Liszt sonata from Yang thus far.

The Liszt has some drama, but there are too many small memory lapses at critical moments for it to be enjoyable, not to mention that the tone quality here is even harsher than the Scriabin.

No idea, but I'm hearing a few clicks (or really quiet thumps?) at the beginning of Sunwoo's Schubert. I wonder if it's the pedal(s)? It sounds like something coming from the piano rather than from my computer.

The last two sounded like something from the microphone(s) onstage.

But the two after that came from the piano, or the bench....ghost in the piano?

Hearing it more and more. I hope he can't hear it, it would drive him nuts.

It's like there's an extra mike in a place where it's not supposed to be, transmitting sound. I can also hear breathing.

So far Sunwoo's Schubert is strangely uncompelling, which surprises me.

But things are much better in the third movement.

I'm starting to wonder if this is a case of a pianist loving music which isn't their strong suit as a performer?

Fourteenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition

Program:
GRUNFEL Soiree de Vienne, concert paraphrase on Strauss' waltzes, op. 56
BEETHOVEN Sonata No. 13 in E-flat Major, op. 27, no. 1 ("Quasi una fantasia")
SCHUBERT Fantasy in C Major, D. 760, op. 15 "Der Wanderer"

I'm generally enjoying his Schubert, think it's finely detailed, but he uses just a bit too much rubato for my taste. Those micro pauses in the last movement disrupt the flow for me.

La Valse is so beautiful and virtuosic I wonder why more competitors don't program it. Maybe not that many people can play it convincingly.

Then there's also the issue of Ravel leaving us with components of a great piece and then expecting us to sort through and find a way to make a satisfying whole.

Delectable, gorgeous La Valse from Sunwoo!

Wow. That's another rendition (the Ravel Valse) that's as good or better than any I've heard. The level at this competition is unreal.

He also has a great stage presence and has given a hug to the backstage Mom after each round.

My connection has been on the fritz but I caught the ending of he Ravel. It's one of the most effective I've ever heard.

I loved Sunwoo's La Valse!

Every time I hear the first few notes of the Shostakovich opening motif, I think, "We wish you a merry Christmas"

Edited to add: I suppose that was in the fugue... so I guess I should say the "subject." That is, if it was the fugue... I wasn't paying all that great attention. In general am not a fan of pieces that sound like that so I tend to only half-listen.

I loved La Valse.

Han Chen looks like Steven Lin's twin. (Lin played 4 years ago.)