Everyone play nice
Ongoing, until May 15: the Van Cliburn YouTube Contest for amateur pianists. The Van Cliburn Foundation, apart from holding their usual high-profile competition for professionals, runs an International Piano Competition for Outstanding Amateurs every few years, and the winner of this YouTube event is automatically entered into the live Competition, to be next held in 2011.
You too can view and vote for your favorite amateur pianist via this link; it's a great idea, a great use of this interactive technology to support musical activity. When I idly took a look at the YouTube page, the amateur pianist the third video down (Christopher Shih, MD), rang a bell. Days later, I received an alert from one of the many online social networking sites to which I belong (yes, I'm a big geek, what can I say...) that Christopher Shih wanted to add me to his friend list, and I put two and two together. Chris and I went to Harvard together - he was a hotshot pianist then, a successful gastroenterologist now. But he hasn't given up music and has performed in (and won!) various amateur piano competitions.
Watching those amateur videos is a true pleasure, and if you find yourself having half an hour to spare, I encourage you to take a look. The concentration and commitment put into each performance is absolutely palpable - and a few sound near-professional!
You too can view and vote for your favorite amateur pianist via this link; it's a great idea, a great use of this interactive technology to support musical activity. When I idly took a look at the YouTube page, the amateur pianist the third video down (Christopher Shih, MD), rang a bell. Days later, I received an alert from one of the many online social networking sites to which I belong (yes, I'm a big geek, what can I say...) that Christopher Shih wanted to add me to his friend list, and I put two and two together. Chris and I went to Harvard together - he was a hotshot pianist then, a successful gastroenterologist now. But he hasn't given up music and has performed in (and won!) various amateur piano competitions.
Watching those amateur videos is a true pleasure, and if you find yourself having half an hour to spare, I encourage you to take a look. The concentration and commitment put into each performance is absolutely palpable - and a few sound near-professional!
Labels: contemporary culture, music and technology
posted by Sarah at
8:19 PM
1 Comments:
I have been in the Amateur Competition twice, in 2003 and 2005. I made it to the semi-finals in 2003 and won an award for most original programming in 2005. I am planning to enter the 2009 and 2010 you tube competitions and the 2011 Van Cliburn Amateur. My repertoire will be the Copland Piano Sonata and Piano Variations, and the Prokofiev Piano Sonata No.8.
Darin Tysdal
Bloomington, MN
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