Yundi! …and the San Francisco Symphony conducted by Herbert Blomstedt: Tchaikovskian Antics and Solid Sibelius, by Steven Kruger


Li_yundi_01-2
Yundi, Pianist

The San Francisco Symphony
Davies Hall, San Francisco
Herbert Blomstedt, Conducting
Yundi, Piano
Saturday, April 2, 2011

Tchaikovsky - Piano Concerto No. 1 in B-flat minor, Opus 23 (1875)
Sibelius - Symphony No. 2 in D major, Opus 43 (1902)

Benchmarks for success may sometimes change. But vanity itself never changes. Indeed, tact appears to be the ancient art invented to deal with it. And in the concert world, as elsewhere, self-satisfaction frequently begins with a name. These days, sometimes just one.

More than a century ago Sir Edward Elgar, then just and justly becoming famous, expressed modest hope that a letter addressed to "Edward Elgar - England" might one day reach him. He lived eventually to experience this level of renown, but without seeking it. In more recent times, a publicity-conscious world could identify "Lenny" by first name alone, though Bernstein ultimately came to find indignity in his nickname. So within the changing parameters of fame, one wonders what Sir Edward would have thought of "Lindsay" and "Britney" and "Yanni," and of the recent PR truncation of Yundi Li to "Yundi"? And how harshly should we assess the notoriety of a young pianist apparently more interested in being Tweet-memorable than musicianly?

Read the full review on the Berkshire Review, an International journal for the Arts!

Michael Miller