I was really generous in rewarding myself. The Saturday night concert in Kennedy Center featuring Yundi Li with the National Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Leonard Slatkin was a delightful treat. Yundi Li kept fascinating us with new releases combining dazzling virtuosity and refreshing intepretation, this time Liszt and Chopin First Concertos. Playing Liszt to a live audience is every pianist's dream because Liszt will make you look like Elvis Presley on stage. But it's not going to be easy: The skill alone is demanding, let alone the intense emotion. Yundi Li proved once again he had both.
The program started with four pieces of Ravel, which is always a pleasure to listen to. After the Liszt concerto, Slatkin showed his conducting prowess with music from Prokofiev's Ballet "Romeo and Juliet". Three times he had to come out and thank the enthusiastic audience.
The cherry blossoms were bad, though, due to the untimely rain and cold weather.
The program started with four pieces of Ravel, which is always a pleasure to listen to. After the Liszt concerto, Slatkin showed his conducting prowess with music from Prokofiev's Ballet "Romeo and Juliet". Three times he had to come out and thank the enthusiastic audience.
The cherry blossoms were bad, though, due to the untimely rain and cold weather.
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