Yundi Li starts comeback in Vienna
NewsThe Chopin Competition winner resumes his career this Sunday in Vienna after prolonged sanctions by the Chinese authorities.
Yundi has a 3-CD Mozart sonata deal with Warner but is still a long way from getting back to the highway.
Sunday, April 21 at 7:30 pm in the Musikverein (Great Hall) in Vienna.
But the Musikverein is empty:
https://tickets.musikverein.at/SelectSeats?ret=2&e=36012&bts=hp
Hardly empty! If you zoom out you can see that a good 40% + of the seats are sold, most in the expensive sections. But for an artist who was once in major demand almost everywhere, not a good omen for what has been billed as his “come back” Mozart recital tour. This actually started near the end of last year with a string of recitals in China and Australia which I seem to recall from an earlier SD thread was organised basically by himself and friends.
The Vienna recital is bang in the middle of a 20-recital European tour. I do not know who is managing the tour but I’d have thought that if the Musikverein had a free day closer to the end of the tour this would have been more ideal. At least it would have given more time for reviews and word of mouth to build.
Hopefully all is now going well for him for his performance standard had been dropping in the years prior to his humiliation in Beijing and being dropped by the official Chinese music and arts organisations. Word from Australia was mixed although many were delighted to see him back on a concert platform.
When critics reported his performance as great, while you consider his performance standard “dropping”…
Critics report “great”? Not this from the Korea Times in 2015 –
“Friday night’s performance by Yundi Li, the youngest pianist to win the International Frederic Chopin Piano Competition at the age of 18, was nothing short of disastrous.
“The Chinese pianist staged an appalling rendition of Chopin’s Piano Concerto No. 1 with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra (SSO) at the Seoul Arts Center, turning a deaf ear to the orchestra and a blind eye to the maestro’s movements.”
You’d have thought his concerto would be hard wired into Yundi Li’s brain by then! He made so many errors he even had to stop mid-movement whereupon the orchestra and conductor also had to stop for 10 seconds! Just a few hours later he was posting selfies of himself on his social media account wearing a Halloween costume!
As for professionalism, he was a juror for the 2015 Chopin Competition. But he walked out! He felt is was perfectly acceptable to leave mid-competition and fly to Shanghai to attend the wedding of Chinese actress and model Angelababy. He was even photographed dancing at the wedding reception. He later flew back to Poland to resume his jury duties!
You are clearly bringing up rumours (popular on Chinese social media) that have been clarified (there’s even videos).
First of all, for the Korean incident, clearly professional critics gave a positive review, “The famed Chinese pianist’s slip up steals the show, but his Chopin is still stellar”, and rated it 3 out of 5. A follow-up report by classical magazine Limelight states that many Korea medias made rumours accusing Yundi (e.g. his altitude), which exaggerates the whole situation. It is known that Yundi successfully performed the piece again after the memory lapse, and critics gave high comment on it.
As for the jury of Chopin International Competition, Yundi applied for a 3 day leave, which was approved by the committee, to attend his friend’s wedding as groomsman . You pointed out it as if he left without approval. And if the committee said its ok to leave, it’s totally fine. Other judges applied for leave too. For example, Martha Argerich once applied for leave and skipped the first round. Some other judges at 2015 applied leave at the third round. Another Chinese pianist, Sa Chen, applied for 7 days leave (skipped the entire first round) in 2021, just for a commercial. (And she is not blame in China, while gossip arouse for Yundi, sigh). My point is, all the judges should NOT be blame if the committee allow them to take days off, don’t criminalise “taking days off” and labelled pianist as “not professional” when even the committee said it’s alright.
In fact, Yundi is one of the judges who gave a result very similar to the final one, this shows his attentiveness.
Sincerely hope that you will read more facts instead of gossip and rumours. Classical magazines are good choices and more reliable. Professional critics are also much better than some kind of “news”.
Your point about his having sought and been given approval is noted. I was not aware of that. Thank you for the clarification. But your comments about that disastrous performance of the Chopin Concerto are very far from the truth. This was news and nothing to do with gossip. I also regret it was absolutely nothing like a mere “slip up”. It was not even just a memory lapse. It was a series of errors that resulted in the conductor and orchestra having to stop for about 10 seconds before deciding how to start again mid-movement. How often does that happen in major concerts? That is fact and was widely reported as such! Another post refers to Rubinstein making a few mistakes. That was certainly occasionally true when he was in his mid-80s. I heard him perform two concertos in the same programme after he was 80. Yundi Li was mid-30s and playing one concerto you’d expect him to know thoroughly!
I suspect that the comment you quote refers to the first time the orchestra and Li presented that concerto the previous evening in Daegu.
This is what the Sydney Symphony Orchestra’s concertmaster Andrew Haveron wrote of the Seoul incident. This was quoted by NL in an SD post at the time – “The next day, in Seoul, he simply took a wrong turn and our harmonic progressions parted company (there is little else for an orchestra to do accompanying a Chopin concerto!). He tried to find his way back in, but in a piece such as this – where the soloist carries 90% of the musical argument – I can fully understand how difficult it is to find your way back into the middle of a long paragraph. He tried heading for the exit (musically speaking) by playing a couple of cadential bars prior to what he hoped was the next tutti.. But found the wrong tutti. You can hear my colleague Dene Olding valiantly come in with the next tutti entrance (from memory – we had a page or two to go) but that wasn’t the key our soloist had reached (he, I think, had found the very end of the movement, whilst we were still in the development). Thus things came to a stand still – without any say so or interference from our conductor.”
And that, Andy, is not gossip!
You misunderstand, I admit he had memory lapse (due to travel fatigue), but the gossip part is some medias exaggerated and twisted the whole situation, when the critics for the concert is positive.
https://limelight-arts.com.au/reviews/review-yundi-plays-chopin-sydney-symphony-orchestra/
Actually no, the critics I stated clearly is the performance and rated the overall concert high despite a mistake (memory lapse), which both Yundi and the orchestra had a great remedy : it commented the mistake as “that’s the nature of live music, and perfection is boring” and considered the remedy “[…]But it gave me even greater admiration, on many levels, for everyone involved[…]In the temple to the arts, I was witnessing a moment of pure civility, decency and camaraderie, and was given a reminder that the gods are, in fact, human, and all the more heroic for that.”
And what I mean for gossip is that indeed, Yundi had a memory lapse, but both classical magazine and critics considered the remedy is great and the overall concert is good. Apart from this review, a German news criticised some Korean medias overreacting. A follow-up report (titled Yundi pays for his mistaki) in January 2016 edition p13, as I mentioned before, released by classical magazine Limelight, confirmed some Korean medias made rumours e.g. rumours like the altitude problem you mentioned, as well as refund rumours. The report also says that “the concert was up to the expected standard and the reception for Yundi after his performance was warm and enthusiastic.”
And if you did not read gossip (there’s neutral Korean media report in Korean, published by their biggest news media), it clearly stated that the mistake was caused by travel fatigue, which is understandable – pianists are humans, they do fell sick as well
I find it convincing to believe in professional classical magazine/reviews .
You clearly disagree with the views of the orchestra’s concertmaster who had an unrivalled view of what actually happened! Instead you rely on Limelight, an Australian site which cannot be fully accessed without registration. You fail to make any actual quote other that to say the remedy (i.e. having lost the place and been unable to get back in sync with the orchestra as a result of which everyone has to stop and restart, this is called “A great remedy”. A great remedy? Nonsense! This supposed critic then adds “perfection is boring!” What? Is that not precisely what all top professional musicians strive for?
But you talk about fatigue. Travel fatigue! If you had posted a list of his engagements and travel arrangements prior to that Seoul disaster, perhaps that might just be credible. But having managed a symphony orchestra for 8 years and also attended more concerts elsewhere than I can count, I have never once attended any concert where a symphony orchestra had to stop and restart because of errors by a major international soloist. Travel fatigue certainly did not prevent him from giving an excellent account of the same concerto the previous evening in Daegu!
Travel is part and parcel of every international solost and conductor’s life. Being based in China and Hong Kong, during his 15 year career prior to the Seoul concert Yundi Li must surely have found a way to attend all scheduled worldwide concerts and perform to his professional best (although there are reports of concerts/recitals as far away as Vancouver and San Francisco where he was clearly not at his best – but that’s a different matter). Let’s accept, though, that many of his performances were in different continents sometimes as far away as 10-12 hours from his home base. Jet lag can never be an excuse if an artist is taking this into account when drawing up his schedule with his manager. It is certainly no acceptable excuse for the orchestra and the 2,500 people who paid good money to hear you in the Seoul Arts Centre – and you have already been in the country for a few days.
It then took Li several days before he issued an apology to those in the audience he had let down. He wrote, “‘As a pianist, I know that, no matter what, my performance on stage must be perfect. Any kind of explanation is insufficient.”
So even he agreed that travel fatigue was no excuse!
True. Moreover, the concert is not presented by the Musikverein (i.e. Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde: Society of the Friends of Music). It is a privately promoted concert. I saw in your link “Veranstalter: Guang Hua Media GmbH”. Veranstalter means presenter.
You are right here. It’s a overseas Chinese organization based in Germany. Not any regular legitimate classical music organization. From Li’s official weibo account, there are pictures with full audience capacity there. The tickets sells are pretty good. Only one thing, if you zoom in, you will notice that the audiences are predominantly Chinese! 80-90% likely. Since when you see a legitimate classical music concert out side China with this kind of mix? So, …. you know….
Just out of interest I checked that Guanghua Media’s main interests are newspapers and publishing with offices in Paris, London, Frankfurt and it seems some other European cities. Its European media output and primary European website is exclusively in Chinese. Within China it runs a School of Management at Peking (that’s how they write it – not Beijing) University. My guess is that the company has links to China’s Central Television Company (CCTV) whose imposing 51 storey Beijing building just happens to be situated on Guanghua Road.
It seems he remains a Steinway Artist. But clicking the “Artist Website” link at the bottom brings up a blank page. The only reason for mentioning this is that it seems from glancing at the internet that Yundi Li still does not have management representation outside China. That is surely going to make re-establishing his international career more difficult unless the current tour generates major interest amongst the management fraternity.
Excellent post. Your guess about CCTV is surely right.
For the tour-opening Freiburg recital, Guang Hua Media had prepared no program books. We were offered rolled-up posters (advertising the event) as a substitute!
180 or 200 people attended, shy of the Kaufhaus’s capacity of 300. Many brought children: yes, Chinese children, mostly silent. Li played beautifully except for one missed (silent) note in the over-familiar Rondo, betraying nerves I think. Thankfully he has Classical style, like Brendel, Uchida, Schiff, and unlike so many of the hyped names now: Trifonov, Levit et al. That is an asset that cannot be feigned. His comportment (including his attire cf. Lang or Wang) was 100% professional under the awkward circumstances, and I sensed an inner strength and calm about him that bodes well.
Yes, he needs proper management and must drop the silly all-caps YUNDI-no-family-name. But some pros in Europe have been burned by him, you know. Regaining trust will take time.
Yes Guanhua Media is an odd ball here and not sure what is the story behind. It maintains ties with Chinese newspapers like People’s Daily, known for cursing Yundi must die for his alleged misdeeds.
However, for those fluent in Chinese and active on the most popular platforms like WeChat and Douyin (TikTok), it’s evident that ordinary individuals recognized Yundi’s past work and spoke their supports fervently. (A contrary to the statement by some commenters in SD that Yundi’s fan base comprises solely of young girls).
This widespread public support could be a contributing factor to the recent ‘retreat’.
Have absolutely no idea why some of you are being racist, and keep emphasising only Chinese bought tickets. To my knowledge, many Asians enjoy Yundi’s music, e.g. Japanese, Korean, as his album sold well in Asian countries. How do you guys distinguish Asian and Chinese, when they share similar appearances. Special ability, huh? Very rude of you guys to label all Asians as Chinese!
PS,btw, I just got myself Yundi’s newest Mozart album, it’s fantastic, just as good as our critics stated
It appears that predominantly the front seats have been sold, likely due to a blend of the Sonata program and his prolonged inactivity outside China over the years.
I cross-checked his April 27 Paris concert and found that the tickets are selling well (90% sold out). Hence, there seems to be a disparity between the ticket sales in the two cities.”
Probably because of lack of promotion previously. I just checked, it’s almost sold out in Vienna.
It sure is. Nobody cares about yet another Chinese pianist, especially in Vienna. Some comeback.
Yuja Wang has a recital at the Musikverein on June 10. I just noticed that all tickets priced between € 51 and € 120,00 are sold out. There are still available tickets for € 10 and € 30. And that’s almost two months ahead of the event.
When you consider a 90% sold-out as empty, brilliant eyesight
He looks more like Chopin than any Europeans too
While no stranger to controversy, Yundi, is consistently spared the Yuja or Lang Lang treatment.
It’s heartening to see his return!
A great welcome back.
The reason Paris sells better than Vienna is there are more Chinese tourists in Paris than Vienna and they gobbled up the tix.
I wish him well. He needs to be very convincing in his interpretations if he returns to superstar status. I always liked his playing and stage presence over Lx2 and many of the younger dullards. Mozart is risky business in Wien. I’m cautiously optimistic for him, but I’ve been wrong before as well.
Wait, wasn’t he caught with Stormy Daniels or someone?
No I think he got caught with David Daniels. just saying.
I don’t know why the Chinese authorities made such a drama about this whole thing. It’s probably hard being on the road all the time and after a while you get tired of wanking to porn. And plus the hotel porn sucks. He’s got the money so I’m imagine he just thought…..I’ll buy some ass. It’s the world’s oldest profession for a reason.
“On the road a long time.” Hardly true as in the years running up to the Beijng ‘incident’ he had only appeared infrequently in the west. Perhaps you mean a Chinese road where he certainly did give more performances (many in a regular TV variety show!) – until the ‘incident’. As was reported in a previous thread, there was also considerable ill feeling towards him as a result of a relationship which was regarded as inappropriate, the more so as the other party was married with kids. The main Chinese Weibo social media site played a big role in this.
Let’s hope that all that is now behind him and that he can resume his earlier stellar career. Frankly he has chopped and changed too much. DGG recording Artist, then dropped. EMI Artist – although he made those recordings at his own expense and EMI only distributed them. Back to DGG. Dropped again (although I do not know the reason that time). Now he has a deal with Warner Music and their CDs/DVDs of Mozart issued last year. The present tour concentrating only on Mozart is clearly promotion for the recordings. I have no issue with that as he joins a host of other artists who do/have done the same either before or after tours. About 15 years ago I heard Sarah Chang perform the Brahms concerto which she was playing for much that entire year before recording it with Masur and the Dresden Phil.
But it’s obvious Yundi Li desperately needs a good manager in the west to work with him and get him once again on the right ‘road’.
Not sure why you are making lies and spreading rumours, making yourself seemingly more “knowledgeable” and “professional” than Norman, professional music journalist. Yund’s Rachmaninoff, Schumann and Chopin in 2019 was fantastic, and received positive acclaim from critics. He had numerous world piano tours before 2020 (pandemic and the blacklist). As for “variety show” you claimed, Yundi went on the shows when China banned all classic concerts due to pandemic (and his world tour was cancelled), and he aimed to promote classical music at that time period. In contrast, Lang Lang had four times more than him. Why do you try to paint him as giving up classical music for variety shows, and previously, being racist by labelling all Asians as Chinese? No matter in EMI, DG or Warmer Classics, Yundi is their important artist, which recommendations can be seen on their websites. You must be extremely exhausted in this comment section, as you have to make up so much misinformation.
Perhaps Klaus should check HIS facts. As just one example, Yundi Li appeared on the reality TV show “Run for Time” aired by Hunan TV in 2015/16 – years before the banishment. This show is about ‘escapees’ tryng not to be captured by ‘hunters’! In 2015 he also apeared in Zhejiang TV’s reality show “X-Space”. That show also had nothing to do with playing the piano (if Klaus is interested, his name even appears on wikipeida as one of the contestants from the first series!) That was about a group of people attempting to get out of a locked room. The fact that he appeared on a lot of TV pop and game shows in China PRIOR to both the ‘incident’ and the pandemic is indisputable. Lies are for those who are not aware of the facts!
I fully agree he was a remarkable pianist. I heard him give performances of the Grieg concerto with Kurt Masur and a solo recital. Both were in the mid 2000s. Like many I hope he will soon be back to that standard.
I was stating that “many” is during the pandemic. OMG, on a show for only 4 hours of the (ONE) day, or you consider pianists should lock themselves with their pianos full day. How ridiculous! And when critics stated his performance is great, you ignorance shows the opposite. Blödsinn
Funny thing is that I just saw Hilary Hahn playing the very Brahms concerto with the Boston symphony over the weekend. The house was packed, same as the week earlier, when Yuja Wang came in town, playing/recording the Messiaen’s Turangalîla-symphonie. I was wondering how Sarah Chang is doing now. Last time saw with BSO playing Bruch violin concerto was over a decade ago. It was quite decent but not necessarily spectacular. Before that, a recital in the bayarea, showing her intonation issues already. So, where is she now? It turns out she just played with the Souix symphony in Iowa! And yet, it’s not easy to find her any major engagements outside Asian nations where she was still highly regarded. Yundi Li’s current situation, actually is worse than Sarah Chang, so, it’s not just a good agent, but he needs to build up the confidence from those legit music organizations, also, repairs the bridges that has been damaged from his past less than professional encounters.
Arlen and Koehler expressed this dilemma the best:
Don’t know why
There’s no sun up in the sky
Stormy Daniels
https://tickets.musikverein.at/SelectSeats?ret=2&e=36012&bts=hp
Here’s the ticket link of Musikverein and, the ticket of Yundi is almost sold out. Yundi is still the awesome Yundi. Just Let the music tonight speak. What the ‘nobody’ mentioned in the comments here makes no sense. Yundi is a legend, and his performance is ranked among the best, that’s the fact Which won’t be changed by any bullshit talk here in the comment list.
Glad that Yundi is back. I listened to his recent Mozart album, and it’s marvellous. Already added it to my collection.
Instead of discussing how many Chinese people are in the audience, I suggest everyone listen to Yundi’s new Mozart album. https://music.apple.com/us/album/mozart-the-sonata-project-salzburg/1728482594
In my opinion, his latest work is outstanding! He is very natural at Mozart.
Have absolute no idea why some of you are being racist, and keep emphasis only Chinese bought tickets. To my knowledge, many Asians enjoy Yundi’s music, e.g. Japanese, Korean, as his album sold well in Asian countries. How do you guys distinguish Asian and Chinese, when they share similar appearances. Very rude of you guys to label all Asians as Chinese!
Btw, I just got myself Yundi’s newest Mozart album, it’s fantastic, just as good as the German critics stated!
You’re racist if you say Asians and Chinese “share similar appearances”, so basically they all look alike.
You clearly know little about Asians. Have you spent any time in the continent, I wonder? You are bit like the old joke which says that all Asians think all westerners look the same. There are very marked differences between most Chinese, Japanese and Koreans. More assumptions!
On Yundi’s Frankfurt concert of April 13th, a local music fan who has loved Yundi for over 20 years came to the concert, and ask Yundi for a signature after that. The elderly man even brought the album poster he got 20 years ago. People from all over the world love Yundi. No one could resist the music of Yundi. If you don’t love Yundi, perhaps there’s something wrong with u.
Surprising at many comments here. I want to read some feedback about the music and the interpretation of the pianist, but many comments are talking about attendance and organizer of the concert.
Here’s a review: https://klassik-begeistert.de/yundi-li-klavier-musikverein-wien-grosser-saal-21-april-2024/
Not sure if this is a response to the news, but Yundi just posted a video of his Vienna performance: https://www.instagram.com/reel/C6JkbfJsH1c/?igsh=dWNqdXl3MmZzcGV6 .
Looks like it was a full house! So, SD really helped sell a lot of tickets LOL —Yundi owes you a big thanks! “