Ahahahah da ZLICK WILLY 
1 Like
Tis well known ztory, pozz Schiff even, but not zure.
Bronfman ranks da salonen as da hardest thing he’s played.
This dude makes all da usual points
https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-most-difficult-piano-concerto-to-perform
1 Like
hahaha da 
can zurely do diz at twice da zpeed with hiz ZHOCKAH TECH
1 Like
Ahahahahah da tru judge of difficulty
iz da zepp fakerudy tezt
Wiz da BART 2, da zepp iz 99% cuntfident in cumbatin any fakerudy wiz full blown impro-rape
I iz only 70% cuntfident doin diz wiz da PRICK 2 or 3
N barely 40-50% cuntfidence level wiz any ROCK cunc except da 4
I randomly understand sir zepp & TM. Prokofiev is more direct, charismatic, colourful - and I do think he was a better composer. Bartok is a lot harder to get in to, and instead of direct/charismatic/colourful what you’re faced with at first hearing is often rather something barren, cold and constructed. For me the performer has been crucial in his music - it’s not so much about giving it time and repeated hearings as in finding a good recording.
2 Likes
For the solo piano music I like Kocsis.
Bartok’s piano concertos aren’t difficult music IMO. The string quartets are more experimental IMO
2 Likes
Da HO randomly neva explored da barcock rep n wuz not sorry
Well that’s a very subjective statement.
To me, Bartok’s best works can be as “direct, charismatic and colourful” as Prokofiev’s or even more so. I have never thought of his best works as cold and artificial, on the contrary several of Prokofiev’s late works seem much more “constructed” and cold to me, lacking real inspiration.
I think both are important. You need to listen a lot before you can decide whether it’s a good performance or not. From the 1950s onwards, there was a tendency to eliminate all expressive freedom and idiosyncrasies and to play more “objectively”. Bartók’s music suffered because of that approach…when you listen to his own playing, it’s obvious that he came directly from the Liszt school, he played with more freedom and warmth than what you would expect in his own music, if you only know modern performances. But most importantly, it has a clear sense of direction by the way he shapes the musical phrases. Apart from Bart himself, I keep saying that Gyorgy Sandor was one of the best advocates of his piano music.
But yeah I’m aware that to many musicians, random Bartok (his musical “language”) is harder to “get into” than random Prokofiev, but it also depends a lot on what particular work you are listening to. I’m not making a statement about who of the two is greater or whose music is “better”, personally I love both.
Da 88’s “Bartok fo stahtahz” list:
- Rumanian Folk Dances
- 2 Romanian Dances
- Suite Opus 14
- Sonata for Two Pianos and Percussion
- Trio “Contrasts”
- Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta
- Piano Concerto No. 3
- The Wooden Prince
I don’t think “Mikrokosmos” represents Bartok at his best, apart from some pieces in book VI. It’s just like with Prokofiev’s music for children, these works are written with a particular educational purpose in mind and can sound a bit “academic”.
2 Likes
I have a really wtf relationship with Bartok.
Love some things, others just completely over my head. It’s not a language thing I don’t think. Concerto for orchestra (one of his most accessible) took quite a few goes to get into wheres as I loved miraculous mandarin (one of his hardest) from the start. Dont really like the sonata but like and played out of doors.
Heard takacs fo a few string quartets and totally over my head. Not really any other composer that does this to me.
1 Like
2nd violin concerto is a masterpiece, imo.
2 Likes
How could I forget that…yeah, one of my fav. Bartok noizes, too.
hhahaha tru thiz iz lykly mah fav zheeyat by tha mofo 
1 Like
What do you guys think of the concerto for orchestra? I’ll be hearing it next thursday live
Does that imply most of the work is actually done by a piano, just as when they name something a “piano concerto” and you end up listening to a giant orchestra?
If not I think it’s a bad composition. Poorly instrumented - a composer with dubious taste.
Lol
It’s like a normal orchestral piece but with «solo»-sections for each instrumental group. Thereby making it a «concerto» for orchestra
I’ve honestly never heard it, but a friend in California traveled all the way to Vienna (?) to hear Mariss Jansons conduct it a number of years ago so it must surely be something out of the ordinary.
It’s an incredible composition, and probably one of his more accessible works. Have a listen:
5 Likes
Start with the last movement 
Anyone who’s seen the Shining has already been exposed to the brilliance of his Music for Strings, Percussion, and Celeste.
2 Likes