This is part 2 of an interview with pianist Seiya Kamei. It includes behind-the-scenes stories about making an album collection of songs with superb technique.

1)
We won the "Lon Thibault International Competition" piano section this time! We want to tell you the hidden story behind pianist Seiya Kamei's first full-length album [VIRTUOZO].
First, what theme did you choose for the songs on the album? Mr Kamei taught me.

2)
I like works that use transcendental or beautiful techniques to create attractive and magnificent musical ideas.
This CD is a complete repertoire of my five most challenging pieces.
Virtuoso means transcendental or virtuosic technique or the skilful manipulation of something like that.
Based on that concept, I think there will be works worth listening to this time.

3)
Actually, [VIRTUOZO] is a coined word.
It is a coined word derived from the Italian word virtuoso, which means "a great musician" or "a master of transcendent technique". The last "S, O" is called "Z, O."

4)
The notation "Z O" is compared to "20", recorded when he was 20.
And there was a surprising comment. "The songs I have recorded are among my repertoire's top five most challenging songs."

5)
He said:

I have been playing "La Campanella" since I was in the fourth grade of primary school, "Islamei", which is said to be the most challenging song in the world, and "Gaspard de la Night", which is said to have been written to surpass it. All the songs are challenging.

However, when I play this problematic song, I don't want people to think that I'm playing a difficult song.

6)
It's tough, and there are a lot of notes in it, but why were so many notes and complex techniques necessary?
Or why did you write these notes?
I try to think about these things when doing this work.

7)
For example, I want crazy expressions that go beyond the limits, or some songs are epic, and I can gain momentum by using such techniques.

Although it is truly a masterpiece of transcendental technique, each of these five songs has an entirely different level.
So, I hope you can enjoy the world that each song creates without focusing on how difficult it is.

8)
The recording occurred at Suntory Hall and must be completed in one day.

I had to record these five complex songs in one day.
The day before, we simulated how we would do it for the whole day.

9)
I thought that if I worked on each song until it was perfect, I would be distracted by flaws in the sound, or things would be unnatural musically.

Anyway, we recorded all five songs, then five songs from 1st to 5th, and so on.

10)
To maintain the overall flow, I made sure not to get distracted by small mistakes, and the music became quiet and small.
I wanted people to enjoy these five songs' overall flow and momentum, and that's how I recorded them.

11)
Question: The album [VIRTUOZO], recorded by 20-year-old Seiya Kamei on September 15 2022, was released last month. His first nationwide tour has been set for 2023. Mr. Kamei, what are his goals for the future?

12)
Whether it's competitions, concerts or overseas activities, I will do everything I can at the time, 100% and 120%, and face the music properly.
I will try my best to express that adequately in every performance.

Whether due to various connections or luck, I believe working hard with all my might will lead to individual success.

13)
I love composing and want to incorporate it into my work.
You may find something else that you like.
You may also discover that you are unaware of what field will interest you.

14)
By working honestly and thoroughly on everything you love, you can become a pianist who can reach a stage in the next few years or even decades you cannot imagine.
It would be great if I could become a musician.

15)
Last question. What do you think is the attraction of the piano as an instrument?

16)
Piano music brings out many people, and even without language, the audience can learn a lot about what the person wants to express, how the pianist has approached the music, what his personality is, etc. You can understand it as you receive it.

17)
As a performer, I find it a bit scary.

But I'm thrilled when I can reveal my heart and share music through music, primarily through the piano.
I think it's lovely, and there are stunning piano pieces.

18)
No two pianists have the same method for unpacking what is locked in a score.
I think that's where my personality comes out.

Of course, I play according to my score. But even if you play precisely to the score, it may not be the same music.

I want to share the works that moved me, such as the delicate pauses or the breathing, with many people through their expressions so that they can feel the goodness of the songs.
I think the charm of this instrument is truly immeasurable.

To be able to share this space with so many people makes me so happy.
I want to continue doing this as the main focus of my life.

This is part 2 of an interview with pianist Seiya Kamei. It includes behind-the-scenes stories about making an album collection of songs with superb technique.

https://www.j-wave.co.jp/original/tokyounited/archives/the-hidden-story/2023/01/27-104022.html

Winner of the "Lon Thibault International Competition" Piano Division! We ask pianist Seiya Kamei.

https://www.j-wave.co.jp/original/tokyounited/archives/the-hidden-story/2023/01/20-104042.html

Nobuyuki Tsujii Conductor: Yutaka Sado "Piano Concerto No. 1" (Tchaikovsky) Co-starring teacher and student

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5yB6IfyJtio

Seiya Kamei - Wikipedia

https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E4%BA%80%E4%BA%95%E8%81%96%E7%9F%A2

Add info)

Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No. 1 | Martha Argerich, Charles Dutoit & the Verbier Festival Orchestra

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2DmfJu3oNDM

The very first bars of this piano concerto are so distinctive that they will remain in the listener's memory forever. Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1 is recognizable and catchy. Charismatic piano virtuoso Martha Argerich lends an elegant lightness to this impressive piece. Conducted by Charles Dutoit, Argerich performed with the Verbier Festival Orchestra at the Verbier Festival in 2014.

(00:00) Coming on stage
(00:18) I. Allegro non troppo e molto maestoso
(20:36) II. Andantino semplice
(27:38) III. Allegro con fuoco

(35:53) Encore: Robert Schumann: "Scenes from Childhood," Op. 15, No. 1

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky is considered the most important Russian composer of the 19th century. He was born in Votkinsk in 1840 and studied at the St. Petersburg Conservatory with Anton Rubinstein from 1862. His compositions combined Russian folk music with Western influences. Tchaikovsky wrote several symphonies and operas, including "The Nutcracker" and "Swan Lake," the most famous ballets in music history.

Piano Concerto No. 1 in B-flat minor, Op. 23, is considered one of the most famous piano works ever. Tchaikovsky completed it in 1875, the same year it premiered in Boston. With its concise, rhythmic runs and focused energy, it thrilled audiences then as it does today.

Argentine-Swiss pianist Martha Argerich is considered a "lioness of the piano." Born in Buenos Aires in 1941, she moved to Europe with her family in 1955. Argerich gave her first concert at the age of seven. 1965, as a young woman, she won the legendary International Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw, which was considered a sensation at the time and helped her rise to stardom. Since then, she has played with leading orchestras in the most renowned concert halls in the world. In 2005, she received the acclaimed and prestigious "Praemium Imperiale." Marta Argerich is considered a living musical legend.

Born in Lausanne, Switzerland, in 1936, conductor Charles Dutoit has had a stellar musical career. He has conducted more than 150 orchestras throughout his long career. In 1977, he became the artistic director of the Montreal Symphony Orchestra and recorded more than 80 CDs. Dutoit and Argerich were married for several years. In 2017/18, Charles Dutoit faced #MeToo allegations and was the centre of a sexual harassment scandal, which led to several orchestras cutting ties with the star conductor.

The Verbier Festival Orchestra, founded in 2000, comprises highly talented young musicians. It allows young artists to gain concert experience under the direction of leading conductors.

The Verbier Festival is considered the summit meeting of classical music stars. It has been held once a year in the Swiss Alps since 1994. In addition to the extensive concert program, the festival offers up-and-coming artists an opportunity to work with the very great artists of the classical music scene. Martha Argerich is a regular guest at the festival.

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Semifinal Round Mozart Concerto – 2022 Cliburn Competition

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hM1EfuVGH1Q&t=777s

Semifinal Round Recital
June 10, 2022
Bass Performance Hall

MASAYA KAMEI
Japan | Age 20
Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra
Nicholas McGegan, conductor

MOZART Piano Concerto No. 19 in F Major, K. 459

A native of Aichi, Japan, Masaya Kamei—at age 20—has achieved significant piano accolades in his home country. He was the first to be accepted to the Toho Gakuen College Music Department a year early (in 2019). At the same time, he was the first to win Japan's most significant national competitions, the Music Competition of Japan Piano Division and the PTNA Piano Competition Special Grade, in a single year. Other awards include the Masuzawa, Nomura, Iguchi, Kawai, Miyake, and Steinway Prizes, the Argerich Arts Promotion Foundation Award, and the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Award.

Those early wins provided many invitations for engagements and changed the young artist's performance perspective: "I realized that I would now be playing the piano as the champion of Japan's most significant competition. A new kind of professionalism sprouted in my heart that has always exceeded expectations.

His vigorous concert schedule over the past few years includes recitals and concertos at significant halls in Japan, such as Suntory Hall, Tokyo Opera City Concert Hall, and Tokyo Metropolitan Theater, and with the Tokyo City Philharmonic, Tokyo Philharmonic, New Japan Philharmonic, Tokyo Symphony, Chiba Symphony, and 21st Century Tokyo Orchestras.

In 2021, Masaya was selected as a Rohm Music and Ezoe Memorial Recruit Foundations scholarship student. He is currently a fourth-year student at Toho Gakuen under the guidance of Hisako Ueno, Michiko Okamoto, and Shoichi Hase. He recently placed third at the 2022 Maria Canals International Music Competition.

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Isn't it okay to enjoy classical music, like going to a fair? I went to "La Folle Journée TOKYO 2024"

https://ascii.jp/elem/000/004/197/4197091/

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F.Liszt : La Campanella - Seiya Kamei

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LHhJPKNvocM

F.Liszt : La Campanella - Seiya Kamei - 10 years old

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ithhpQ0mZ_E

Balakirev：Islamey "Fantaisie orientale"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2oZ9iTg9WkE

Masaya Kamei, Rachmaninoff: Piano Concerto No.3 in D minor, Op. 30

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-CFAkID-9X4

Masaya Kamei, Rachmaninoff: Piano Concerto No.3 in D minor, Op. 30

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-CFAkID-9X4

Horowitz Rachmaninoff 3rd Concerto Mehta NYPO 1978

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D5mxU_7BTRA

Rachmaninoff plays Piano Concerto 3

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2uqZhnqHMAg
Sergei Rachmaninoff's 1909 Piano Concerto No. 3 in D minor, Op. 30, has the reputation of being one of the most technically challenging concertos in the standard classical repertoire.