# Mitsuko Uchida



## Captainnumber36 (Jan 19, 2017)

What do you all think of her playing? I find her touch too harsh for long durations where it isn't called for in the music. Am I completely off in saying that, or do others have similar impressions on her interpretations?

I've listened mostly to her Mozart.


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## Guest (Mar 15, 2018)

Captainnumber36 said:


> What do you all think of her playing? I find her touch too harsh for long durations where it isn't called for in the music. Am I completely off in saying that, or do others have similar impressions on her interpretations?
> 
> I've listened mostly to her Mozart.


It's painful to watch her with her facial contortions and super mannered approach. I avoid wherever possible. It's all so precious and museum.


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## Captainnumber36 (Jan 19, 2017)

Christabel said:


> It's painful to watch her with her facial contortions and super mannered approach. I avoid wherever possible. It's all so precious and museum.


Basically how I sum her up as well.


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## Melvin (Mar 25, 2011)

I've heard some striking Mozart Sonatas played by Uchida on the radio a number of times, and they've always impressed me, so I've always considered her a distinguished pianist.
The only Uchida CD I own is the Schoenberg Piano Concerto conducted by Pierre Boulez, which is an indispensable recording.


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## Bulldog (Nov 21, 2013)

I have all her Mozart recordings, and I don't find her harsh at all. As for facial expressions, there aren't any on a cd.


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## Phil loves classical (Feb 8, 2017)

I have a few of her Mozart sonatas and heard a few of her Mozart concertos. I think she is a good Mozartean.


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## Captainnumber36 (Jan 19, 2017)

It could be that I'm mostly listening to low quality youtube videos.


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## Captainnumber36 (Jan 19, 2017)

Then again, I've heard low quality Brendel videos, and I love his Haydn and Mozart Piano Sonatas.


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## Pugg (Aug 8, 2014)

Her Debussy etudes on Philips and her Mozart piano concertos ( first recording with Tate ) will last a lifetime .


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## Captainnumber36 (Jan 19, 2017)

Her playing just ins't silky smooth the way I would like it to be, or something!


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## Guest (Mar 15, 2018)

Captainnumber36 said:


> Her playing just ins't silky smooth the way I would like it to be, or something!


You'd avoid Richter like the plague if it was 'smooth and silky' that you're after!!


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## Captainnumber36 (Jan 19, 2017)

Christabel said:


> You'd avoid Richter like the plague if it was 'smooth and silky' that you're after!!


But, I actually really love his Beethoven!


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## Pugg (Aug 8, 2014)

Captainnumber36 said:


> Her playing just ins't silky smooth the way I would like it to be, or something!


Did you ever hear the Debussy recording?


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## Captainnumber36 (Jan 19, 2017)

Pugg said:


> Did you ever hear the Debussy recording?


I'll take a listen tomorrow.


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## Melvin (Mar 25, 2011)

You know what I'm going to get some Uchida CDs from the library, they have the Debussy etudes on philips.

I distinctly remember where I was driving and what the sunlight felt like when a heard a certain Mozart sonata being played on the radio, I was quite enamored with the playing... I found out her name, but I still don't know which sonata it was.


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## Myriadi (Mar 6, 2016)

I love Uchida's Schubert. Very unorthodox at times, but I grew to like her interpretations so much I have a hard time listening to other pianists. And her Debussy etudes are the best I've heard. I really don't care for her Mozart, though. I've tried listening to both the classic concerto set and her latest one (where she both plays the piano and conducts) and they just don't do anything for me.


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## bharbeke (Mar 4, 2013)

I have not heard here play very much, but I do like her Mozart piano concertos, especially No. 22. She also does a great job on Mozart's Piano Sonata K 284c/K 311.


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## Mandryka (Feb 22, 2013)

Captainnumber36 said:


> I find her touch too harsh for long durations where it isn't called for in the music. Am I completely off in saying that,


Yes I think you are, but I really think the least you could do if you're going to make a claim like that is give some examples.


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## BiscuityBoyle (Feb 5, 2018)

The Debussy etudes is a very problematic interpretation. She cloaks this very complex, very modern music in the kind of Romantic emotionalism that makes it easier to digest, but if you know this music well, all those sudden spasmodic expressive jerks she injects feel fundamentally out of place. There are many better recordings, not least Rosen, Haas, Helffer and Bonaventura.

But the best one must be the classic 1957 recording by Anatoly Vedernikov, whose two-piano partner Sviatoslav Richter raved about it in his diaries. Vedernikov's tonal and technical control are absolutely superb, and he lets the music breath and speak instead of emoting all over it. Most importantly, Uchida's interpretation strips this music of abstraction, which is one of its most important properties (and which makes it more complex than, say, the Preludes or Images); whereas Vedernikov is a master of the abstract.


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## Captainnumber36 (Jan 19, 2017)

Mandryka said:


> Yes I think you are, but I really think the least you could do if you're going to make a claim like that is give some examples.


Just listen to any of her Mozart. She doesn't seem to be as precise with her dynamics as Brendel.


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## Captainnumber36 (Jan 19, 2017)

Pugg said:


> Did you ever hear the Debussy recording?


These are sounding great!


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## Mandryka (Feb 22, 2013)

Captainnumber36 said:


> Just listen to any of her Mozart. She doesn't seem to be as precise with her dynamics as Brendel.


I don't know the Mozart very well, but I remember being very impressed by 511 and PC 24, more so than Brendel's in the case of the concerto.

I thought your beef was about touch rather than dynamics.


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## Captainnumber36 (Jan 19, 2017)

Mandryka said:


> I don't know the Mozart very well, but I remember being very impressed by 511 and PC 24, more so than Brendel's in the case of the concerto.
> 
> I thought your beef was about touch rather than dynamics.


Don't they go hand in hand?


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## eugeneonagain (May 14, 2017)

I have no bad words for Uchida. She has a very wide repertoire and is accomplished at them. She is a good interpreter of Beethoven, of Debussy (as mentioned) and modernist works. I have a few CDs of her playing Mozart sonatas and miscellaneous works and they are marvellous. She also seems to be a modest and pleasant person.

If I was only a hundredth as good as Uchida I'd be happy.


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## Mandryka (Feb 22, 2013)

Captainnumber36 said:


> Don't they go hand in hand?


Well not as far as I can see, no.


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## Kieran (Aug 24, 2010)

I like the Dame. I second what's been said above also, that she seems a modest and pleasant person. I've watched talks she's given on YouTube, and a masterclass on Mozart and Beethoven, and she's very expressive and witty, and not too attached to her own opinion.

I love her style of playing. It never seems to be about her, but all about the music she's playing. I appreciate that lack of intrusiveness. And she's a great Mozartean, which always makes me appreciate her even more...


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## KJ von NNJ (Oct 13, 2017)

I have always liked Uchida. She has a lyrical and flowing style. Very musical with excellent timing when it comes to dynamics. Her Beethoven Hammerklavier is a great recording of that very demanding piece. I have seen her live twice. Both were Beethoven concerto's 3 and 4. She played with marvelous flair and finesse on both occasions. 
Her Schubert is a bit more atmospheric and dreamy sounding than several other pianists. Her recording of the Impromptus is my favorite of all. Listening to Schubert's piano sonata's requires a patience not too much unlike listening to Bruckner's symphonies. Some may think her approach a bit too reverent or precious, which I understand to a certain extent. If one listens to her talk about the music, her description makes her interpretive judgement clear as a bell. Her 960 is wonderful. 
I have all of her Mozart sonata's and I find them to be graceful, descriptive and dynamic. She was younger when she recorded them and they have a certain sexy feminine vigour to them. I never tire of listening to them. She utilizes the pedals perfectly while keeping her technical brilliance in check, so as not to make them sound too analytical. It's beautiful, emotive and natural.
As for her Mozart concerto survey with Jeffrey Tate and the ECO, I find them to be variable to my tastes. I confess to liking a bit more of a heavier hand to the Mozart concertos. I like Brendel and Ashkenazy's approach. All the same, her PC17 is my favorite of that piece. Her 13 and 14 are really good too. I also like her 9, 22, 23 and 24. I have not heard all of them.
I also enjoy her Schumann, Schoenberg and Debussy. 
Yes, the facial expressions can be too much for some but I love to watch her perform. She has style, grace and humanity about her. A regal but not stuffy personna. She exudes a kind of spiritual grace that one can hear in her playing. Her Schubert is a good example of this, especially the 1st movement of sonata 960. 
She also has a massive intellect that equals her soulful passion when discussing music.


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## Captainnumber36 (Jan 19, 2017)

Mandryka said:


> Well not as far as I can see, no.


I think we need to define our terms:

Touch: How staccato any given note in a piece is on the spectrum of staccato during a given performance.
Dynamics: Volume of any given note in a piece during a given performance.

When I say they go hand in hand together, I mean, to have a successful performance, one must have a good understanding of how these two elements work together in the piece to bring out all it's flavor.


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## Captainnumber36 (Jan 19, 2017)

I stated I enjoyed listening to her Debussy Etudes, though. Those were great!


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## Myriadi (Mar 6, 2016)

BiscuityBoyle said:


> The Debussy etudes is a very problematic interpretation. She cloaks this very complex, very modern music in the kind of Romantic emotionalism that makes it easier to digest, but if you know this music well, all those sudden spasmodic expressive jerks she injects feel fundamentally out of place. There are many better recordings, not least Rosen, Haas, Helffer and Bonaventura.
> 
> But the best one must be the classic 1957 recording by Anatoly Vedernikov, whose two-piano partner Sviatoslav Richter raved about it in his diaries. Vedernikov's tonal and technical control are absolutely superb, and he lets the music breath and speak instead of emoting all over it. Most importantly, Uchida's interpretation strips this music of abstraction, which is one of its most important properties (and which makes it more complex than, say, the Preludes or Images); whereas Vedernikov is a master of the abstract.


Oddly enough, I don't hear that much difference in Uchida's and Vedernikov's first etude. Compared to e.g. Crossley or Gieseking they're very similar interpretations. (Sorry, I haven't heard any of the "better" recordings you listed.) Anyway, I'm not sure I understand what you're saying - how one can strip any music of abstraction? I think instrumental music is an abstract art pretty much by definition.


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## Pugg (Aug 8, 2014)

Captainnumber36 said:


> I stated I enjoyed listening to her Debussy Etudes, though. Those were great!


One has to be a philistine / tone deaf, not liking that recording.


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## BiscuityBoyle (Feb 5, 2018)

Myriadi said:


> Oddly enough, I don't hear that much difference in Uchida's and Vedernikov's first etude. Compared to e.g. Crossley or Gieseking they're very similar interpretations. (Sorry, I haven't heard any of the "better" recordings you listed.) Anyway, I'm not sure I understand what you're saying - how one can strip any music of abstraction? I think instrumental music is an abstract art pretty much by definition.


I meant an "abstract" quality in the way you'd describe the adagio of the Hammerklavier as "philosophical" or a Chopin nocturne as "lyrical". "Program music" or something out of an early Schumann cycle, or a piece like Grieg's March of the Dwarves, or whatever it's called in English, would be the opposite of abstract - there's a definite character, there are strong contrasts between, say, the impish and the lyrical etc. A Ligeti piece exploring a certain compositional device or a juxtaposition of sonorities would be high on the abstract end of the spectrum.

To me Debussy's etudes connote "abstract" in a number of senses, but perhaps the more important point is that this music is not emotion-driven or dramatic.

Listen closely to Uchida's dynamics and time: there are strong "expressive" crescendos, "lyrical" ritenutos (not only where Debussy indicates rubato) - those belong in Schumann, not this music. Vedernikov exhibits none of that: he follows Debussy's instructions to a tee but his whole thing is deliberately flattening any expressive affectation. Instead, he lets you hear things like Debussy's harmonies.

Another thing: pauses in Uchida are breaks between dramatic episodes. With Vedernikov, they are part of his long musical lines.

I understand why many love Uchida's recording - it brings this very unusual music closer to the kind of aesthetic classical music lovers feel at home in.


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## Myriadi (Mar 6, 2016)

We seem to have very different views of the music. I don't think the etudes are that far removed from the Preludes - in fact I think the three collections form a very coherent whole, an evolution of an approach, so to speak. So it makes sense to play the etudes in a way that connects them to the earlier music. So taking the same first etude as an example, I guess you'd say that in the Cb major section the rinforzando measure should be played as a natural continuation of the "long musical line"; but I think the strength of the music comes just as much from the juxtaposition of moods/emotions as it does from the complexity of textural interplay. So it would make sense to play the measure in question with full-blown expression, then break into those frolicking dotted 16ths again; I'd say you simply get the best of both worlds - the emotional and the structural. 

Anyway, I enjoyed hearing what you had to say about the etudes, but like I said, our views of the music are very different. I can't imagine how the last etude, for instance, can be heard as anything but dramatic. I've always thought of it as of a Chopin nocturne turned inside out, as it were - obviously not in the technical sense, but in the aesthetic one.


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## PlaySalieri (Jun 3, 2012)

I like her Mozart - every note is a pearl - the way she strikes the keys, every note is heard - beautiful articulation and phrasing.

I know there are people who dislike her though.


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## Genoveva (Nov 9, 2010)

It's difficult to say what I think about Mitsuko Uchida without reference to all the main piano composers, and trying to find a spot for her in the lists if appropriate. The following is a list of my current my top 4 pianists for each composer, but in most cases I'm not that fussed about the exact order in some cases:


*Beethoven	*-	Daniel Barenboim	;	Emil Gilels	;	Friedrich Gulda	;	John Ogdon
*Brahms* -	Julius Katchen	;	Radu Lupu	;	Hélène Grimaud	;	Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli
*Chopin	*-	Artur Rubinstein	;	Claudio Arrau	;	Dinu Lipatti	;	Maria João Pires
*Debussy* -	Jean-Efflam Bavouzet	;	Jean-Yves Thibaudet	;	Pierre-Laurent Aimard	;	Maurizio Pollini
*Haydn* -	Alfred Brendel	;	Emanuel Ax	;	John McCabe	;	Marc-André Hamelin
*J S Bach	*-	András Schiff	;	Glenn Gould	;	Angela Hewitt	;	Friedrich Gulda
*Liszt* -	Lazar Berman	;	Jorge Bolet	;	Georges Cziffra	;	Clifford Curzon
*Mozart* -	Richard Goode	;	Maria João Pires	;	_Mitsuko Uchida_ ;	Kristian Bezuidenhout (fortepiano)
*Prokofiev* -	Martha Argerich	;	Sviatoslav Richter	;	Evgeny Kissin ;	Vladimir Krainev
*Rachmaninov* -	Steven Osborne	;	Zoltán Kocsis ;	Krystian Zimerman	;	Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli 
*Rave*l	-	Martha Argerich	;	Louis Lortie	;	Benjamin Grosvenor	;	Monique Haas
*Schubert* -	Alfred Brendel	;	Radu Lupu	;	Krystian Zimerman	;	Maria João Pires
*Schumann* -	Maurizio Pollini	;	Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli	;	Vladimir Ashkenazy	;	Martha Argerich



Mitsuko Uchida gets a place in the Mozart line, but I rather prefer Richard Goode best of all there.

My overall top pianists are probably Alfred Brendel, Maria João Pires, and Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli. Technically I think that Michelangeli is magical but he sometimes lacks a bit of warmth that I like so much in the other two. I also like Vladimir Ashkenazy. He made a splendid set of Schumann piano works that are very good, and also a very nicely recorded set of Mozart PCs. I also like Richter but I find that many of his recordings are somewhat let down by occasional audience noise, as he was not keen on studio recordings and preferred live.


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## BiscuityBoyle (Feb 5, 2018)

Myriadi said:


> Anyway, I enjoyed hearing what you had to say about the etudes, but like I said, our views of the music are very different. I can't imagine how the last etude, for instance, can be heard as anything but dramatic. I've always thought of it as of a Chopin nocturne turned inside out, as it were - obviously not in the technical sense, but in the aesthetic one.


Fair enough, this music is nothing if not open to interpretation, even if one can disagree on the direction.

The last two etudes are definitely a tad more straightforward. The last one reminds me of Chopin's b minor octaves etude.

And, at any rate, I recommend Vedernikov to anyone who's into Debussy, he was an extraordinary Debussy stylist.


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## PlaySalieri (Jun 3, 2012)

Myriadi said:


> *We seem to have very different views of the music. *I don't think the etudes are that far removed from the Preludes - in fact I think the three collections form a very coherent whole, an evolution of an approach, so to speak. So it makes sense to play the etudes in a way that connects them to the earlier music. So taking the same first etude as an example, I guess you'd say that in the Cb major section the rinforzando measure should be played as a natural continuation of the "long musical line"; but I think the strength of the music comes just as much from the juxtaposition of moods/emotions as it does from the complexity of textural interplay. So it would make sense to play the measure in question with full-blown expression, then break into those frolicking dotted 16ths again; I'd say you simply get the best of both worlds - the emotional and the structural.
> 
> Anyway, I enjoyed hearing what you had to say about the etudes, but like I said, our views of the music are very different. I can't imagine how the last etude, for instance, can be heard as anything but dramatic. I've always thought of it as of a Chopin nocturne turned inside out, as it were - obviously not in the technical sense, but in the aesthetic one.


that is what keeps this board alive


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