It is another quiet day, so I was going over Nobu's videos on YouTube, to choose some to share with his fans.
This video, of Nobu playing Liszt's "The Fountains of the Villa d'Este," is from his France debut recital at the Louvre, April 17, 2014, which was streamed on Medici TV.
Reading between the lines, I suspect Mr. Martin may consider himself one of the "tens of thousands of other gifted, supremely trained musicians" who are more deserving of success. Personally, I heard Nobu play this piece in Germany in 2014, and I strongly disagree with Mr. Martin, although I am aware that my objectivity is suspect when it comes to matters involving Nobu.
Even so, in my years of following Nobu's career, I have noted that what Mr. Martin wrote echoes with some other negative comments on Nobu's playing that I have come across occasionally. Among the naysayers, the claim that Nobu's playing lacks shading and colors is a common thread. From Japan, some kura-otas (クラヲタclassical music aficionado) have labeled Nobu's performances as 単調なmonotonous. This is diametrically opposed to the far more typical postings in which his tonal beauty and dynamics are touted, such as these ones that came up on his recent Japan Tour with the Iceland Symphony Orchestra:
https://twitter.com/nana26139176/status/1058880763649617920
It used to bother me a great deal when I read the odd comments about Nobu's lack of tonal nuances and shading. But, just as visual beauty is in the eye of the beholder, so is tonal beauty in the ear of the listener. Simply put, there are people who prefer more mannerisms in playing -- more dramatic rubato and tonal variations. I suspect these are people who, like Mr. Marlin, find Nobu lacking in tonal nuances and shading.
My own preference is perfectly expressed in a comment by Japanese music writer 道下京子 Kyoko Michishige that appears in the liner notes of the just -released "Nobuyuki Tsujii Chopin 2 with Ashkenazy & 3 nocturnes" CD
Moreover, in my humble opinion, anyone who has not heard Nobu live should reserve judgment. There is no substitute for being in the concert hall -- and this applies not only to Nobu, but any pianist. Just as the visual is two-dimensional on video no matter how superior the quality of the recording and the re-playing equipment, so is the audio. Mr. Martin may just come to a different conclusion about Nobu's playing if he were seated in a grand concert hall, hearing the tone in full vivid reverberation and seeing Nobu's nimble fingers in action.
Then again, Nobu is only 30 years old. If he is already perfect, it would not be any fun to follow his development, would it?
This video, of Nobu playing Liszt's "The Fountains of the Villa d'Este," is from his France debut recital at the Louvre, April 17, 2014, which was streamed on Medici TV.
Posted in 2014, this video has had 33K views and 250 likes. And -- quite remarkable on YouTube -- just 3 thumbs-down. [Every video on YouTube has its dissenters.] The accompanying viewers comments are, as usual, very positive. But one note, from a "John Martin," caught my eye. Posted 2 years ago, the comment says:
His tone sounds a little less nuanced and I'd like to honestly hear from other trained pianists about his pedaling .He sounds terribly musical and has large repertoire anyone who makes it to Chopin competition in Warsaw is obviously better than tens of thousands of other gifted, supremely trained musicians. He just sounds much less shaded in dynamics and tonal palette which is strange for a blind pianist who would have exceptional hearing and sensitivity to sound and tonal resource ...
Reading between the lines, I suspect Mr. Martin may consider himself one of the "tens of thousands of other gifted, supremely trained musicians" who are more deserving of success. Personally, I heard Nobu play this piece in Germany in 2014, and I strongly disagree with Mr. Martin, although I am aware that my objectivity is suspect when it comes to matters involving Nobu.
Even so, in my years of following Nobu's career, I have noted that what Mr. Martin wrote echoes with some other negative comments on Nobu's playing that I have come across occasionally. Among the naysayers, the claim that Nobu's playing lacks shading and colors is a common thread. From Japan, some kura-otas (クラヲタclassical music aficionado) have labeled Nobu's performances as 単調なmonotonous. This is diametrically opposed to the far more typical postings in which his tonal beauty and dynamics are touted, such as these ones that came up on his recent Japan Tour with the Iceland Symphony Orchestra:
https://twitter.com/nana26139176/status/1058880763649617920
辻井伸行君のラフマニノフ第2🎹
優雅で力強くキラキラとした音色に胸が高鳴りました。ら白いシャツが見えて微笑ましかっ...
Nobuyuki Tsujii's Rach 2 🎹 My heart throbbed in the elegant, powerful and sparkling tone...
優雅で力強くキラキラとした音色に胸が高鳴りました。ら白いシャツが見えて微笑ましかっ...
Nobuyuki Tsujii's Rach 2 🎹 My heart throbbed in the elegant, powerful and sparkling tone...
https://twitter.com/hmhmhw/status/1063389572283789312
Also, from a German review of Nobu's performance with Orchestre Philharmonique de Strasbourg in Feb 2017辻井伸行さんのピアノ、数年ぶりに生で聴いたのだけれど 透き通って美しいまま、暗さと深さがずうっと増していた。 音の響きで本当の苦しみを表現することは容易ではないと思う。特に彼のような純度の高い表現をする人は。 １つの道筋を見せて貰ったような気がした。Nobuyuki Tsujii 's piano, I listened to it for the first time in a few years, but it was clear and beautiful, the shading and depth have grown. I think that it is not easy to express real suffering with the tone of sound. Especially for people who express high purity like him. I felt like I was shown one way to achieve that.
Mit Grüßen aus dem kühlen Norden empfahl sich der junge Pianist Nobu Tsujii mit dem „Klavierkonzert“ von Edvard Grieg. Bereits während der ersten Takte des Allegro moderato faszinierte der Japaner Nobu, eigentlich Nobuyuki Tsujii mit einer enormen Bandbreite an Farben. Von samtigen Mezza-Voce-Klängen bis hin zu kristallin klirrenden Figurationen im Diskant reicht sein Spektrum mit einer Vielzahl an Zwischentönen. So produzierte der Tastenkünstler klanglich nuancierte Konsonanzen von erlesener Schönheit. Während der Wiederholung des Hauptthemas zur Flöten und Klarinetten-Triole hauchte seine prädominant variierte Kadenz in einem phänomenal kontrollierten Pianissimo-Triller aus.
Bedenkt man, dass der Künstler von Geburt an blind erhält seine Leistung ganz besondere hohe bedeutungsvolle Anerkennung.
With greetings from the cool Nordic, the young pianist Nobu Tsujii recommended the "Piano Concerto" by Edvard Grieg. Already during the first bars of the Allegro moderato the Japanese Nobu, actually Nobuyuki Tsujii, fascinated with an enormous range of colors. From velvety Mezza-Voce sounds to crystallized figurations in the treble, his spectrum spans a variety of intermediate notes. Thus the keyboard artist produced tonally nuanced consonances of exquisite beauty. During the repetition of the main theme of the triole (three-instrument interplay) with flute and the clarinet, his tremendously varied cadenza breathed out in a phenomenally controlled pianissimo trill.
Bedenkt man, dass der Künstler von Geburt an blind erhält seine Leistung ganz besondere hohe bedeutungsvolle Anerkennung.
With greetings from the cool Nordic, the young pianist Nobu Tsujii recommended the "Piano Concerto" by Edvard Grieg. Already during the first bars of the Allegro moderato the Japanese Nobu, actually Nobuyuki Tsujii, fascinated with an enormous range of colors. From velvety Mezza-Voce sounds to crystallized figurations in the treble, his spectrum spans a variety of intermediate notes. Thus the keyboard artist produced tonally nuanced consonances of exquisite beauty. During the repetition of the main theme of the triole (three-instrument interplay) with flute and the clarinet, his tremendously varied cadenza breathed out in a phenomenally controlled pianissimo trill.
It used to bother me a great deal when I read the odd comments about Nobu's lack of tonal nuances and shading. But, just as visual beauty is in the eye of the beholder, so is tonal beauty in the ear of the listener. Simply put, there are people who prefer more mannerisms in playing -- more dramatic rubato and tonal variations. I suspect these are people who, like Mr. Marlin, find Nobu lacking in tonal nuances and shading.
My own preference is perfectly expressed in a comment by Japanese music writer 道下京子 Kyoko Michishige that appears in the liner notes of the just -released "Nobuyuki Tsujii Chopin 2 with Ashkenazy & 3 nocturnes" CD
『"辻井伸行のノクターン"音楽に対する辻井の素直な心、穏やかな表情で音の言葉を語ってゆく。そこには、感情を煽るような押し付けがましい表現はない。辻井らしい優しさが感じられ聴く者の心に寄り添うような音楽だ。淡い詩情を隅々まで汲み尽くした演奏である』
"Nobuuki Tsujii's music comes straight from his heart, a gentle communication in sound. There are no intrusive expressions to stir up emotion. A performance of poetry drawn in pastel to every corner."
Indeed, and that is just the way I like it. And it is exactly why I MUCH prefer Nobu's performances over those of arm-flailing, heaven-gazing players whose music oozes emotion and (to me) pretension. "Nobuuki Tsujii's music comes straight from his heart, a gentle communication in sound. There are no intrusive expressions to stir up emotion. A performance of poetry drawn in pastel to every corner."
Moreover, in my humble opinion, anyone who has not heard Nobu live should reserve judgment. There is no substitute for being in the concert hall -- and this applies not only to Nobu, but any pianist. Just as the visual is two-dimensional on video no matter how superior the quality of the recording and the re-playing equipment, so is the audio. Mr. Martin may just come to a different conclusion about Nobu's playing if he were seated in a grand concert hall, hearing the tone in full vivid reverberation and seeing Nobu's nimble fingers in action.
Then again, Nobu is only 30 years old. If he is already perfect, it would not be any fun to follow his development, would it?