Van Cliburn (above, with Tchaikovsky) must be up around the clock these days.
Oh wait, he is always up around the clock. Once when I had to interview him we were going to fix the time at 4 a.m. Darn, the Philharmonic's publicists talked him out of it before I could say yes. It would have been fun, to talk to Van Cliburn at 4 a.m., in my pajamas. But alas.
The reason I was saying he must be up around the clock is that hardly has the Van Cliburn Competition ended in a shower of sparks but they are announcing the Cliburn YouTube Contest for Amateur Pianists!
This is the second time they have held this YouTube competition. It is a part of the process of finding pianists to compete in the big Van Cliburn International Piano Competition for Outstanding Amateurs.
I cannot believe I just used that word "big." I used to use "big" to the distinguish the Amateur Competition from the "big" Van Cliburn Competition -- that is, the one for the pros.
How complicated the world is becoming!
I wonder if I should join this YouTube competition. I wonder what I should work up. I did have a great time in the first Cliburn Amateur Competition, I will say that.
I wonder how many people compete in the YouTube contest. Probably everyone!
Who would ever have guessed at any of this, when we were kids practicing Clementi? I remember wishing along the way that there were competitions like this, where amateurs could get up and compete.
That is a wish that came true!
I should have watched out what I wished for.
No comments:
Post a Comment