This haunting melody has been in my ears now for weeks, whether I am walking or working. It won't go away, and I can't get enough of it or of this beautiful Anna Federova performing the ballade. Music truly is the voice of God. Don't you just love the sound of that three hundred thousand-dollar Shigeru Kawai piano? And Anna is so lovely and plays the ballade with such feeling, it gave me goose bumps.
Perfect clarity. Compelling phrasing. Her interpretation is so logical and satisfying. She is a musical note of the ballade. This the very best interpretation l have ever heard. And she is physically beautiful...
She always manages to find colours, textures and intentions that every other pianist misses. Other pianists play - she listens. And in doing so she hears the true heart of the music, and she inhabits it. In Chopin she also understands, as many pianists do not, that the music isn't all about pretty lyricism - it has "big bones". It needs an epic sound at times (in addition to the obvious requirement for delicacy) and above all it needs a very strong sense of direction. This is why Fedorova is so outstanding - she is not playing notes, she is going somewhere all the time. The architecture of the piece is present in everything she does.
This time she is only around 20, I believe. You might be right in your big words, I dont know. I like your words about how she finds the architecture of this piece, but I dont think this is unique for her. She is still searching. However, I also love her interpretation very much.
@@staffanolofsson8201 Even at 20 she was easily the finest pianist of her generation - because she is first and foremost a musician. Unlike her rivals she is not interested in "pianisme". She wants to find where the music is going. There is a coiled energy to every phrase, creating the propulsion to the next idea. She also understands, what so few pianists appreciate, that Chopin is not "pretty" - he is epic and muscular and heroic on a huge scale. Only pianists who understand this can truly make this music come alive.
@@paradis3r3gain3d I just discovered her recently on youtube. I studied piano years ago. All I can she in a word is "magnificent." Her interpretations of Chopin and Rachmaninoff concertos are unique and her technique flawless. So impressed with this outstanding pianist.
And so we meet again, Simon, after one year. During this time I have grown up a little bit. From 74 to 75. Now I think I fully understand why this interpretation is so wonderful. Anna Fedorovas parents are both pianists, in Kiev, Ukraina, so she for sure has Chopin in her blood. I think that her interpretration of this Ballade in F minor by now also is in my blood. Best wishes!
Beautiful, wonderful, magnificent -- BRAVISSIMA!!! Anna's exceptional musicianship deeply touches my emotional core. Her astonishing introspection, insight, and understanding of Chopin's music are breathtaking! What an absolutely captivating artist she is!
Your description of Anna's Chopin is one I used to reserve for Horowitz alone. So pleased there is now another to make that tradition her own and bring it forward.
I’ve heard so many but AnnaF really plays it differently. From the very first measures the music breathes. And it’s telling a story about a mother’s love for her two sons. I’m in the Philippines so the story is about JoseRizal’s Sisa who has gone insane when one of her sons did not come home, not knowing her youngest was shot by one of the CivilGuards. To me, this is Chopin’s Kundiman.
Как опустилась наша культура народа,ни одного коментария на русском язике. Анна ви відкрили для мене нові почуття,які прибували в музиці. Яка філігранна техніка,які ємоції!!.....
"First stage" and then "Second stage" in this competition 2010, this is how it is when it is a competition. For me it is clear that Anna can go the first, the second, the third, the forth, the fifth stage, and so on, WITHOUT ANY COMPETITION, it is all about her playing. And with her playing nothing is wrong.
Surely she knows her mistakes, they don't have to be pointed out. OH what more could ask for than to be talented and beautiful. Oh MY! (and young) HJH www.portwhitmantimes.com
I am no piano expert but this performance sounds way more pleasing to my ears than the contest's winner Yulianna's version which in my opinion lacks in dynamics. The crowd appears to think the same. Why did the jury eliminate Anna, I hope it is not for that small mistake at 10:48 ?
There were quite a few small mistakes throughout and maybe that all added up to her elimination. I agree with you that this version even with mistakes is more pleasing to the ear than Yulianna’s rather robotic performances.
A competition is won almost solely on the absence of errors: the piece must be played *exactly* as the composer wrote it. Interpretation is allowed only to the extent accepted by the judges. This is probably best for younger pianists but for those close to becoming regular concert performers an evaluation that also includes interpretation seems appropriate.
The test of a great performance of Chopin is not "this is how I expected it to sound" but rather "this is how I never imagined it could sound". Most pianists slavishly deliver the former, and inevitably win the prizes. Fedorova was never going to be content with that. She is never less than genuinely astonishing ... in the best possible way.
I agree and I have a suggestion. I love Chopins preludes, have listened to quite a lot versions, Trifonov, Wang and so on. The best I find are the ones by Yeol-Eum Son. How do you like them? Go to 38:10 in this ua-cam.com/video/o_lokD9TIPU/v-deo.html It should be interesting to hear what you think about it.
@@staffanolofsson8201 The Preludes are really hard to make work (so much is compressed into so little), but I confess I don't like this performance at all. So many pianists completely miss that Chopin is "heroic" and they aim instead for affected "prettiness". The problem is that the consensus is that Chopin is "delicate" and "refined" and "feminine" and most players make huge efforts to underline those qualities - and it kills the the music, which has "big bones" and a muscular declarative quality, even in the apparently gentlest pieces like the Nocturnes. The way she plays the first prelude is an indicator here, and the third is even more problematic for me. The trick with Chopin is not to "play the piano", it's to play the music. But first you have to understand it.
@@paradis3r3gain3d Thank you for quick answer, yes the "big bones" you have spoken of earlier. I can respect your opinions but I am not sure that they will make me think different, and I am not sure enough what you really mean. Anna has big bones but others have not? Is the feminin side of Chopin wrong? Can one play him a little hesitating and still have big bones? But still, it is always nice to discuss such things, thank you for telling me how you think. But I dont think we now can come much further.
Perhaps you like this one, the most popular and often played of Chopins waltzes, I think it has somewhat of the things you are talking of, and then it is Anna Fedorova of course. Yes, I try to understand. ua-cam.com/video/RxUTxI4JSj0/v-deo.html
Liefst Anna Het verlangen naar jou groeit Door letters naar elkaar voor en Door elkaar daar waar de harten kruizen en dezielen blinken geluide KLingeke en het originele nooit verloren gaat en nooit zal doven En de eenvoud met elkaar zal komen in de geest van zijn in het ontwaken van onze spirt en mij Door jou Genezen daar is onze licht de liefde voorelkaar zijn wij samen Wouter joannes regina
Anna Fedorova yes Casatorio Civil Arthur Giorgio 28 Sept. 2019 Madrid España ------ Anna Fedorova good night wonderful Thank you Love you Kisses Berlinale Germany yes New York City .U.S.A. yes Columbia
An utterly MAGNIFICENT rendition of this great work -- one of the very best of the hundreds I've heard over many decades. This beautiful young woman plays with true ARTISTRY as well as an authoritative, splendidly developed technique. Her SOUND is abslutely superb. Just BEAUTIFUL in every regard.. Why was she nt a finalist? I enjoyed Anna'splayingMUCH more than did the expertise, glibness and well-coached "good taste" of some of the winners.
Yes, the best recording I know, Kissin less hard in furiosos than Lansky but less chopinesque in mild tristess overall it is a sad-and-beautifull-world Ballad not an etude. So thank you master Federova for this wonder to listen to - Chopin himself. Unbelievable how even before the dramatic "Geioge-Sand-Basta!", he declares this great heroic, humanistic light on the story line - Chopin's heroic shine (I guess I hear a pianoconcerto here) on her romance. Knowingly, dying soon...
Her soft tone has a feminine touch. She lacks a stoic outlook, but then, women don't usually ruminate pensively as men do. Her interpretation isn't as profound as a man's perspective., but then, she isn't a man, neither is it fiery as the way a man would do it. Technically, there is a lot of unsteady playing, and lots of imperfections.
When Anna looks up, I feel like she is chanelling the ghost of Chopin himself and Chopin is jealous! I think she has the best touch of any pianist in history. I've seen and heard almost all of them on UA-cam. She is by far my favorite!!!!
How does she play so many pieces without sheet music? I get practice and repetition but seriously, she plays numerous pieces without sheet music. Tens of thousands of notes and phases committed to memory? Truly unbelievable and amazing talent!
Imagine what her days and nights are like. So many practice hours that she probably can’t count them any longer. Rehearsals and repetition beyond imagination. But isn’t that what all great performers do? She’s at the top of her art form, like, say, Michelangelo, Flaubert, Tchaikovsky, Thomas Hardy, Babe Ruth, Dickenson, Cassius Clay, Bette Davis, and Sinatra were in their day. My examples, I’m sure you have more and better. It didn’t come naturally to any of them - they worked until it hurt. And they achieved their greatness through their aim for complete mastery of their fields. None of them were ever satisfied with their present performances, though. Self critical to a fault, reflective, always back at it trying to do even better. What more can we ask of our icons?
Playing music is like telling a story. You don't need to remember every single letter of every single word of every single sentence. The notes gather together in ideas, in pieces of the story. Remembering it is easier when you know a lot about music, because it makes more sense, and some patterns repeat. It's much more daunting if you're just trying to remember the notes individually. But even with that in mind that's still mindblowing how much repertoire world class pianists can know at the same time.
10 years ago! Hasn’t she grown in to a wonderful concert pianist? She is my favorite of all the incredible talent out there today.
And grown into a beautiful young woman
@@stefanufer608 She is definitely not young anymore, but still beautiful!
I think she has. Her Rachmaninoff piano concerto no. 2 is the most beautiful thing ever
A timeless interpretation
Anna plays with spirit and soul, she transports me to a paradise where absolutely everything is in harmony ♡♡♡♡
This haunting melody has been in my ears now for weeks, whether I am walking or working. It won't go away, and I can't get enough of it or of this beautiful Anna Federova performing the ballade. Music truly is the voice of God. Don't you just love the sound of that three hundred thousand-dollar Shigeru Kawai piano? And Anna is so lovely and plays the ballade with such feeling, it gave me goose bumps.
Truly the voice of God. Does that piano really cost that much? Incredible.
It’s stunning
‘Every good and perfect gift is from above’ but for ‘the voice of God’ you need a Bible.
Perfect clarity.
Compelling phrasing.
Her interpretation is so logical and satisfying.
She is a musical note of the ballade.
This the very best interpretation l have ever heard.
And she is physically beautiful...
Agree with everything you said...
She always manages to find colours, textures and intentions that every other pianist misses. Other pianists play - she listens. And in doing so she hears the true heart of the music, and she inhabits it. In Chopin she also understands, as many pianists do not, that the music isn't all about pretty lyricism - it has "big bones". It needs an epic sound at times (in addition to the obvious requirement for delicacy) and above all it needs a very strong sense of direction. This is why Fedorova is so outstanding - she is not playing notes, she is going somewhere all the time. The architecture of the piece is present in everything she does.
This time she is only around 20, I believe. You might be right in your big words, I dont know. I like your words about how she finds the architecture of this piece, but I dont think this is unique for her. She is still searching. However, I also love her interpretation very much.
@@staffanolofsson8201 Even at 20 she was easily the finest pianist of her generation - because she is first and foremost a musician. Unlike her rivals she is not interested in "pianisme". She wants to find where the music is going. There is a coiled energy to every phrase, creating the propulsion to the next idea. She also understands, what so few pianists appreciate, that Chopin is not "pretty" - he is epic and muscular and heroic on a huge scale. Only pianists who understand this can truly make this music come alive.
@@paradis3r3gain3d I just discovered her recently on youtube. I studied piano years ago. All I can she in a word is "magnificent." Her interpretations of Chopin and Rachmaninoff concertos are unique and her technique flawless. So impressed with this outstanding pianist.
Yeah, she gets the colors and textures. No other pianist since the piece was written has ever colored and textured like this. Abbey Simon? Bosh!
And so we meet again, Simon, after one year. During this time I have grown up a little bit. From 74 to 75. Now I think I fully understand why this interpretation is so wonderful. Anna Fedorovas parents are both pianists, in Kiev, Ukraina, so she for sure has Chopin in her blood. I think that her interpretration of this Ballade in F minor by now also is in my blood. Best wishes!
This is a most profound piece in all of the piano literature and she played it so artistically well with warmth and brilliance.
totally agreed
Anna Fedorova is simply a marvelous player...so much feeling along with flawless technique...
Twelve years since this performance and still it is quite wonderful.
This is something to come back to, over and over. Eleven years since this uptaking, still it is fresh like a rose.
It should have millions of views.
Incredible piece and performance! I fell in love at first sight...
Beautiful, wonderful, magnificent -- BRAVISSIMA!!! Anna's exceptional musicianship deeply touches my emotional core. Her astonishing introspection, insight, and understanding of Chopin's music are breathtaking! What an absolutely captivating artist she is!
Incredible. I especially love to here her play Rachmaninov Concerto # 2 and 3.
@@paulhickman2747 Yes on Anna'a Rachmaninov - unsurpassed and thrilling.
Your description of Anna's Chopin is one I used to reserve for Horowitz alone.
So pleased there is now another to make that tradition her own and bring it forward.
Just started listening to this wonderful artist. I have been missing a lot!
To really understand this composer then I accept the artiste to be so completely aligned to his nature of this composition.
Absolutely beautiful. ...and the music's great too.
Yyhhhhherheheyeyeeheyrhehehehehegehehheheheeh4ureueuueusyey
@@elizabethwilson9950 You took the words right out of my mouth.
Любимая баллада любимого композитора в исполнении любимой пианистки!
Beautiful! Thank you for sharing Anna! 🌹
She plays with great feeling, clear and authentic.
When I listen to this uptaking from 2010, wonderfully played, I just understand why her career has been so successful.
Me hace recordar al estilo de Claudio Arrau, más lento justo donde debe ser, y esto permite apreciar el sentimiento de cada fragmento de la melodía
I agree. Claudio Arrau is my favorite old-school pianist.
I’ve heard so many but AnnaF really plays it differently. From the very first measures the music breathes. And it’s telling a story about a mother’s love for her two sons. I’m in the Philippines so the story is about JoseRizal’s Sisa who has gone insane when one of her sons did not come home, not knowing her youngest was shot by one of the CivilGuards. To me, this is Chopin’s Kundiman.
Sweet, beautiful, talented, amazing Anna Fedorova!
Как опустилась наша культура народа,ни одного коментария на русском язике.
Анна ви відкрили для мене нові почуття,які прибували в музиці.
Яка філігранна техніка,які ємоції!!.....
Nic nie szkodzi Ale macie w Rosji Diament😊
She is so good ! Thanks you for the video.
...ela expressa a beleza usando o coração e as mãos! ...
Me gusta el Chopin de Anna Fedorova.
Siip
"First stage" and then "Second stage" in this competition 2010, this is how it is when it is a competition. For me it is clear that Anna can go the first, the second, the third, the forth, the fifth stage, and so on, WITHOUT ANY COMPETITION, it is all about her playing. And with her playing nothing is wrong.
Absolutely gorgeous music! Only someone who intensely feels the emotions of the music can play like that. Bravo Anna, my favorite pianist!
8:53 beautiful melody i have ever heard
Surely she knows her mistakes, they don't have to be pointed out. OH what more could ask for than to be talented and beautiful. Oh MY! (and young) HJH www.portwhitmantimes.com
That coda was truly spectacular!
Bravo ! 💐💐💐
Thank you.
2024 still here🎹🎹
FANTASTIC.***
Outstanding sense of interpretation...no words..
breathtaking performance
Again, possibly the finest performance I've ever heard of this piece - powerful, articulate, and amazing!
some parts too quick, less articulated
@@peterectasy2957 yes too fast.
anyone still watching this in 2022 ?
its 2024 babyyy
Stunning.
Thank you for playing on Shigeru Kawai !!!
5:27 i love this😍
beautiful melody :)
Simply Beautiful. what else to say?
Sublime
Really poetic interpretation ! Great piano talent... Bravo Anna !
Beautiful, wonderful, a great performance of chopin.
I am no piano expert but this performance sounds way more pleasing to my ears than the contest's winner Yulianna's version which in my opinion lacks in dynamics. The crowd appears to think the same. Why did the jury eliminate Anna, I hope it is not for that small mistake at 10:48 ?
There were quite a few small mistakes throughout and maybe that all added up to her elimination. I agree with you that this version even with mistakes is more pleasing to the ear than Yulianna’s rather robotic performances.
A competition is won almost solely on the absence of errors: the piece must be played *exactly* as the composer wrote it. Interpretation is allowed only to the extent accepted by the judges. This is probably best for younger pianists but for those close to becoming regular concert performers an evaluation that also includes interpretation seems appropriate.
The test of a great performance of Chopin is not "this is how I expected it to sound" but rather "this is how I never imagined it could sound". Most pianists slavishly deliver the former, and inevitably win the prizes. Fedorova was never going to be content with that. She is never less than genuinely astonishing ... in the best possible way.
I agree and I have a suggestion. I love Chopins preludes, have listened to quite a lot versions, Trifonov, Wang and so on. The best I find are the ones by Yeol-Eum Son. How do you like them? Go to 38:10 in this ua-cam.com/video/o_lokD9TIPU/v-deo.html
It should be interesting to hear what you think about it.
PS Im sorry, it seems to be some problem now with this video!
@@staffanolofsson8201 The Preludes are really hard to make work (so much is compressed into so little), but I confess I don't like this performance at all. So many pianists completely miss that Chopin is "heroic" and they aim instead for affected "prettiness". The problem is that the consensus is that Chopin is "delicate" and "refined" and "feminine" and most players make huge efforts to underline those qualities - and it kills the the music, which has "big bones" and a muscular declarative quality, even in the apparently gentlest pieces like the Nocturnes. The way she plays the first prelude is an indicator here, and the third is even more problematic for me. The trick with Chopin is not to "play the piano", it's to play the music. But first you have to understand it.
@@paradis3r3gain3d Thank you for quick answer, yes the "big bones" you have spoken of earlier. I can respect your opinions but I am not sure that they will make me think different, and I am not sure enough what you really mean. Anna has big bones but others have not? Is the feminin side of Chopin wrong? Can one play him a little hesitating and still have big bones? But still, it is always nice to discuss such things, thank you for telling me how you think. But I dont think we now can come much further.
Perhaps you like this one, the most popular and often played of Chopins waltzes, I think it has somewhat of the things you are talking of, and then it is Anna Fedorova of course. Yes, I try to understand.
ua-cam.com/video/RxUTxI4JSj0/v-deo.html
Bravooooooooo!!!!!@
Beautiful performance, only recording could be better
Kawaii sounded better than the Steinway in this performance of Chopin F minor ballad. Anna played it beautifully.
Liefst Anna
Het verlangen naar jou groeit Door letters naar elkaar voor en Door elkaar daar waar de harten kruizen en dezielen blinken geluide
KLingeke en het originele nooit verloren gaat en nooit zal doven
En de eenvoud met elkaar zal komen in de geest van zijn in het ontwaken van onze spirt en mij Door jou
Genezen daar is onze licht de liefde voorelkaar zijn wij samen
Wouter joannes regina
...gosto desta mulher! ...esta mulher é grande! ...
Anna Fedorova yes Casatorio Civil Arthur Giorgio 28 Sept. 2019 Madrid España ------ Anna Fedorova good night wonderful Thank you Love you Kisses Berlinale Germany yes New York City .U.S.A. yes Columbia
what a great performance! bravo!
An utterly MAGNIFICENT rendition of this great work -- one of the very best of the hundreds I've heard over many decades. This beautiful young woman plays with true ARTISTRY as well as an authoritative, splendidly developed technique. Her SOUND is abslutely superb. Just BEAUTIFUL in every regard.. Why was she nt a finalist? I enjoyed Anna'splayingMUCH more than did the expertise, glibness and well-coached "good taste" of some of the winners.
I agree with you. I think it's because she uses too much pedal, the judges don't like that
Yes, the best recording I know, Kissin less hard in furiosos than Lansky but less chopinesque in mild tristess overall it is a sad-and-beautifull-world Ballad not an etude. So thank you master Federova for this wonder to listen to - Chopin himself. Unbelievable how even before the dramatic "Geioge-Sand-Basta!", he declares this great heroic, humanistic light on the story line - Chopin's heroic shine (I guess I hear a pianoconcerto here) on her romance. Knowingly, dying soon...
l'olio di lorenzo
Anna is an outstanding Pianist!
Absolutely wonderful!
Ik hou van je prestatie
Her soft tone has a feminine touch. She lacks a stoic outlook, but then, women don't usually ruminate pensively as men do. Her interpretation isn't as profound as a man's perspective., but then, she isn't a man, neither is it fiery as the way a man would do it. Technically, there is a lot of unsteady playing, and lots of imperfections.
Absolutely gorgeous, and so is the music.
@@kplay3532 EVERYTHING.
Himmlische Anna Fedorova ,...super Belle !
Delicate and powerful and confident as it should be. This is amazing!
Didn't know bond girl is an excellent pianist.
Bravo.
Brava, for ladies, Bravo for men
BRAVO!!!
10:44 that left hand drop !
Perfekt.
It is a shame that the dynamic range compression they are using here completely distorts the dynamics of this music.
You mean about the judges? Like what happened with alexei sultanov
What?
What do you want? Everything?
а приятно слушать
No hay palabras para expresar esta musica
10:47 little error here
結構好き
激しめ寄り
十分上手いがガチトップよりは粗い印象
3:55 半音下の音入っているのが特徴的
終盤ミスタッチ目立つ
Without a doubt in my mind, Anna should have won 2010, or at least placed. It's incredible she only made it to round 2 ... unreal
Music is not a competition, and now we know how good she is. She plays this Ballade in F minor like a goddess.
Bravo!
EXCELLENT !
Are they required to wear the same clothes for every performance????
i don't think so, daniil trifonov changed outfit for his 3rd stage
the best and so gorgious
Wunderbar
When Anna looks up, I feel like she is chanelling the ghost of Chopin himself and Chopin is jealous! I think she has the best touch of any pianist in history. I've seen and heard almost all of them on UA-cam. She is by far my favorite!!!!
Exelente interpretación a mi gusto,tiempo exacto y se escucha muy bien el vídeo.felicitaciones exelente pianista!!!!
9:42 HOLY IVE NEVER HEARD SUCH EMOTION
So beautiful -thanks!
Holy.
8:35 so precious melodic passage
Just great!
Siempre he creído que la buena música está por encima de las palabras
She is so talented and so beautiful.
In the top 3 ever interpretation of this masterpiece of Chopin. Along with Zimmerman and Richter.
Bravo!!!
素敵なんだけど学生レベルの上位な感じがするんですよね➰。。。惜しいです。
Amazing! Absolute marvelous!!
Emocionante, nos transporta por recuerdos.-
Pura belleza la verdad
AMAFING! REALLY GREAT!
amazing!
best waifu uwu
Left me in tears
il tempo si velocizza nel corso della ballata
grazie per il complimento
Brava!
I suppose there's no chance of a late night coffee or walk along the bank of the river in the moonlight perhaps later together ....
How does she play so many pieces without sheet music? I get practice and repetition but seriously, she plays numerous pieces without sheet music. Tens of thousands of notes and phases committed to memory? Truly unbelievable and amazing talent!
Imagine what her days and nights are like. So many practice hours that she probably can’t count them any longer. Rehearsals and repetition beyond imagination. But isn’t that what all great performers do? She’s at the top of her art form, like, say, Michelangelo, Flaubert, Tchaikovsky, Thomas Hardy, Babe Ruth, Dickenson, Cassius Clay, Bette Davis, and Sinatra were in their day. My examples, I’m sure you have more and better. It didn’t come naturally to any of them - they worked until it hurt. And they achieved their greatness through their aim for complete mastery of their fields. None of them were ever satisfied with their present performances, though. Self critical to a fault, reflective, always back at it trying to do even better. What more can we ask of our icons?
Playing music is like telling a story. You don't need to remember every single letter of every single word of every single sentence. The notes gather together in ideas, in pieces of the story. Remembering it is easier when you know a lot about music, because it makes more sense, and some patterns repeat. It's much more daunting if you're just trying to remember the notes individually.
But even with that in mind that's still mindblowing how much repertoire world class pianists can know at the same time.