Its scary to think how many times will I've heard this particular recording before i die..i mean I'm only 22 and in the past 2 years I've probably heard this 700-800 times..
Don't like to brag, but since first hearing Eugen Cicero's piece "Exercise" in the mid 70s, I've listened to it in the vicinity of 5,000 times. True. And I lost it for a quarter of a century(from the early 80s until finding it again in 2009). Easily the piece I've listened to the most number of times of any. An average of 200 times per year that I had it. (Might check it out again now actually-haven't heard it for AT LEAST 6 hours and I'm starting to miss it.😬).
Why do I always keep coming back to listen to this piece? Bach composed this masterpiece out of sheer loneliness, grief and disconsolation. Busoni translated this piece into a higher form, as if we are standing "against a colossal precipiece". This notion of Romanticism was clearly conveyed by the glorious interpretation of Grimaud. The scales and its fate-motif linger on every single notes. This piece is like a gargantuan gothic cathedral in front of the arctic ocean, as the big waves arrive on the shore, it gradually makes the cathedral more terrestrial, sublime and terrifying. Bravo!
“On one stave, for a small instrument, the man writes a whole world of the deepest thoughts and most powerful feelings. If I imagined that I could have created, even conceived the piece, I am quite certain that the excess of excitement and earth-shattering experience would have driven me out of my mind. If one doesn’t have the greatest violinist around, then it is well the most beautiful pleasure to simply listen to its sound in one’s mind.” - Johannes Brahms
Hier der Original-Text auf deutsch aus dem Brief Brahms an Clara Schumann: ...Auf ein System, für ein kleines Instrument schreibt der Mann eine ganze Welt von tiefsten Gedanken u. gewaltigsten Empfindungen. Wollte ich mir vorstellen ich hätte das Stück machen, empfangen können, ich weiß sicher die übergroße Aufregung u. Erschütterung hätte mich verrückt gemacht. Hat man nun keinen größten Geiger bei sich, so ist es wohl der schönste Genuss sie sich einfach im Geist tönen zu lassen...
The crazy thing is that here on two staves on a huge instruments it doesn't move me more than the original does. Wouldn't say less either, just different
Exactly, did not know the Brahms quotation, but I think that if you have a Ferrari does not mean to go always at 300 km/h. There areso many wonderful lansdcapes in the countryside... Please listen the guitar version much closer to the violin intimate poignancy th-cam.com/video/Q6hnZfnWUQ0/w-d-xo.html
This is my favorite version. She deeply understands this "impossible" music. Most are unable to keep the line moving forward and still make all the parts come out expressively and clear. For musicians this is one of those special pieces that no matter how long you study it, it remains an entire world to be explored.
Excuse me, but...**I HATE BUZZ-WORDS, I HATE THEM, I HATE THEM ALL!!* Such as, "absolutely", "totally", "that being said...", "albeit" (instead of although), "concerned" (instead of worried), and "issues" (instead of problems). There are many, many more...
The great thing about Helene Grimaud as a pianist is that it's never about technical virtuosity even in a piece like this. She is clearly far more interested in the music than the notes and it means some of her performances like this one can be both insightful and moving.
I like your conclusions about Miss Grimaud; this is brilliantly and flawlessly played by her and you got it just right about telling the message rather than the technique. In my opinion it is one of the great expositions of this work on You Tube.
Bach compressed it down to ONE single violin. Busoni unpacked and trancribed it for a TWO handed piano. Stokowski further unpacked and transcribed it for a WHOLE Orchestra. That's how much music there is in this chaconne.
Helene's version is the best I've heard on piano, and Hillary Hahn does the best job on the Violin. Just amazing ... both of these women put their heart and soul into this piece...Whenever I hear one of them, I have to stop and listen to the other one when the first one is finished. They are both pure heaven for me.
A number of musicians have commented that this piece is an entire world to itself. Grimaud, for me, made this more clear than any other performer I can easily recall. I could not look away, and when it was over I simply was nowhere near where I started. Mind blowing.
Cette œuvre à l'origine fût composée pour violon par Bach . Busoni nous offre ici une transcription pour piano très travaillé et pleine de virtuosité. La version qui nous est proposé reflète à merveille le travail du compositeur. Pièce à la fois dramatique et nostalgique remplie de douleur et de doute mais à la fois pleine d'espoir nous fait beaucoup de bien. Merci pour cette belle interprétation de ce merveilleux morceau restitué ici par une grande musicienne qui n'arrête pas de nous charmer chaque fois qu'elle s'approprie ces grandes œuvres du passé.
My son played this for his senior recital in college (obviously not this well), but I return to her recording to remember the joy of hearing him play. I just told him to stay a bit fresh with it for the next 20 or 30 years so he can play it at my remembrance of life when the day comes. What a passionate and energetic piece to whisk me to the next realm. Of course, he could play this recording. I wouldn't know!
I had the same reaction ... and it has been a long time since that happened. Her performance evokes so many adjectives: sublime; impassioned; meditative; powerful; loving to the point of being quasi-orgasmic.
Beautiful performance of a technically demanding and well thought out transcription of Bach's masterpiece. Use of dynamics and tempi - brilliant. Too romantic? The 19th century happened - get over it. We can never hear 18th century music in the way it was heard at the time. We are no longer naive to large orchestras, advanced chromaticism, progressive tonality etc. We hear with 21st century ears. In-period performances have a role - we can understand the original intentions more. But music isn't about being a train spotter. It cannot be wrong to bring out the beauty of a piece this effectively.
Yeah you can still listen to the original Ciaconna from Milstein, Hahn, or if you wish, from Rachel Podgers album, a historically informed solo violin performance, for instance. I think this romantic transcription and expansion by Busoni is as beautifully played as it can be the way Grimaud has done. Bravo!
In 2018 Grützmacher's 1895 arrangement of the of Boccherini's Cello Concerto No. 9 in B-flat Major (2nd Movement) was broadcast on BBC Radio3 "In Tune". It was preceded by this conversation between Sean Rafferty (SR) and Julian Lloyd Webber (JLW): [MY CAPITALS] SR: "This movement has a very strange history". JLW: "Grützmacher was himself a great 'cellist. He FIDDLED in a completely POLITICALLY UNACCEPTABLE manner today, in that he STOLE this slow movement from a completely different Boccherini concerto. But of course people used to do those things ....People went out in recital and would play 4 movements by different composers and call it a - sort of - early music suite..... "But I mean, this piece became very famous, it was the Boccherini B-flat Major Concerto that was PLAYED CONSTANTLY... "And actually, it has to be said, that since this movement is now NOT ALLOWED, because not only did Grützmacher take it from another Boccherini concerto but he also FIDDLED AROUND with it too - that actually the B-flat concerto is not heard as much as it used to be... "It's NAUGHTY but it's very nice." SR: "Naughty but nice, that's all right, we quite like that, a little bit of PILLAGE! So this is the PINCHED MOVEMENT we're getting, isn't it?" JLW: "It's a beautiful movement." SR: "Well then we don't need to apologize for anything."
For me the chaconne is bach's greatest achievement and may be music's greatest achievement. The piece is certainly about grieving his wife and the way he received her death and all the contradicting emotions u have when u lose some one dear to you, and the piece has it all: trauma, denial, fury, depression, longing, anger, acceptance, and hope. The way these emotions are expressed and sequenced is out of this world. When brahms stumbled upon this piece he said that bach created a whole world on one tiny instrument. He also said that if it was him that created this composition, the joy and the sense of achievement will possibly drive him mad. It is so sad though to see this piece very underrated.
@@BecentiComposer I have not checked in Swafford, but you know of something refuting / superseding this? 'On one stave, for a small instrument, the man writes a whole world of the deepest thoughts and most powerful feelings. If I imagined that I could have created, even conceived the piece, I am quite certain that the excess of excitement and earth-shattering experience would have driven me out of my mind. ' Johannes Brahms, Discussion of the Chaconne in Bach's Partita for Violin #2. Litzman, Berthold (editor). "Letters of Clara Schumann and Johannes Brahms, 1853-1896". Hyperion Press, 1979, p. 16.
For me, it's the Musical Offering. Consider Bach being given a theme, deliberately designed to be almost unworkable by King Fred in an attempt to humble Bach, due to the Kings love of the new and simpler "style galant", as opposed to the complex Baroque fugal style of Bach. And no doubt Bach knew this. So after improvising an amazing 3 part fugue on the spot, Bach then goes home. Then, in a matter of a few weeks, and no doubt working on it part time, given Bach's regular musical duties, creates an incredible suite of pieces all based on the same theme, including an fantastic 6 voice fugue. Then, as a final kick in the ass to King Fred, Bach sent the work back to King Fred, with a seemingly humble dedication to the King. Little did the King know, that if one took the first letter from each word in the dedication, it spelled out "RICERCARE", the old German name for "fugue", a musical form that's pretty much the anti-Style Galant! lol
Pianiste que je considère comme authentique à tout point de vue. Physiquement, d'abord, très belle naturellement, dans son jeu pianistique également, bref, merveilleuse interprète qui me subjugue à chaque fois!
you should checkout Hamelin's perfect execution of Busoni's 70 minute Piano Concerto--unreal that he memorized it all. I'd wager it's nearly impossible today to find anyone else who can do it.
I am s. Koean. This music is absolutely one of a masterpiece among whole music history. greatful, Vast, immense~ my heart is resonate with this. how deep it is...tonight I gonna get sleep with this meanningful music.
Yes I've listened to Korean music and whilst ok it has no depth just tin flute and some sort of guitar on the ground.nothing like the depth of European music
L'émotion m'étreint, mes yeux se voilent, si seulement l'humanité effleurait la beauté de cette musique, la beauté de cette femme sous son emprise, alors peut-être ...
Busoni’s Bach arrangements bring out JSB’s glorious harmonies, especially when so effectively played by Hélène Grimaud. A masterful pianist we are privileged to hear. Thank you for bringing us this extraordinary performance.
Si vous êtes comme moi, un adepte de la musique de Bach et de toutes les partitions qui s'y rapportent, Chaconne est pour ma part la plus belle transcription que l'on doit à Busoni. On ne compte plus les interprètes. Néanmoins, j'ai une préférence marquée, évidemment pour la version d'Hélène Grimaud, il y a d'autres versions également intéressantes qui ne traduisent pas la même sensibilité que celle-ci: je note personnellement la version de Alexis Weissenberg, celle de Valentina Lisitsa, Alicia Larrocha et Georges Bolet. A vous de vous faire votre propre opinion. Mais merci pour votre commentaire.
Every time I see this video I'm completely blown away by the ease with which Helene plays this gigantic and extremely powerful Bach's piece with such a concise and tender fingering on a steinway & sons grand. She interprets all the piano and forte with such an intense and evocative touch that you really feel elevated to another dimension of overwhelming immensity. Bravo
je ne m'en lasse pas. C'est inouï de beauté. Ici Hélène GRIMAUD atteint le sublime. Avant même le premier accord, la prise de respiration avec ce mouvement du poignet qui bat déjà la mesure est déjà poignante
6:03, the change in mood is so compelling, Bach could stand the world on its ear. And the dynamics throughout the entire piece are riveting. The pianist's ears must be ringing at times.
Swede McGuire that part of the piece is exceptionally hard, it is about 1.5 - 2 mins of Demi-Semi Quavers at around 60 Bpm that is over 480 notes to be played, it is incredibly hard, I have done it on guitar at maybe 400 and that killed, but it didn't get close to the perfection she displays.
@@rykehuss3435 Well, since I made that comment I have gotten signficantly better at the piece. My answer would be that it is doable, its more arppegiated and then into pull-off so its not super bad as far as pace goes, its a really beautiful piece, technically very difficult but doable.
I played this work for my graduate performance forty years ago, and many times in different recitals, so I think I know well the Busoni's work. Is wonderful see how other musicians play the same of you with different conceptions an using always good taste, makes me learn a little more in my piano job. The interpretation of Miss Grimaud is not only excellent, is a beautiful way to say old words with a new voice.
J'écoute ce chef d'oeuvre depuis sa parution sur TH-cam. Hélène Grimaud a consacré son génie d'interprète avec cette pièce ahurissante de Bach réinterprétée par Busoni. Depuis, le nombre d'interprétation n'a cessé de croître sur la toile. J'y reviens régulièrement comme à un premier amour. C'est inoubliable bien que depuis, un certain Daniïl Trifonov a mis la marche encore plus haute avec son interprétation différente, la transcription de Brahms pour main gauche.Il s'agit en réalité de deux morceaux différents la seule chose qui les unit et son géniteur Jean-Sébastien Bach, le plus grand génie musical que la terre ait porté.
The peak years for Steinway were 1890-1930. (This opinion is from Theodore Steinway himself!) Actually, the proverb, "Ladies who wear mink *WISH* they were wearing ermine!" can be translated, "Pianists who play a (late-model) Steinway *WISH* they were playing a Bechstein!": th-cam.com/video/pV009Tj5654/w-d-xo.html
My late father played this piece in recitals on his violin and I've always tried to play it on the piano and so it was brilliant to hear this. What a performance of a fabulous piece of music. Thank you for sharing
This piece and the way she plays it somehow has the energy of beginning and ending at the same time throughout its entirety! Like the energy of the first 5 bars and past 5 bars of a symphony... The whole time.
Kissin's rendition will always be my favorite but God damn do I thank the Lord for Helene Grimaud. One of the best humanity can produce. So glad I walk the Earth with her and got to see her live
Astoundingly excellent performance capturing the pathos and power of Bach's commemoration of his first wife's death which occurred while he was away. Ms. Grimaud's performance should have received a standing ovation.
This was written in the aftermath of Bach's wife's death. I always felt the section in D major portrays the composer rising from fitful sleep to play with his children. They sing hymns and lullabies.
Das ist eine göttliche Gabe - so musizieren zu können! Ich höre diese Chaconne, so meisterlich und gefühlvoll vorgetragen mit Tränen in den Augen ... unglaublich! Dazu dieser fantastische Sound eines Steinway & Sons Flügels - herrlich!
I happened to come across Helene Grimaud last night playing Bach Busoni-Chaconne version of piano piece, which I am VERY familiar with Violin version played by Hilary Hahn. In fact I was surprised that there was a piano music. I am also deeply impressed by this pianist. Absolutely superb. Now she is one of my favorite pianist. Mike from California
I've listened to several people play this on youtube. Helene is the best. Amazing 6:03 in the video is when you can really see where she sets herself apart from her competition with this piece. Simply perfect. Flowing like water.
Great description it sounds like rainfall on a cabin’s tin roof in the forest. I had open my eyes to see if she’d been joined by a second pianist only to see both her hands playing the same eight keys. Pure magic.
@@nielsenja The build-up is heart wrenching, and the ending barrage completely washes over you leaving you utterly drained. What magnificent performance
I can't believe that two months ago I neither knew nor had heard this piece of music. Now, I listen to this youtube several times every day and pieces of it repeat in my mind. I see the lady playing, my eyes tell me she is playing, but a part of my brain refuses to believe that any one can play with such virtuosity, precision and emotion. I am deeply indebted to Helene Grimaud, Busoni and, of course, The Great Master, Johann Sebastian.
The first piece of classical music I was exposed to was Beethoven's symphony no. 6 that my mother would play almost daily . After noticing that I preferred classical music to any other, my father bought me a CD of a selection of Bach's music. The first piece on it was the Chaconne performed by orchestra conducted by Stokowski. I remember the experience as almost religious, nearly a revelation from God, and being incredibly moved to the point of shedding tears at the section occurring at 11:10 here. From then on, despite my love for Beethoven and, later, Mozart, it was Bach alone that wrote the music that described the harmony of the universe for me.
I’m sure I watched and listened to this a thousand times already. And it’s not enough. It’s on my permanent listen loop and I can’t get enough of it. Simply amazing.
Without taking anything at all away from this amazing performance, I must say that this is one of the very most wonderful sounding pianos I have ever heard!
I always come back to this rendition, she has such a profound understanding of the architecture and solidity that have to sustain such massive polyphonic piece; her sound control and concentration is brilliant; the entire piece does not loose intensity throughout the entire duration quite on contrary - it intensifies through a gradual emotional crescendo. Technical brilliance is notable yet completely secondary to the sound richness and her curated emotional ambit. I love her artistry.
What a great pianist and performance. Such a divine music. Absolutely perfection. Thank God that this world had geniuses such as Bach to compose the pieces like this. ❤️
Attempting to learn this piece. Honestly, it's the hardest I've tried to play by far, which only makes this much more amazing. This version is truly a masterpiece.
irrelevant for now I’m learning that currently the ballade is so nice I might try learn this once I finish the ballade nice to hear it’s easier than the ballade lol
Assieme a Benedetti Michelangeli , credo sia uno dei vertici nell'interpretazione di questo capolavoro. Il riverbero che prelude al silenzio, nelle ultime note, è qualcosa che mi fa tremare dal profondo, da sempre. Grazie.
A masterpiece from the heart of a genius traveled the times and delivered to us by this talented and beautiful woman... Added to my Favorites. Two thumbs UP.
There are many interpretations of the Chaconne in piano but this one has that something that keeps me coming back to hear it over and over...and the ending has so much strength, it sends chills through my back. Well done Helene.
This is the piece that proves J S bach was 'the daddy' of them all. . Just perfect from beginning to end. I love it on classical guitar too where it works so well. nice to hear it get the huge dynamic treatment the grand piano affords. What a beautiful performance and video.
This is one of the most beautifully pieces of music I have ever heard. Grimaud has been my favorite pianist for years. She is just special. She's wonderful with concertos too. Beethoven's 4th piano concerto and Brahms' 2nd are on TH-cam. Very beautiful.
Recordings of pieces, and especially breathtaking interpretations such as these, make me truly appeciate the luxury that is on-demand video platforms. It would break my heart to have heard this in concert and to never be able to dissolve in the sound of it again. For the short time that I've known this piece, it has quickly risen to one of my most favorite. What wouldn't I give to reach this level of technical expertise and emotional expression!
This is just amazing... I know this piece but i always hesitated to listen to any Bach- transcriptions. Well, clearly i was wrong. Busoni did a fabulous job here. And the incredible performance just lights up the music.
The huge sweep of feelings Ms Grimaud brings forward in this performance is overwhelming. With no exaggeration or excess she moves from tenderness to ferocity to joy to calm to urgency to profundity with a greater sense of understanding than in any other version I have heard. I would go too far were I to say that I prefer this to Bach's original (Vengerov's rendering is particularly fine) Bach, after all, is incomparable, but this transcription is sublime and this performance fully does it justice. Her small smile as she acknowledges the audience suggests she knows she has just achieved something close to perfection.
Such a unique performance... It feels like it is healing you inside, somehow, when you listen it to the end. I feel lucky to be born in this era and listen it even through a video. Thank you helene for all your effort and choosing this piece. Lots of love and respect from turkey
I could listen to this interpretation all day long, oh wait, that is exactly what I am doing... simply fantastic
Simply the best that I’ve ever heard of this exceptional piece.
Agree! Simply Fantastic. Bach and Hélène both. 🙏.
Me too ..
Me too!😊
me three
Its scary to think how many times will I've heard this particular recording before i die..i mean I'm only 22 and in the past 2 years I've probably heard this 700-800 times..
You heard it every day in the last 2 years?
I'm with you. Listen to this at least three times a week
I am with you.
@@abrakadaniel5908 it's definitely worth it...
Don't like to brag, but since first hearing Eugen Cicero's piece "Exercise" in the mid 70s, I've listened to it in the vicinity of 5,000 times. True. And I lost it for a quarter of a century(from the early 80s until finding it again in 2009). Easily the piece I've listened to the most number of times of any. An average of 200 times per year that I had it. (Might check it out again now actually-haven't heard it for AT LEAST 6 hours and I'm starting to miss it.😬).
Why do I always keep coming back to listen to this piece? Bach composed this masterpiece out of sheer loneliness, grief and disconsolation. Busoni translated this piece into a higher form, as if we are standing "against a colossal precipiece". This notion of Romanticism was clearly conveyed by the glorious interpretation of Grimaud. The scales and its fate-motif linger on every single notes. This piece is like a gargantuan gothic cathedral in front of the arctic ocean, as the big waves arrive on the shore, it gradually makes the cathedral more terrestrial, sublime and terrifying. Bravo!
Кжш0юн3а0ю4гакюг6б4агбакгбгак8ьишэхэкншнаэ😮0хежь68😮хбкгхюгкбэ09😮г9ишни😮0😮0шнзгж0еехз3р9😮деж90нж8х69н9беж797033😮😊а 6😊5б😊😊6н9648енн0ну0хжх496😮😊709д4х9😮😮😊х😮хее⁵а 😊ж😮хашнл6😊😅🎉а 6😮ж5🎉🎉🎉😂
Wow, brilliant (and poetic) analysis!
I keep coming back to it as well.
“On one stave, for a small instrument, the man writes a whole world of the deepest thoughts and most powerful feelings. If I imagined that I could have created, even conceived the piece, I am quite certain that the excess of excitement and earth-shattering experience would have driven me out of my mind. If one doesn’t have the greatest violinist around, then it is well the most beautiful pleasure to simply listen to its sound in one’s mind.” - Johannes Brahms
Hier der Original-Text auf deutsch aus dem Brief Brahms an Clara Schumann:
...Auf ein System, für ein kleines Instrument
schreibt der Mann eine ganze Welt von
tiefsten Gedanken u. gewaltigsten Empfindungen.
Wollte ich mir vorstellen ich
hätte das Stück machen, empfangen
können, ich weiß sicher die übergroße
Aufregung u. Erschütterung hätte mich
verrückt gemacht. Hat man nun keinen
größten Geiger bei sich, so ist es wohl
der schönste Genuss sie sich einfach im
Geist tönen zu lassen...
The crazy thing is that here on two staves on a huge instruments it doesn't move me more than the original does. Wouldn't say less either, just different
Exactly, did not know the Brahms quotation, but I think that if you have a Ferrari does not mean to go always at 300 km/h. There areso many wonderful lansdcapes in the countryside... Please listen the guitar version much closer to the violin intimate poignancy th-cam.com/video/Q6hnZfnWUQ0/w-d-xo.html
Bach, Busoni, Grimaud, Steinway. What a quartett!
And it takes a talented individual, in this case a woman, to play it in its wholeness as intended.
On another Piano, it's also possible.
@@daydreamermoustache that´s possible for sure, but i just love the sound of this one :-)
@Konstantin Ridaya august foester, carl bechstein
Kayoko Glueck Why the need for expressively mentioning the persons gender? How does it matter?
This is my favorite version. She deeply understands this "impossible" music. Most are unable to keep the line moving forward and still make all the parts come out expressively and clear. For musicians this is one of those special pieces that no matter how long you study it, it remains an entire world to be explored.
+Curt Carlson no doubt it is truly a beautiful rendition but Evgeny Kissin is also there
+Ananda Jaisingh Yes! O Yes Indeed? But Heaven Speaks Light unto Mother Earth when one attends the Isometric Performance of Val Lisitsa
They are all wonderful and one stays amazed and humbled at the virtuosity!
couldn't agree more!
+Curt Carlson Impossible? She just played it, you are lying in front of my face, you are like Brian in Family Guy.
intro never fails to rip your heart out
+hugh smith It's a Chaconne. Doesn't have an intro. What you heard was an ever-repeating 8 bar figuration.
Ron Broun I bet you're fun at parties.
Gerhard Symons . Thanks Bernard best laugh I've had for ages!
@@threethrushes LOL
Especially when it is played on the violin (like an original legend)
Have I listened to this for more than 20 times? Yes. Am I still amazed? Absolutely.
Excuse me, but...**I HATE BUZZ-WORDS, I HATE THEM, I HATE THEM ALL!!* Such as, "absolutely", "totally", "that being said...", "albeit" (instead of although), "concerned" (instead of worried), and "issues" (instead of problems). There are many, many more...
@@CLASSICALFAN100 um...okay? Sorry, I guess?
@@CLASSICALFAN100 lmao
@@CLASSICALFAN100 how has that offended or annoyed you?
@@CLASSICALFAN100 Good to know
The great thing about Helene Grimaud as a pianist is that it's never about technical virtuosity even in a piece like this. She is clearly far more interested in the music than the notes and it means some of her performances like this one can be both insightful and moving.
I like your conclusions about Miss Grimaud; this is brilliantly and flawlessly played by her and you got it just right about telling the message rather than the technique. In my opinion it is one of the great expositions of this work on You Tube.
Hands down the best piano performance on the Chaconne ever
I would argue that Kissin's is better.
@@GTXTi-db5xu Grimaud's touch is better imo, but Kissin does have better technique
@@GTXTi-db5xu I feel no emotions in Kissin's chaconne sorry.
@@totoriri6973 I love everything about his interpretation save for when he plays the very last chord as minor
Arthur Rubinstein did it better❤️
Bach compressed it down to ONE single violin. Busoni unpacked and trancribed it for a TWO handed piano.
Stokowski further unpacked and transcribed it for a WHOLE Orchestra. That's how much music there is in this chaconne.
Thanks for telling this❤❤❤❤
i like Stokowski's version...
Helene's version is the best I've heard on piano, and Hillary Hahn does the best job on the Violin. Just amazing ... both of these women put their heart and soul into this piece...Whenever I hear one of them, I have to stop and listen to the other one when the first one is finished. They are both pure heaven for me.
For me Augustin Hadelich version is the best
@@leo17921 that’s such a fucking weird comment dude
for me Heifetz played it best
sorry, on the Violyn Izhak Perlman's version is incomparable
try gidon kremer's. you will definitely have a new experience
5:48 - 7:11 THE MOST BEAUTIFUL AND SINCERE THING I'VE HEARD IN MY LIFE
A number of musicians have commented that this piece is an entire world to itself. Grimaud, for me, made this more clear than any other performer I can easily recall. I could not look away, and when it was over I simply was nowhere near where I started. Mind blowing.
+Tom Cloyd agree, she 100 % present
Why would someone dislike this? She plays it the best I've ever heard on any instrument. Just amazing control and dynamics. LIke water.
This is the most fantastic performance and interpretation of the Chaconne I have ever seen and heard.
Cette œuvre à l'origine fût composée pour violon par Bach . Busoni nous offre ici une transcription pour piano très travaillé et pleine de virtuosité. La version qui nous est proposé reflète à merveille le travail du compositeur. Pièce à la fois dramatique et nostalgique remplie de douleur et de doute mais à la fois pleine d'espoir nous fait beaucoup de bien. Merci pour cette belle interprétation de ce merveilleux morceau restitué ici par une grande musicienne qui n'arrête pas de nous charmer chaque fois qu'elle s'approprie ces grandes œuvres du passé.
My son played this for his senior recital in college (obviously not this well), but I return to her recording to remember the joy of hearing him play. I just told him to stay a bit fresh with it for the next 20 or 30 years so he can play it at my remembrance of life when the day comes. What a passionate and energetic piece to whisk me to the next realm. Of course, he could play this recording. I wouldn't know!
This performance has literally brought tears to my eyes....absolutely sublime music and performance.
I had the same reaction ... and it has been a long time since that happened. Her performance evokes so many adjectives: sublime; impassioned; meditative; powerful; loving to the point of being quasi-orgasmic.
Невероятное по эмоции исполнение! Стихия!!!
Очень искреннее исполнение. Открытая душа. Откровение.
Merveilleuse version, virtuosité, énergie et musicalité hors pair ... un grand moment d'émotion
Beautiful performance of a technically demanding and well thought out transcription of Bach's masterpiece. Use of dynamics and tempi - brilliant. Too romantic? The 19th century happened - get over it. We can never hear 18th century music in the way it was heard at the time. We are no longer naive to large orchestras, advanced chromaticism, progressive tonality etc. We hear with 21st century ears. In-period performances have a role - we can understand the original intentions more. But music isn't about being a train spotter. It cannot be wrong to bring out the beauty of a piece this effectively.
The transcription is from 1891, which is late romantic, and the cusp of the modern/impressionist period.
Yeah you can still listen to the original Ciaconna from Milstein, Hahn, or if you wish, from Rachel Podgers album, a historically informed solo violin performance, for instance. I think this romantic transcription and expansion by Busoni is as beautifully played as it can be the way Grimaud has done. Bravo!
In 2018 Grützmacher's 1895 arrangement of the of Boccherini's Cello Concerto No. 9 in B-flat Major (2nd Movement) was broadcast on BBC Radio3 "In Tune". It was preceded by this conversation between Sean Rafferty (SR) and Julian Lloyd Webber (JLW):
[MY CAPITALS]
SR: "This movement has a very strange history".
JLW: "Grützmacher was himself a great 'cellist. He FIDDLED in a completely POLITICALLY UNACCEPTABLE manner today, in that he STOLE this slow movement from a completely different Boccherini concerto. But of course people used to do those things ....People went out in recital and would play 4 movements by different composers and call it a - sort of - early music suite.....
"But I mean, this piece became very famous, it was the Boccherini B-flat Major Concerto that was PLAYED CONSTANTLY...
"And actually, it has to be said, that since this movement is now NOT ALLOWED, because not only did Grützmacher take it from another Boccherini concerto but he also FIDDLED AROUND with it too - that actually the B-flat concerto is not heard as much as it used to be...
"It's NAUGHTY but it's very nice."
SR: "Naughty but nice, that's all right, we quite like that, a little bit of PILLAGE! So this is the PINCHED MOVEMENT we're getting, isn't it?"
JLW: "It's a beautiful movement."
SR: "Well then we don't need to apologize for anything."
The answer to this conversation is simple: the music.
th-cam.com/video/TwkQHhwDvuU/w-d-xo.html
One of my all time favorite TH-cam comments on the subject
For me the chaconne is bach's greatest achievement and may be music's greatest achievement. The piece is certainly about grieving his wife and the way he received her death and all the contradicting emotions u have when u lose some one dear to you, and the piece has it all: trauma, denial, fury, depression, longing, anger, acceptance, and hope. The way these emotions are expressed and sequenced is out of this world. When brahms stumbled upon this piece he said that bach created a whole world on one tiny instrument. He also said that if it was him that created this composition, the joy and the sense of achievement will possibly drive him mad. It is so sad though to see this piece very underrated.
I disagree. For me The Art of Fugue would have to take the cake.
Who underrates it? Anyone of consequence who has defended that position?
I agree !
@@BecentiComposer I have not checked in Swafford, but you know of something refuting / superseding this?
'On one stave, for a small instrument, the man writes a whole world of the deepest thoughts and most powerful feelings. If I imagined that I could have created, even conceived the piece, I am quite certain that the excess of excitement and earth-shattering experience would have driven me out of my mind.
'
Johannes Brahms, Discussion of the Chaconne in Bach's Partita for Violin #2. Litzman, Berthold (editor). "Letters of Clara Schumann and Johannes Brahms, 1853-1896". Hyperion Press, 1979, p. 16.
For me, it's the Musical Offering. Consider Bach being given a theme, deliberately designed to be almost unworkable by King Fred in an attempt to humble Bach, due to the Kings love of the new and simpler "style galant", as opposed to the complex Baroque fugal style of Bach. And no doubt Bach knew this. So after improvising an amazing 3 part fugue on the spot, Bach then goes home. Then, in a matter of a few weeks, and no doubt working on it part time, given Bach's regular musical duties, creates an incredible suite of pieces all based on the same theme, including an fantastic 6 voice fugue. Then, as a final kick in the ass to King Fred, Bach sent the work back to King Fred, with a seemingly humble dedication to the King. Little did the King know, that if one took the first letter from each word in the dedication, it spelled out "RICERCARE", the old German name for "fugue", a musical form that's pretty much the anti-Style Galant! lol
The Chaconne is not merely a piece of music: It is a statement of universal truth.
Pianiste que je considère comme authentique à tout point de vue. Physiquement, d'abord, très belle naturellement, dans son jeu pianistique également, bref, merveilleuse interprète qui me subjugue à chaque fois!
Playing this piece without partiture is incredible. Awe inspiring 17 minutes
you should checkout Hamelin's perfect execution of Busoni's 70 minute Piano Concerto--unreal that he memorized it all. I'd wager it's nearly impossible today to find anyone else who can do it.
I am s. Koean. This music is absolutely one of a masterpiece among whole music history. greatful, Vast, immense~ my heart is resonate with this. how deep it is...tonight I gonna get sleep with this meanningful music.
+김민철 lifts up our Soul hearing this regularly !
What does your being South Korean have anything to do with this??
Yes I've listened to Korean music and whilst ok it has no depth just tin flute and some sort of guitar on the ground.nothing like the depth of European music
@@ciararespect4296 That´s a very big generalisation.
@@ciararespect4296 that's an incredibly obnoxious (and false) comment
There's no emptiness in life as long as you have this pearl of music to explore.
Nietzsche: "We have art lest we perish of the truth."
L'émotion m'étreint, mes yeux se voilent, si seulement l'humanité effleurait la beauté de cette musique, la beauté de cette femme sous son emprise, alors peut-être ...
Busoni’s Bach arrangements bring out JSB’s glorious harmonies, especially when so effectively played by Hélène Grimaud. A masterful pianist we are privileged to hear. Thank you for bringing us this extraordinary performance.
je ne cesse de regarder depuis des années cette vidéo. Hélène Grimaud y est magnifique, au sommet de son talent.
vraiment. C'est difficile de maintenir ce temp avec expression.
moi aussi, je ne m'en lasse pas
Si vous êtes comme moi, un adepte de la musique de Bach et de toutes les partitions qui s'y rapportent, Chaconne est pour ma part la plus belle transcription que l'on doit à Busoni. On ne compte plus les interprètes. Néanmoins, j'ai une préférence marquée, évidemment pour la version d'Hélène Grimaud, il y a d'autres versions également intéressantes qui ne traduisent pas la même sensibilité que celle-ci: je note personnellement la version de Alexis Weissenberg, celle de Valentina Lisitsa, Alicia Larrocha et Georges Bolet. A vous de vous faire votre propre opinion. Mais merci pour votre commentaire.
Je vous invites a regarder l'interpretation d'Artur Rubinstein
Il y a aussi la version d' Anna Vinnitskaya qui est tout aussi raffinée ! ;-)
Every time I see this video I'm completely blown away by the ease with which Helene plays this gigantic and extremely powerful Bach's piece with such a concise and tender fingering on a steinway & sons grand. She interprets all the piano and forte with such an intense and evocative touch that you really feel elevated to another dimension of overwhelming immensity. Bravo
+marco rosso agree, all misery gone and taken away, there must be a place where pure love exist...
Helene Grimaud is and always will be one of the best. Her expression, power, and delicate touch makes her the complete virtuoso in my book
je ne m'en lasse pas. C'est inouï de beauté. Ici Hélène GRIMAUD atteint le sublime. Avant même le premier accord, la prise de respiration avec ce mouvement du poignet qui bat déjà la mesure est déjà poignante
The visual, the one-shot continuous views 6:04 - 6:50 & 10:03 - 10:53 are amazing. The view rises and lingers in the air as the melody continues.
I think the one-shot is perfect for those two parts alone, as they are the most emotional moments (save the coda).
Merci Helene Grimaud pour cette interpretation. C'est tout simplement merveilleux.
6:03, the change in mood is so compelling, Bach could stand the world on its ear.
And the dynamics throughout the entire piece are riveting. The pianist's ears must be ringing at times.
Busoni wrote FF and even non dim at ending then suddenly wrote tranquillo sehr weich subito and piano. That makes it very dramatic.
So I'm overlooking the artistry of Busoni. Thank you for pointing this out to me.
Swede McGuire that part of the piece is exceptionally hard, it is about 1.5 - 2 mins of Demi-Semi Quavers at around 60 Bpm that is over 480 notes to be played, it is incredibly hard, I have done it on guitar at maybe 400 and that killed, but it didn't get close to the perfection she displays.
@@sniper.93c14 What about the ending?
@@rykehuss3435 Well, since I made that comment I have gotten signficantly better at the piece. My answer would be that it is doable, its more arppegiated and then into pull-off so its not super bad as far as pace goes, its a really beautiful piece, technically very difficult but doable.
I played this work for my graduate performance forty years ago, and many times in different recitals, so I think I know well the Busoni's work.
Is wonderful see how other musicians play the same of you with different conceptions an using always good taste, makes me learn a little more in my piano job.
The interpretation of Miss Grimaud is not only excellent, is a beautiful way to say old words with a new voice.
She has an amazing talent, this is mind blowing, a complex piece that she thakes to heart and projects out like a shower of live. She Is Music
Elsa Canelon pipe down
What nastiness lurks in your soul, troll?
Elsa Canelon Bach is music!
J'écoute ce chef d'oeuvre depuis sa parution sur TH-cam. Hélène Grimaud a consacré son génie d'interprète avec cette pièce ahurissante de Bach réinterprétée par Busoni. Depuis, le nombre d'interprétation n'a cessé de croître sur la toile. J'y reviens régulièrement comme à un premier amour. C'est inoubliable bien que depuis, un certain Daniïl Trifonov a mis la marche encore plus haute avec son interprétation différente, la transcription de Brahms pour main gauche.Il s'agit en réalité de deux morceaux différents la seule chose qui les unit et son géniteur Jean-Sébastien Bach, le plus grand génie musical que la terre ait porté.
Beautifully written.
I keep coming back to Helene's performance of Chaconne! Excellent delivery in every way! I bless God for the day I found this!
This piano really produces a special sound. I've rarely heard such powerful and pure basses on a Steinway!
The peak years for Steinway were 1890-1930. (This opinion is from Theodore Steinway himself!) Actually, the proverb, "Ladies who wear mink *WISH* they were wearing ermine!" can be translated, "Pianists who play a (late-model) Steinway *WISH* they were playing a Bechstein!": th-cam.com/video/pV009Tj5654/w-d-xo.html
I heard her in Nürnberg on a smaller Steinway and her playing was still very clear as you described
Each time I come across this amazing performance I say I'll just listen to a few bars, to remind myself...and then...well 16 minutes of pure heaven.
Thats what happens whenever I listen to Bach. "I'll just listen to this St. Matthew Passion for a bit" then 3 hours later
My late father played this piece in recitals on his violin and I've always tried to play it on the piano and so it was brilliant to hear this. What a performance of a fabulous piece of music. Thank you for sharing
This piece and the way she plays it somehow has the energy of beginning and ending at the same time throughout its entirety! Like the energy of the first 5 bars and past 5 bars of a symphony... The whole time.
Toujours très ému jusqu'aux larmes... Merci Helene pour ce petit cadeau...
What a mastery! What a woman! My heart melts. Life's worth it! Can't find words for this intense music!
Wow!!!!!!!!!!!! Simply no words for Bach, Busoni and this great Grimaud!
Kissin's rendition will always be my favorite but God damn do I thank the Lord for Helene Grimaud. One of the best humanity can produce. So glad I walk the Earth with her and got to see her live
You should also check out Yuri Boukoff's version.
H&H - Helene and Hilary, listen to both! They are great!
How about Hamelin?
Two of my fave performances of this piece
Astoundingly excellent performance capturing the pathos and power of Bach's commemoration of his first wife's death which occurred while he was away. Ms. Grimaud's performance should have received a standing ovation.
I listen to this every time I lose a loved one. Often lately. It expresses how I feel and soothes at the same time.
The section from 9:43 to 12:02 is just impossibly beautiful. I can't imagine anyone could ever play it more gorgeously or sublimely than Helene...
This was written in the aftermath of Bach's wife's death. I always felt the section in D major portrays the composer rising from fitful sleep to play with his children. They sing hymns and lullabies.
@@albertgerheim4149 Thanks for that image. Will try that out in my mind next time I play that part!
Das ist eine göttliche Gabe - so musizieren zu können! Ich höre diese Chaconne, so meisterlich und gefühlvoll vorgetragen mit Tränen in den Augen ... unglaublich! Dazu dieser fantastische Sound eines Steinway & Sons Flügels - herrlich!
merci Madame, je suis en fin de vie et c"est..; que dire? top !!!!!merci....
I happened to come across Helene Grimaud last night playing Bach Busoni-Chaconne version of piano piece, which I am VERY familiar with Violin version played by Hilary Hahn. In fact I was surprised that there was a piano music. I am also deeply impressed by this pianist. Absolutely superb. Now she is one of my favorite pianist. Mike from California
What a masterful performance of this great work by Bach-Busoni for piano! Worth living for in a world gone mad!
I fully agree with you, Mr. Smith!
I've listened to several people play this on youtube. Helene is the best. Amazing 6:03 in the video is when you can really see where she sets herself apart from her competition with this piece. Simply perfect. Flowing like water.
Great description it sounds like rainfall on a cabin’s tin roof in the forest. I had open my eyes to see if she’d been joined by a second pianist only to see both her hands playing the same eight keys. Pure magic.
I hear this again and again. She shows the so deep understanding everywhere making listening is magic.
2020 brasil
That performance made Bach proud of Helene's effort and accomplishment. Stupendous!
Первый раз слышу это произведение в фортепианном варианте. И снова торжество гармонии и красоты. Завораживает. Спасибо.
14:18 is one of the greatest textures achieved on the piano!
I agree!
truly. and the build-up to it using the beautiful, sonorous, bell-like tones starting at around 13:50 is masterful
@@nielsenja The build-up is heart wrenching, and the ending barrage completely washes over you leaving you utterly drained. What magnificent performance
As one who attempts to play the piano I can say that the skill and talent of concert pianists is unfathomable to me. They have their own wiring.
I wonder if they practice, practice, practice and then it just comes naturally after a time with talent and hard work.
The soul of the Western music in her hands.
Это просто божественно...монуметнально...нет слов, чтобы предать все чувства от услышанного. БРАВО!
Гений Баха, талант Бузони, прекрасное исполнение Гримо создают впечатляющий образец музыкального искусства. Спасибо!
I can't believe that two months ago I neither knew nor had heard this piece of music. Now, I listen to this youtube several times every day and pieces of it repeat in my mind. I see the lady playing, my eyes tell me she is playing, but a part of my brain refuses to believe that any one can play with such virtuosity, precision and emotion. I am deeply indebted to Helene Grimaud, Busoni and, of course, The Great Master, Johann Sebastian.
David Siddorn i discovered this interpretation today! Amazing
Likewise, didn't know the music, didn't even know the pianist. Now I can't stop listening to what for me is great music'
This is one of legendary classic performances. Every note played perfectly for 15 minutes. Imagine this as a studio recording on DG label.
I disagree. Some of the notes are less than 15 minutes..
That intro though...how can something be so hauntingly beautiful?
H. Grimaud transfers her sensitive empathy, expressiveness and fantasy in this outstanding performance.
Simply Wonderful...
The first piece of classical music I was exposed to was Beethoven's symphony no. 6 that my mother would play almost daily . After noticing that I preferred classical music to any other, my father bought me a CD of a selection of Bach's music. The first piece on it was the Chaconne performed by orchestra conducted by Stokowski. I remember the experience as almost religious, nearly a revelation from God, and being incredibly moved to the point of shedding tears at the section occurring at 11:10 here. From then on, despite my love for Beethoven and, later, Mozart, it was Bach alone that wrote the music that described the harmony of the universe for me.
I’m sure I watched and listened to this a thousand times already. And it’s not enough. It’s on my permanent listen loop and I can’t get enough of it. Simply amazing.
Without taking anything at all away from this amazing performance, I must say that this is one of the very most wonderful sounding pianos I have ever heard!
Those bass notes at the end sound incredible
very true and it must be the space/room also into which the sound (steinway ? ) is projected
Yes, I can see the Steinway & Sons inscription on the front of the instrument.
Those ending chords are BRUTAL!
And she plays them with max. strength!
Words cannot touch the meaning and feeling of this piece. But Helene Grimaud did. For me Busoni did a tremendously good job here. So impressive.
I always come back to this rendition, she has such a profound understanding of the architecture and solidity that have to sustain such massive polyphonic piece; her sound control and concentration is brilliant; the entire piece does not loose intensity throughout the entire duration quite on contrary - it intensifies through a gradual emotional crescendo. Technical brilliance is notable yet completely secondary to the sound richness and her curated emotional ambit. I love her artistry.
Probably the best piece of music ever written, I was shocked when I first heard it.
What a great pianist and performance. Such a divine music. Absolutely perfection. Thank God that this world had geniuses such as Bach to compose the pieces like this. ❤️
Attempting to learn this piece. Honestly, it's the hardest I've tried to play by far, which only makes this much more amazing. This version is truly a masterpiece.
did you learn it
Chopins First ballade was definetly harder. Just finished it
irrelevant for now I’m learning that currently the ballade is so nice I might try learn this once I finish the ballade nice to hear it’s easier than the ballade lol
Assieme a Benedetti Michelangeli , credo sia uno dei vertici nell'interpretazione di questo capolavoro.
Il riverbero che prelude al silenzio, nelle ultime note, è qualcosa che mi fa tremare dal profondo, da sempre. Grazie.
All things considered, herself and others, this is Helen's the BEST recital.
A masterpiece from the heart of a genius traveled the times and delivered to us by this talented and beautiful woman... Added to my Favorites. Two thumbs UP.
I am stunned; the best piano performance I have ever heard; incredible
There are many interpretations of the Chaconne in piano but this one has that something that keeps me coming back to hear it over and over...and the ending has so much strength, it sends chills through my back. Well done Helene.
The ending is absolute power and emotion. Never heard anything so powerful played on the piano.
Una pianista dalla sensibilità raffinata e sofferta! Sempre deliziosa.
Somptueuse interprétation qui révèle dans une toute nouvelle lumière, par la raffinée beauté des sons, la vraie grandeur de cette oeuvre
I have heard a lot of great pianists perform this piece, but hers is still my favorite. I love her so much!
So lucky to have Bach
This is the piece that proves J S bach was 'the daddy' of them all. . Just perfect from beginning to end. I love it on classical guitar too where it works so well. nice to hear it get the huge dynamic treatment the grand piano affords. What a beautiful performance and video.
Indeed.Possibly superior to Beethoven pathetique and moonlight no 3
Hélène Grimaud - is my favorite pianist! Hands down!!!
Più lo ascolto e più lo trovo superlativo. Grandioso
the man who arranged this was insane and people who play it are even more! awesome...
She is quite remarkable, stunning. She gives to this piece another wonderful dimension .
This is one of the most beautifully pieces of music I have ever heard. Grimaud has been my favorite pianist for years. She is just special. She's wonderful with concertos too. Beethoven's 4th piano concerto and Brahms' 2nd are on TH-cam. Very beautiful.
Indeed.Mozarts requiem is well known but channel is not for some reason.
Every human emotion and specially so many shades of anguish are expressed in this masterpiece ...mind boggling,
Un des plus beaux toucher de piano qui soit avec cette délicatesse et sensibilité qui lui est propre....Merci !
Recordings of pieces, and especially breathtaking interpretations such as these, make me truly appeciate the luxury that is on-demand video platforms. It would break my heart to have heard this in concert and to never be able to dissolve in the sound of it again. For the short time that I've known this piece, it has quickly risen to one of my most favorite.
What wouldn't I give to reach this level of technical expertise and emotional expression!
Wonderful interpretation, because it was'nt rushed Helene gave a very defined and heartfelt performance.
A thoughtful, passionate performance that captures both the romanticism of the transcription and the rigor of Bach's polyphony in the original
This is just amazing... I know this piece but i always hesitated to listen to any Bach- transcriptions. Well, clearly i was wrong. Busoni did a fabulous job here. And the incredible performance just lights up the music.
The huge sweep of feelings Ms Grimaud brings forward in this performance is overwhelming. With no exaggeration or excess she moves from tenderness to ferocity to joy to calm to urgency to profundity with a greater sense of understanding than in any other version I have heard. I would go too far were I to say that I prefer this to Bach's original (Vengerov's rendering is particularly fine) Bach, after all, is incomparable, but this transcription is sublime and this performance fully does it justice. Her small smile as she acknowledges the audience suggests she knows she has just achieved something close to perfection.
Such a unique performance... It feels like it is healing you inside, somehow, when you listen it to the end. I feel lucky to be born in this era and listen it even through a video. Thank you helene for all your effort and choosing this piece. Lots of love and respect from turkey