Classical Cocaine

[Prismatic Sphere]

Alright, this is a thread of inhuman feats in classical music. Virtuosity. Simple as that.
If you wanna post your favorite garden variety pieces, there is another thread for that somewhere.

This thread is for sheer musical athleticism and still being able to pull it all off well(and with passion as well).

For the first snort of classical coke(notice that in both clips, the white keys are in straight vertical lines), I'd like to introduce Valentina Lisitsa playing this impossible Ravel piece:

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VBgwk98ZPuI&feature=player_embedded[/ame]

And for the other nostril:




That final minute will leave you wanting more and a cigarette; JUST LIKE THE REAL THING!

 

[Marwen]

^ Perfection.

First of all, Paganini. Played by the man who, in my opinion, plays Paganini the best: The great Itzhak Perlman.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uCePRgqO-HI&feature=related[/ame]

My favorite interpretation of Tchaikovsky's genius, "Piano Concerto No 1" (a part of it anyway), played by Lang Lang:



And check out this cool jazzy variation of Paganini's 24th caprice by this brilliant Turkish virtuoso:

 

[Prismatic Sphere]

Nice Caprices.^

Disappointing(and not surprising) that there aren't more entries.
<sigh>

Anyway.......

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gUij8FCg0z8&feature=player_embedded[/ame]

 

[donKyle]

Like this? It's Fantasia for Saxophone by Claude T. Smith. Performed by Otis Murphy. I don't know who the accompaniment is.

I'm going to start working on this piece this summer

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sx0jwZvwmfg&feature=related[/ame]

 

[Prismatic Sphere]

Not bad maestro.


Nor is

this.........

 

[Marwen]

I saw this scene on "The Red Violin" movie once:



Chopin...

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZTjJjda31rc&feature=relmfu[/ame]

Fazil Say's take on Beethoven:

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sS4F1Y6R134&feature=related[/ame]

this cool jazzy variation of Paganini's 24th caprice by this brilliant Turkish virtuoso

And on that same note:

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KR5psCTnmVk&NR=1[/ame]

 

[Metalman7983]

Balakirev's Islamey considered one of the hardest piano pieces every written.




Beethoven's piano sonata 17 Tempest is an awesome late early period piece.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sgub-BaTQvs&feature=related[/ame]

 

[Xtopher]

http://youtu.be/kFaq9kTlcaY

 

[Marwen]

Hilary Hahn <3

She truly gets Bach, which makes her interpretations some of the best.



[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g9hWvLnCVL0&feature=related[/ame]

 

[metalxmetalx]

J. Sagreras El Colibri

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ALy-hvtCYz0"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ALy-hvtCYz0[/ame]

 

[Cogluotobusisletmesi]

Balakirev's Islamey considered one of the hardest piano pieces every written.

False.

For the record, Clarence Barlow's "Cogluotobusisletmesi" is the most difficult piece of solo piano music, ever.

Others come close though, Richard Barrett's "Tract", Zimmerman's "Wustenwanderung", Xenakis' "Synaphai", etc.

Now, for starters....



Keep in mind that is a three minute section of a piece that lasts over 5 hours.

Also, El Colibri is laughable. The most difficult piece of music for the solo guitar has to be Sven-David Sandstrom's "Away From".



[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QWnUqXH3f2E&feature=related[/ame]

Other pieces such as "Kurze Schatten II" and "I Giardini del Sogno" may be more difficult rhythmically, but Away From is almost physically impossible to perform.

Berio's "Sequenza XI" and some of Yamashita's transcriptions are also honorable mentions.

If the other pieces in this thread are cocaine, these are DMT.

 

[Lagtastic]

Rostropovich!

Dance of the Elves.






Long time forum reader, massive SX fan, first time poster. Couldn't resist posting Dance of the Elves.

 

[Marwen]

An INSANE variation of Mozart's Turkish March.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j1fgo7hp-Ko&feature=feedlik[/ame]