Look – Prokofiev 3 without a conductor
mainIt’s the Kaleidoscope Chamber Orchestra of Los Angeles, led from the keyboard by Irene Kim.
Comments
MOST READ TODAY:
-
Orchestras
The maestro’s son is also rising
From my latest monthly essay in The Critic…
-
Orchestras
Franz Welser-Möst, recovering, withdraws from Beethoven cycle
The Cleveland music director, who has received successful…
-
Orchestras
Update: Igor Levit won’t play without Franz
We reported earlier that Franz Welser-Möst had withdrawn…
-
News
Classic FM howler of the day
You really couldn’t make it up. Well, they…
I do not see a piano in the photo. Perhaps it is the Third Symphony, which would really be impressive. Mitropolous performed and recorded the concerto as soloist and conductor back in the early 50’s, I believe.
If I remember rightly, Leonard, Mitropoulos did it for the first time in Berlin c. 1933 at a time he was still making his way as a pianist. He then took the concerto to the US.
There’s precedent!
https://youtu.be/-4DoHQsNotI
Apparently Prokofiev was annoyed at Mitropoulos’ wild success with the Concerto, which up to then had been Prokofiev’s own specialty (as pianist only).
Let’s see them do Prokofiev’s 3rd symphony sans conductor. That would be something!
Well they did his 5th, pretty impressive too:
https://youtu.be/C5jnlbqHNVs
these guys performed Prokofiev fifth…. https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=4&v=C5jnlbqHNVs ¿close enough?
Mitropoulos got there first!
How refreshing to hear the music!
Any prop or stunt for attention.
Mitropoulos conducted it from the keyboard.
In the footsteps of Dimitri Mitropoulos?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-4DoHQsNotI
No, it’s not being “led” by her. This is the Orpheus model, where the orchestra tends to itself. When a pianist is in charge, his/her back is to the audience, and he/she conducts tuttis.
Leonard Bernstein led from the keyboard sitting in that formation, but to me there’s no indication that Ms. Kim is conducting anything. She plays the concerto quite nicely though.
What’s the big deal? Dmitri Mitropoulos did it with this concerto all the time with different orchestras.
Mitropoulos and Cliburn also led this concerto from the keyboard.
As Fliszt mentions, Cliburn did this as well. Here is a video of a complete performance:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qTPtRf7tsYU
…and here is a documentary showing him in rehearsal and performance:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uynI6W4HTgg
Brilliant!
Dmitri Mitropoulos played while conducting this concerto several times in spectacular fashion and at a much faster tempo than done by Irene Kim here. A 1946 recording he made with the Robin Hood Dell Orchestra (aka Philadelphia Orchestra) is on YouTube.
Fabulous! However, Mitropoulos was doing this 60 years ago…
Impresive!