Last night (June 7 2017) in Hyogo prefecture (Japan), Nobuyuku Tsujii was on his 10th performance of the Ultimate Concerto Tour with violinist Mone Hattori. The Hyogo prefecture is culturally rich. The concert was sold out and many comments immediately came up after the performance.
There were many tweets that came up after the concert, see => 2017 Ultimate Concerto Tour News, Photos & Comments - PART 2
But a blog post was made before the night was over, by a male acupuncturist (according to his profile) =>http://ameblo.jp/harry-acu/entry-12281765067.html (blog of a male acupuncturist ). It goes beyond praises for the performers.
The Kansai region dialect is said to be difficult even for the Japanese, so my translation is suspect. But if I understand him correctly, I like what he wrote about Nobu's Chopin -- he hits it on the head (assuming that my interpretation of what he wrote is correct). Below I show the part that he wrote about Nobu, with my English translation
...
一方の、辻井伸行さん。
ある意味服部さんと対照的。
職人的。
One of them, Mr. Nobuyuki Tsujii.
In a way contrasts with Ms. Hattori.
An artisan.
あんな無駄のない、いい意味で「ショパンらしさ」のまったくないショパンのピアノ協奏曲第1番は初めて聴きました。
ああいうショパンがあってもいいなと思いました。
どういうことかというと・・・
Such leanness [no waste] in a nice sense. It was the first time that I listened to Chopin's Piano Concerto No. 1 that is not "Chopin-like" . A nice kind of Chopin. What do I mean? ...
いわゆるショパン弾きは楽譜にいろいろ足すんです。
それはペダリングだったりテンポ・ルバートだったりリテヌート(急激にテンポを落とすこと)だったり、表情付けだったりいろんなところに表れるのですが、辻井さんのピアノにはそういうところがまったくない。
The so-called Chopin playing adds a lot to the music score.
It is pedaling, rubato [changing the tempo -- slow and fast at places], ritenuto (rapidly lowering the tempo), expressing in various places; but Mr. Tsujii's piano has nothing like that at all.
楽譜に忠実に弾いている。
でも、ただ正確であるというのとも違う。
忠実であることと正確であることとの違いーー非常に近いのだけれど、違う。
He is faithful to the score. But it is not just being accurate.
There is a difference between being faithful and accurate - It is very close, but different.
そういうことを感じさせる新鮮なショパンでした。
2人に共通するのは丁寧さと集中力。
あとお茶目なところ。
It was a fresh Chopin that made me feel like that.
What is common to both of them [the two performers] is politeness and concentration.
Also some playfulness.
そういうところは、わたしも見習わないといけませんね。
素晴らしいコンサートでした。
ありがとうございました。
That, cannot be achieved without practice.
It was a wonderful concert.
Thank you very much.
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Above: One of the photos accompanying the blog post
There were many tweets that came up after the concert, see => 2017 Ultimate Concerto Tour News, Photos & Comments - PART 2
But a blog post was made before the night was over, by a male acupuncturist (according to his profile) =>http://ameblo.jp/harry-acu/entry-12281765067.html (blog of a male acupuncturist ). It goes beyond praises for the performers.
The Kansai region dialect is said to be difficult even for the Japanese, so my translation is suspect. But if I understand him correctly, I like what he wrote about Nobu's Chopin -- he hits it on the head (assuming that my interpretation of what he wrote is correct). Below I show the part that he wrote about Nobu, with my English translation
辻井伸行×服部百音 究極の協奏曲コンサート@兵庫県立芸術文化センター すばらしかった!
Nobuyuki Tsujii × Mone Hattori Ultimate Concerto Concert @ Hyogo Prefectural Art and Culture Center -- Wonderful!...
一方の、辻井伸行さん。
ある意味服部さんと対照的。
職人的。
One of them, Mr. Nobuyuki Tsujii.
In a way contrasts with Ms. Hattori.
An artisan.
あんな無駄のない、いい意味で「ショパンらしさ」のまったくないショパンのピアノ協奏曲第1番は初めて聴きました。
ああいうショパンがあってもいいなと思いました。
どういうことかというと・・・
Such leanness [no waste] in a nice sense. It was the first time that I listened to Chopin's Piano Concerto No. 1 that is not "Chopin-like" . A nice kind of Chopin. What do I mean? ...
いわゆるショパン弾きは楽譜にいろいろ足すんです。
それはペダリングだったりテンポ・ルバートだったりリテヌート(急激にテンポを落とすこと)だったり、表情付けだったりいろんなところに表れるのですが、辻井さんのピアノにはそういうところがまったくない。
The so-called Chopin playing adds a lot to the music score.
It is pedaling, rubato [changing the tempo -- slow and fast at places], ritenuto (rapidly lowering the tempo), expressing in various places; but Mr. Tsujii's piano has nothing like that at all.
楽譜に忠実に弾いている。
でも、ただ正確であるというのとも違う。
忠実であることと正確であることとの違いーー非常に近いのだけれど、違う。
He is faithful to the score. But it is not just being accurate.
There is a difference between being faithful and accurate - It is very close, but different.
そういうことを感じさせる新鮮なショパンでした。
2人に共通するのは丁寧さと集中力。
あとお茶目なところ。
It was a fresh Chopin that made me feel like that.
What is common to both of them [the two performers] is politeness and concentration.
Also some playfulness.
そういうところは、わたしも見習わないといけませんね。
素晴らしいコンサートでした。
ありがとうございました。
That, cannot be achieved without practice.
It was a wonderful concert.
Thank you very much.

Above: One of the photos accompanying the blog post