Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Pianist Corner Ingrid Fliter

Saw her in a performance last evening. Bach, Chopin, Schumann with Chopin and Schubert as encores (Schubert Impromptu #2, which happens to be a piece my wife is learning). Her playing was technically near perfection (maybe perfect, but I rarely use that term).

I felt her performance was uninspired. All references to her include "young" which she is compared to me, but at 35 she should be more artistically developed (passion?) then I felt she displayed. Or maybe one can still develop and by her 40s this may not be valid.

Or maybe she didn't have a great night, or maybe I'm just wrong.

All that said, I would go to another of her concerts if I ever have another opportunity.

I've had the same reaction to her playing. I heard her recording of the Chopin Ballades, and it was bland. It definitely wasn't what I was expecting after reading an interview with her in which she was saying that her last teacher was working with her to help her find her own colour. I would say she hasn't found it yet.

It makes me wonder why she is regarded as such a good artist?

Very interesting - I have COMPLETELY the opposite impression of her; both times I have heard her were probably the two single most inspired performances I've ever seen given, by anyone, anywhere. And technically, she was defefinetely not on the solid side either time.

I admit, however, that her recent EMI Chopin recording is a bit on the bland side, and was a dissapointment compared to hearing her play those works live. I post becuase I will hear her again, for a third time on Saturday, and will post my reactions again.

Perhaps she was having an off night... ?

I've seen some "not the greatest" performances by her on YouTube, but in the past, I've heard some awesome live recordings on the radio and from other random places on the Internet. Those were not the same Fliter from YouTube.

I've never seen her live, but I would definitely jump on the opportunity to see her perform.

She ranked 2nd at the 2000 International Chopin Competition. One competition doesn't make or break you, but some big names have come out of the top 2 spots of the Chopin, including Ashkenazy, Pollini, Uchida, Argerich, Ohlsson, Zimerman...

Unless she completely lost her inspiration, I'm sure she still has some good performances left in her.

Daniel

I just saw this review and am quoting w/o permission:

"Ingrid Fliter just finished her recital at the Herbst slightly over an hour ago, the best effort of her three appearances here. It's more and more clear now, why she is shaping up to become a major player while the other two of the Chopin top three that year have so far failed to do so."

I love a quote from Artur Rubinstein from a interview he did when he was 90. He basically says modern players are all about technique and not making a mistake and he always asked them "when will you start to play music?" Perhaps this is true of Ms (Mrs) Fliter also? Or perhaps she just had an off night.

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=3Tk6k92H7RQ

If that's just all technique and no music, then I don't have much to say.
Watch that video. Could you play that music with greater beauty, sensitivity, and feeling?

This seems to imply that the other 2 performances weren't up to that one. As I said in my original post, maybe she was having an off day.

Seeing that I would have to agree with you. I hadn't seen/ heard her before and was going on earlier comments which reminded me of Rubinsteins quote. As in Thank you for posting that video.

I've heard her play twice and.. maybe she wasn't (as people here previously suggested)having a great night. I absolutely denounce her use of pedal particularly in Chopin. She does not have a pleasant tone and lacks musicality. Bart I suppose in the piano world anyone who is not 75 is going to be advertised as a young new talent...

Gee, then that would include me (just barely)!

wow...just....wow.......the difference people hear in things.

A fine example of what I was talking about in my earlier post. That's superb playing.

I think her Chopin competition recording is better than this one. (But it's hard to have a nice tone on YouTube.)

In addition, I'd like to point toward

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JgzSxtn3ciM

which I think is just an amazing performance/interpretation of the work.

She was in SF middle of last week and the reaction was the same as above (bland, uninspired) and to my piano player mind, she did not play a particularly taxing program. All modesty aside, I could have done it...she gave us about 40%. She played with the SFS last year and did pretty well - they really liked her then, don't know what happened...

So at fifty-something, there's still hope for me !

I'd like to see you try. Do you have a youtube channel?

That's an interesting statement. I think I'd consider Yundi Li (the winner) to be a major player, and Alexander Kobrin (3rd place, although his career also took off because of the Cliburn) to be a major player also...

Ingrid Fliter is somewhat overrated and plays abover her league. This is the impression I had when I heard her at Wigmore Hall. Somehow the fact that she is Argentinian, got a prize
at the Chopin Competition and has good marketing created the delusion the she may be a worthy successor of another Argentinian pianist. She showed limited instrumental ability nor inspiration.