| Author |
Subject |
Laura
Wichers
Moderator
(1/29/01 5:22:33 pm)
Reply |
Bion
Tsang and Saint-Saens
Bion Tsang played the Saint-Saens
Concerto last Friday night with the Kalamazoo Symphony. I can
describe his performance in one word: AMAZING. As some of you (hi
Bob) might know from the Cello Congress, I'm really picky about this
concerto. Soloists seem to think it's some sort of race, and I find
many also over-do the phrasing (to my taste, anyway). The
performance by Tsang was neither a race nor a swell-a-thon. He was
incredibly musical, and I got the impression that he has a
well-thought out reason for every single thing he did. And while he
did play those runs pretty darn fast, he still managed to bring out
the musical lines. His playing style reminds me of the old-school
playing so often discussed on this board.
Tsang's not just a
great performer, he's a great teacher, as I discovered at his
masterclass on Thursday at Western Mich U. His big thing was
creating beautiful sounds with the bow (not just with swells) and
making every note sing ("don't ignore the little
notes").
Bottom line: If Bion Tsang is in your area, or
within a reasonable drive, for a concert/masterclass,
GO!!!!!!
Anyone know what type of cello he plays? Great
sound, interesting looking.
Laura
|
Ryan
Selberg 
Registered User
(1/29/01 6:11:28 pm)
Reply |
Re:
Bion Tsang and Saint-Saens
Hi, Laura,
Very encouraging
report. I had recalled seeing a series of photos of a C.G. Testore
in the resource section of the ICS. I just checked and it is still
there (www.cello.org/masters/testore.htm) and it describes it as
being on loan to Bion Tsang. Check it and see if it looks like what
he was playing, and let us know.
Ryan
Edited by: Ryan
Selberg at: 1/29/01 6:11:28 pm
|
Laura
Wichers
Moderator
(1/29/01 8:59:27 pm)
Reply |
Re:
Bion Tsang and Saint-Saens
It does look like what he was
playing, but I couldn't be sure. What I AM sure of is the phenomenal
sound of Tsang's cello. Part of it is the player, of course, but
even just the open strings he played to demonstrate RH technique
sounded great. Very resonant, open sound. And in Miller Auditorium,
at 3,497 seats Michigan's 3rd largest auditorium (and acoustic-wise
definitely NOT designed for classical instruments), the cello
reached all the way to the nosebleed section where I was sitting...
$3 for student tix, can't hardly beat it.
Laura
|
emerald
Registered
User
(1/30/01 8:54:24 am)
Reply |
Re:
Bion Tsang and Saint-Saens
Hi, Bion Tsang actually has a
website, it's www.biontsang.com
It states that "Bion performs on
a Giovanni Bianchi cello made in Florence, Italy in 1746 that is
affectionately named “Screechy.”
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