Emanuel Ax
Emanuel Ax
Emanuel Axis a Grammy-winning American classical pianist. He is an internationally acclaimed performer, and a teacher on the faculty of the Juilliard School...
NationalityUkrainian
ProfessionPianist
Date of Birth8 June 1949
CityLviv, Ukraine
CountryUkraine
play wonderful feels
How wonderful it is to play with someone you feel very close to.
play close-friends
I usually only play with very close friends.
play sound steinway
When one plays a Steinway, there is a warmth and nobility in the sound that is unequalled by any other instrument.
player too-much enough-time
Pianists don't argue too much generally because we have a hard enough time just getting things right. Arguing is for string players.
art thinking play
I think competition in any kind of activity like music, art, literature - anything that's not done with a timer - is actually impossible. So, in effect, what you're doing is you're entering the lottery. You're hoping that you play well (and that) you play your best on the day that you're heard, and you're hoping that the people who are judging will like what you do.
disney hall inside silver truly
Disney Hall is truly astonishingly beautiful. There is something about those silver petals that just makes you want to be inside them.
allowed composers expressing listeners respond trust
Most composers trust their listeners to respond at the right time, and if we feel like expressing approval, we should be allowed to, anytime!
A lot of it just has to do with luck, serendipity.
close middle music performers stage surrounded
The stage is close to being in the middle of the hall, so that the performers are surrounded by the listeners. I feel that we are all experiencing the music together.
argue generally hard string time
Pianists don't argue too much generally because we have such a hard time just getting things right; arguing is for string players.
couple few leave people
If you have a few students, you really need a couple of days. I don't think it's right to leave people on their own and not give them enough time.
audience response ifs
If there were no rules about when to applaud, we in the audience would have the right response almost always.
mean likes should
All of us love applause, and so we should - it means that the listener likes us!
silence wish sometimes
Sometimes I wish that applause would come just a bit later, when it is so beautifully hushed that I feel like holding my breath in the silence of the end.