:00:14. > :00:18.This final will be one of the best in the history of the Leeds
:00:18. > :00:26.competition. Six outstanding pianists will battle tor a life
:00:26. > :00:31.changing prize. It is an open sesame to a concert career. It's
:00:31. > :00:41.got to be something to shine. Only the most exceptional will win
:00:41. > :00:46.
:00:46. > :00:50.gold. How high in this Olympic year Things are really hotting up here
:00:50. > :00:54.at the Leeds International Piano Competition. Tonight we have
:00:54. > :01:04.another blistering concerto performance from one of our
:01:04. > :01:31.
:01:31. > :01:35.finalists. We also focus on the This year's competition has seen 59
:01:35. > :01:40.pianists perform more than 100 recitals. Just six of them got
:01:40. > :01:43.through to the final where they have to perform a concerto. The
:01:43. > :01:47.performances have been wildly different, but they have one thing
:01:47. > :01:57.in common: this amazing instrument. It is the work horse of the
:01:57. > :01:59.
:01:59. > :02:03.competition, and some might say the With its moment in the spotlight
:02:03. > :02:08.fast approaching, the Leeds Town Hall piano is given its now
:02:08. > :02:12.traditional make-over by expert piano technician Ulrich Gerhartz.
:02:12. > :02:17.The preparation of these pianoes is not something that is done in a few
:02:17. > :02:23.hours. Very much like a 50,000 mile service of a car, you take the
:02:23. > :02:27.whole thing apart. Clean everything, look at all the friction points.
:02:27. > :02:32.Listen to the sound of the piano and make a plan with what to do
:02:32. > :02:39.with the Hammers, whether they need to be softer or harder. What I have
:02:39. > :02:42.been doing today is achieve a tone that is bright and cutting, without
:02:42. > :02:47.being metallic and stringy. We are really trying to get the most out
:02:47. > :02:52.of the piano. The main important thing it needs to do is be loud
:02:52. > :02:58.enough to be heard, because they can play wonderful concerto, but if
:02:58. > :03:03.they can't be heard it is no good. We want a piano that still projects
:03:03. > :03:09.in very, very soft playing. The main thing would be to keep the
:03:09. > :03:13.piano alive. And to also give every player for their performance a very
:03:13. > :03:18.well-prepared piano. When you are a technician looking after it,
:03:18. > :03:22.whether it is a piano, a high quality product, what satisfies you
:03:22. > :03:32.is working with the materials and hearing the result and that is why
:03:32. > :03:33.
:03:33. > :03:37.The concert grand is a spectacular instrument. It is capable of
:03:37. > :03:44.holding its own against an entire symphony orchestra, it is the
:03:44. > :03:49.equivalent of a Ferrari. It is precision engineersed and can be
:03:49. > :03:52.very, very loud. The piano has come a long way since
:03:52. > :03:56.it arrived back in the early 18th century. Then this was a genteel
:03:56. > :04:02.instrument, designed for a well healed aristocrat or his young
:04:02. > :04:08.daughter to play. How did those early prototypes evolve into the
:04:08. > :04:15.modern pianoes we know today. The Royal Academy of Music is home to
:04:15. > :04:20.hundreds of pianos. Work horses for the 700 musicians studying here.
:04:20. > :04:25.The academy also houses a collection of historic keyboard
:04:25. > :04:31.instruments, the ideal place to come in search of the DNA of the
:04:31. > :04:39.modern piano. Resident keyboard expert Elena Vorotko introduces me
:04:39. > :04:45.to the harpsichord. What does it do? It is basically a lay down flat
:04:45. > :04:55.harp, with artificial nails, so to speak, little quils that pluck the
:04:55. > :04:57.
:04:57. > :05:01.string. Would you like to try? It is a very odd sensation for a
:05:01. > :05:07.pianist, because I am used to playing something and I can play
:05:07. > :05:16.really loud. Or I can play really soft. It sounds exactly the same. I
:05:16. > :05:19.can't get it to do what I want it to do. Stepping forward from the
:05:19. > :05:23.18th century harpsichord, the next stage in the development of the
:05:23. > :05:33.modern piano has a much more familiar sound to us in the 21st
:05:33. > :05:36.century. What 50 years on from the harpsichord. It already sounds
:05:36. > :05:42.softer, rounder, like you can have control over whether it is loud or
:05:42. > :05:48.soft, it is a very different instrument. It is from 1815.
:05:48. > :05:52.Instead of a jack that plucks the strung, you have a hammer. This is
:05:52. > :05:58.the unstrument that gives you all the control you want. Almost. There
:05:58. > :06:08.is loud and soft, but it is not as obvious still as it is on a modern
:06:08. > :06:14.
:06:14. > :06:18.piano. I am going to try something. I can do something and I can make
:06:18. > :06:22.it quieter. That does feel very much more like the kind of
:06:22. > :06:27.instrument I am used to. But it's got things add today it that make
:06:27. > :06:31.it more than a simple piano. There is a bell there. There is also a
:06:31. > :06:41.drum. There is a drum stick inside the piano which is operated by the
:06:41. > :06:45.
:06:45. > :06:51.very right pedal. Here is what it That is the craziest and best piano
:06:51. > :06:54.I think I have ever heard, it is like the one man man band, this is
:06:54. > :07:04.everything you would want in a musical instrument. It is crazy but
:07:04. > :07:07.
:07:07. > :07:11.The great turning point for the piano came because one man in
:07:11. > :07:15.Vienna was losing his hearing. As Beethoven grew more deaf he found
:07:16. > :07:19.himself cut off from the world around him and from his own music.
:07:19. > :07:23.He wanted desperately to hear the radical compositions he was
:07:23. > :07:27.creating and the pianoes he had weren't up to the job. What was
:07:27. > :07:37.needed was something new and to find it we have to come here to the
:07:37. > :07:44.
:07:44. > :07:50.Out of sheer frustration, Beethoven would thump his vain knees piano so
:07:50. > :07:57.hard, the hammers would splinter and then in 1817 this showed up. It
:07:57. > :08:02.was a state-of-the-art machine, a gift made by John Bruedwood and
:08:02. > :08:12.sons. They had it sent to Beethoven's home in Vienna and
:08:12. > :08:16.overnight this changed his musical universe. I have wanted to see this
:08:16. > :08:23.piano for years, because for me, this is the big bang moment for the
:08:23. > :08:30.keyboard. It is on this piano that Beethoven writes newly explosive
:08:30. > :08:38.dynamic, passionate music. This is the birth of the modern piano.
:08:38. > :08:44.Today's modern piano is a triumph of craftsmanship and engineering.
:08:44. > :08:50.It has 12,000 parts, it can take up to a year to build. And after all
:08:50. > :08:55.that work, here is the finished item a 21 s century concert grand,
:08:55. > :09:05.ready for action. Hoping to show us what he can do do with it, it is
:09:05. > :09:06.
:09:06. > :09:09.the third finalist, it's Jayson Like many Australians, Jayson's
:09:10. > :09:13.parents hail from the north of England. For him competing here is
:09:13. > :09:19.a little like performing in front of a home crowd.
:09:19. > :09:23.You are Australia but have dual British citizenship. So you are our
:09:23. > :09:30.only British finalist, you are our big hope. Please tell us you are
:09:31. > :09:36.going to do it? I will try! I did consider plague for Team GB! --
:09:36. > :09:43.playing tor Team GB, but I thought my Aussie friends and family would
:09:44. > :09:51.kill me. You are going to be playing
:09:51. > :09:55.Beethoven's fifth concerto, the Emperor. It is one of my favourite
:09:55. > :10:01.piece,s it is important to choose something you really love, and it
:10:01. > :10:06.has the whole gamut of different emotions and styles and I like the
:10:06. > :10:16.Beethoven's rhythmic drive and energy. It is very positive, open
:10:16. > :10:18.
:10:18. > :10:21.piece, which suits my style of You have done some work with Mark
:10:22. > :10:27.Elder on the concerto. What did you discuss, what incites did he share
:10:27. > :10:37.with you? He explained about his concert of the sound he wanted the
:10:37. > :10:50.
:10:51. > :10:57.He seems centred as a musician, he makes a very strong, firm sound,
:10:57. > :11:03.different from all the others. He plays Beethoven in a very open,
:11:04. > :11:06.honest, secure way, with a sort of glow. You do have a ramp it up now
:11:07. > :11:12.because this is the final, so it is a different kind of concentration
:11:12. > :11:16.that you need. I find it more enjoyable, somehow, because it's
:11:16. > :11:20.like I have friends on stage with me, helping me along the way, so I
:11:20. > :11:24.am going to go on stage and enjoy it. Everybody we have spoken to
:11:24. > :11:28.says they don't care about winning this competition. Nobody goes into
:11:28. > :11:38.a competition not to win it. It's true. Of course you go in to win it,
:11:38. > :11:41.
:11:41. > :11:45.if you don't you give them a run Beethoven's fifth has always been
:11:45. > :11:49.known as The Emperor but no-one seems sure why. The title
:11:49. > :11:53.completely conveys in three little sill bells what you are about to
:11:53. > :11:59.hear. This is a piece of scale and majesty. It is also frankly a
:11:59. > :12:03.little bit macho. There is a lot of musical muscle flexing going on but
:12:03. > :12:13.that is Beethoven all over. The big idea of the piece is this and it
:12:13. > :12:25.
:12:25. > :12:30.It is a catchy tune, but more importantly, it has this incredible
:12:30. > :12:36.rhythmic energy, you can feel the punch of that music, that tiny idea
:12:36. > :12:39.that drives things on. Beethoven wrote this concerto as Napoleon was
:12:39. > :12:47.about to invade his home town of Vienna and it is easy to hear this
:12:47. > :12:52.as a piece about politics and power. It is the soloist as a lone voice
:12:52. > :12:58.against the orchestra. Beethoven is ask us a question, can the her owe
:12:58. > :13:08.wism of a single person change our world for the better. That is the
:13:08. > :13:13.
:13:13. > :13:20.So, how are rehearsals going for tonight's performance? Let's find
:13:20. > :13:26.out from our resident experts, Noriko Ogawa and Tom Poster. Is
:13:27. > :13:30.Jayson the man for you? I am very excited by what I have heard in the
:13:30. > :13:35.rehearsal. His tone is really projecting to the back of the hall,
:13:35. > :13:45.where we were sitting back listening. And he entirely
:13:45. > :13:45.
:13:45. > :13:51.appropriately had the power in the climax. It is a muscular sound
:13:51. > :13:56.without being forced or over- powered. I think he's an
:13:56. > :14:02.incressably beautiful lyrical pianist. Really, really nice. This
:14:02. > :14:07.concerto is the brightest and most gorgeous Beethoven concerto of the
:14:07. > :14:13.five and he is conveying everything we need. Also, I have to make a
:14:13. > :14:16.remark that the orchestra and Mark are so so kind to this young
:14:16. > :14:25.pianist, because they spent quite a lot of time getting every detail
:14:25. > :14:32.right. It is very much chamber music and of course we think of the
:14:32. > :14:39.heroic elements, a huge amount takes place within piano and
:14:39. > :14:43.painissimo. We have two emperor concertoes this year. How do you
:14:44. > :14:48.put across a performance that has the right character, how do you do
:14:48. > :14:52.a winning performance of The Emperor? I think having played all
:14:52. > :14:55.the Beethoven concertoes, this is the most straightforward in that it
:14:55. > :15:05.sweeps you along and carries you through. It is a wonderful work to
:15:05. > :15:10.
:15:10. > :15:16.be part of really. We will talk Source of Leeds finalists have
:15:16. > :15:24.taken this stage before him. Now Jayson Gillham prepares to give the
:15:24. > :15:34.performance of his life. And waiting to make their judgment, 13
:15:34. > :15:36.
:15:36. > :15:41.celebrated musical minds. Let's The overall standards of technical
:15:41. > :15:45.perfection are so dizzying that kind of prowess alone does not
:15:45. > :15:51.suffice to anoint a prize-winner. You are looking for something
:15:51. > :15:55.unique, something with imagination, with stage personality. With great
:15:55. > :16:04.ability to communicate that touch of magic, something individual.
:16:04. > :16:10.That is what I am looking for, experience, a journey a dream.
:16:10. > :16:15.there to feel music, to look for somebody who will touch me. Very
:16:15. > :16:20.strongly. What I am looking for is someone I would want to travel 100
:16:20. > :16:24.miles to hear again. You can hear the most regularly played piece and
:16:24. > :16:31.then make it sound new and you think, OK, this is this is somebody
:16:31. > :16:39.special. Pieces don't come more regularly
:16:39. > :16:49.played than Beethoven's emperor concerto. Here to perform it now
:16:49. > :16:49.
:16:49. > :56:01.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 2351 seconds
:56:01. > :56:10.Jayson Gillham. He is joined by Sir Jayson Gillham performing
:56:10. > :56:15.Beethoven's concerto number five. Conducted by Sir Mark Elder.
:56:15. > :56:21.Jayson leading Mark off stage. He looks delighted, perhaps a little
:56:21. > :56:26.relieved with his performance in this final. I enjoyed it, yes. I
:56:26. > :56:29.have enjoyed the whole competition really. I have enjoyed the playing
:56:29. > :56:36.days more than the off days, which is amazing. That is what you are
:56:36. > :56:46.here to do. I thought you played beautifully, always a lovely sound,
:56:46. > :56:56.
:56:56. > :57:02.So the hall emptying out now after the performance. Listening with me
:57:02. > :57:07.this evening, Noriko Ogawa and Tom Poster. This is the big heroic
:57:07. > :57:12.piece of Beethoven, did he give us heroic Beethoven this evening.
:57:12. > :57:19.he zI really enjoyed it. One thing that struck me is how compelling
:57:19. > :57:23.the sound was. It really penetrated the back of the hall in a heroic
:57:23. > :57:28.way. It was a really glossy sound all the way through. Everything
:57:28. > :57:33.came through, I was able to hear every note of it. He really showed
:57:34. > :57:37.us how Beethoven's fifth should sound. He could have been more
:57:37. > :57:42.daring, in just a couple of the icy moments in the first movement, he
:57:42. > :57:45.could have dared to be even more, but it is a tiny quibble in a
:57:45. > :57:49.wonderful performance. You are saying this is the real deal, this
:57:49. > :57:57.guy is a pretty complete performer, do you think he is in with a chance
:57:57. > :58:02.of being the winner. I think he is really ready to go out to play
:58:02. > :58:04.professional, I thought he had a couple of concentration snaps a
:58:04. > :58:08.couple of times. We have all been there. Thank you. We have heard
:58:08. > :58:12.from three of our finalists. We are only half way through, anything
:58:12. > :58:15.could still happen in this competition. Here is a taster of
:58:15. > :58:22.what we can look forward to next time in the Leeds International
:58:22. > :58:25.Piano Competition 2012. I follow our competitors into the
:58:25. > :58:31.suburbs with dozens of volunteers are hosting pianoes for this year's
:58:31. > :58:35.Leeds. They come every three years and I look forward to it. Andrew is
:58:35. > :58:40.here today giving me enormous pleasure. It is wonderful to get to