# The most bizzare classical music youtube channel I've ever seen



## violadude (May 2, 2011)

Hi guys, just a weird, funny thread here, but I wanted to bring to your attention the weirdest classical music oriented channel I've ever seen. His name is Grahm Jeacocke. And his channel has an obsessive amount of videos where he badly sight reads seemingly anything he can get his hands on...that includes all of Beethoven's piano sonatas, string quartets (transcribed), Bach Cantatas (transcribed)...anything. It's super weird...like...why? I don't know why you would obsessively upload videos of yourself badly sight reading. At first I wasn't sure whether to feel admiration that he is brave enough to upload videos of him playing horribly...or pity. But when I read one of his youtube comments, and realized how arrogantly delusional he is about his abilities as a pianist, I decided it was the latter...

Here's his massive Beethoven playlist:






And for a little offbeat fun, here's his Medtner playlist:


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## SimonDekkerLinnros (Jun 15, 2016)

Oh god. How did you find this?


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## Pugg (Aug 8, 2014)

SimonDekkerLinnros said:


> Oh god. How did you find this?


Sometimes it's better not to know .


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## Chromatose (Jan 18, 2016)

I don't know if your aware but he has Aspergers syndrome, I don't know if that is an excuse to be arrogant but some people would probably be outraged and say your picking on a mentally handicapped person... I'm not saying that I just think you didn't know he was.


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## DeepR (Apr 13, 2012)

I figured something like that. Well, as long as it keeps him busy.
I can hardly sightread at all, but I'd rather play one short piece really well, than an entire catalogue like this.


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## Nereffid (Feb 6, 2013)

The world is full of people who aren't us.


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## violadude (May 2, 2011)

Chromatose said:


> I don't know if your aware but he has Aspergers syndrome, I don't know if that is an excuse to be arrogant but some people would probably be outraged and say your picking on a mentally handicapped person... I'm not saying that I just think you didn't know he was.


Yup, didn't know that. You know him personally? Or are there tell-tale signs?


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## violadude (May 2, 2011)

Nereffid said:


> The world is full of people who aren't us.


Woah, so insightful...


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## Nereffid (Feb 6, 2013)

violadude said:


> Woah, so insightful...


You're welcome. :tiphat:


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## Pugg (Aug 8, 2014)

violadude said:


> Yup, didn't know that. You know him personally? Or are there tell-tale signs?


My first thoughts exactly.


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## kartikeys (Mar 16, 2013)

While I didn't see his videos, 
I take from it a certain persistence. Go 
on with what you like, with whatever mind 
or resources at your disposal - A personal 
learning for me.


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## Yombie (Jun 16, 2016)

Chromatose said:


> I don't know if your aware but he has Aspergers syndrome, I don't know if that is an excuse to be arrogant but some people would probably be outraged and say your picking on a mentally handicapped person... I'm not saying that I just think you didn't know he was.


I have aspergers and suffer from schizotypal. It's never an excuse. You can be inspiring and motivating without due harm, but the moment you start being disingenuous is the moment you start endorsing and entertaining their neuroses and or psychoses. Just because someone is disabled doesn't mean people have to cater and patronize them. The caliber for what is construed as good music is outside the realms of what you bring into it and should be judged on it's own merits.

To be honest though, learning myself, I find that criticism and critique is about the only time I can make any meaningful progressions.

With that said, I can hardly even read notation, guy does okay. Maybe if he trusted his ears over his eyes.....


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## WaterRat (May 19, 2015)

violadude said:


> Yup, didn't know that. You know him personally? Or are there tell-tale signs?


It's on the third line of his bio ('About').


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## SimonNZ (Jul 12, 2012)

Does "sight read" here mean that he's trying each of these works for the very first time? What does it usually sound like when a pianist goes right through a work for the first time to get a sense of it?

I actually find it quite interesting to see what, of works I'm only familiar with from heavily rehearsed professionals, comes easy and what is tricky at a first pass.


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## millionrainbows (Jun 23, 2012)

violadude said:


> Hi guys, just a weird, funny thread here, but I wanted to bring to your attention the weirdest classical music oriented channel I've ever seen. His name is Grahm Jeacocke. And his channel has an obsessive amount of videos where he badly sight reads seemingly anything he can get his hands on...that includes all of Beethoven's piano sonatas, string quartets (transcribed), Bach Cantatas (transcribed)...anything. It's super weird...like...why? I don't know why you would obsessively upload videos of yourself badly sight reading. At first I wasn't sure whether to feel admiration that he is brave enough to upload videos of him playing horribly...or pity. But when I read one of his youtube comments, and realized how arrogantly delusional he is about his abilities as a pianist, I decided it was the latter...
> 
> Here's his massive Beethoven playlist:
> 
> ...


Do you get some sort of 'buzz' in 'outing' this person? Do you now feel righteously justified? I guess this proves that you are normal, and he is not.


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## musicrom (Dec 29, 2013)

SimonNZ said:


> Does "sight read" here mean that he's trying each of these works for the very first time? What does it usually sound like when a pianist goes right through a work for the first time to get a sense of it?
> 
> I actually find it quite interesting to see what, of works I'm only familiar with from heavily rehearsed professionals, comes easy and what is tricky at a first pass.


Valentina Lisitsa posted a video on Youtube of her learning to play Addinsell's Warsaw Concerto for the first time. As far as I can tell, she hadn't seen the score yet, but she familiarized herself with the music prior to playing it for the first time. It's over 3 hours, but you can look at her first attempt around 4:30.


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## violadude (May 2, 2011)

millionrainbows said:


> Do you get some sort of 'buzz' in 'outing' this person? Do you now feel righteously justified? I guess this proves that you are normal, and he is not.


He outed himself. I'm just on his promotional team.


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## Antiquarian (Apr 29, 2014)

I listened to some of his interpretations. Having heard so many interpretations that strive for perfection, I found it refreshing (well, perhaps not refreshing, but certainly relevatory) to hear one that is not mainstream (even avant-garde). But then again, perhaps I am a bit jaded, and found novelty in his playing that just wasn't there. In any case, his playing did make me smile. Not many things do these days.


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