Product Details

• Actors: Valentina Lisitsa
• Directors: ValalProductions
• Format: HiFi Sound, NTSC, Widescreen
• Region: All Regions
• Number of discs: 1
• Studio: ValalProductions
• DVD Release Date: January 15, 2007
• Run Time: 75 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000LXIS3M
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #143,420 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

39 of 39 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Valentina Lisitsa: Black & Pink, Well Worth Having !, May 24, 2007

By 

Music Lover (Scotland, UK) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Black and Pink (DVD)

We (I write this on behalf of myself and another fan) came across Valentina on the internet and soon realised this is a very exceptional artist. She has a Myspace with a following of awestruck admirers many of whom are very good instrumentalists/musicians themselves. This is consistent with our view of this pianist and of the Black and Pink DVD. To state that Valentina is a world class lyrical virtuoso is putting it mildly.

I watch Black and Pink often, to reward myself when I feel deserving. To watch this DVD is to be taken on an adventure, to lose oneself in Valentina's musicality which rises above even her pristine and vivacious pianism. Having watched other renderings of Reminiscences of Don Juan we can say we like Valentina's the best. This is not to decry anything but simply to say we find hers reaches us in particular ways. For one thing, while Valentina has colossal virtuosity there is none of the mushiness or bangy sound that so often accompanies "virtuoso" playing of Liszt. I note that she even manages to bring the crispness more associated with playing of Beethoven to this piece, which is very refreshing in its effect. Yet she builds up tension throughout. A study of the score suggests she picked many of the difficult ossias, and added we believe a few things in the left hand here and there. Around six minutes there's a chromatic thing in the right hand that moves quickly down the piano, she adds we think some sort of rhythm in the left hand just below the melody. We leave purchasers of this DVD to confirm or refute these points - but the upshot is that this performance is worth listening to and worth exploring. There is a blinding episode when she reaches the big jumps (let's face it, there's not a jump Valentina can't handle) where both hands reach wider and wider and, while she could have been forgiven for slowing them down a bit, perhaps that's a part of the "con bravura" that Liszt originally intended.

As for the Ravel we find Valentina's take on this to be very romantic, not too mysterious or rough, in fact very nice to listen to. Some people however may be opposed to that, but Valentina is a very individual pianist and we like this approach. Her pianism is staggering, as if no difficulties exist. One is reminded of her 24 Chopin Etudes DVD in that respect - no visible effort. The arpeggios are stunning, perfect and clear, even those that are done by both hands. Pianistically it's all 111% perfect. The left hand in Gaspard is amazing, only Virtuosis deal with those pieces anyway ! Is Valentina ambidextrous ??

Good to see that she takes Le Gibet as seriously as the rest - we miss that in a lot of pianists when suddenly they are given a slow piece to perform, one in which they can't "prank" much.

I admire Valentina's Rachmaninoff prelude in G minor, having wrestled with it in the past. Not many pianists manage to carry this piece off with such precision and finesse despite its heavy chords combined with large jumps so unmercifully, and I was gratified to hear the "hidden" melody brought out so clearly in the slower middle section. I now have two very masterful recordings of this piece - Richter's and Valentina's.

La campanella - so many recordings have been made of this piece throughout the globe. Valentina's is kind of a standard, every note shines clearly through, and it leaves the listener with a "good taste in the ear" as indeed does the entire DVD.

The DVD I possess has a menu and chapter selection. Note also that on her Myspace there is a maintained list of Valentina's forthcoming concert appearances in venues in various parts of the world - my wife and I have seen her live; we found it a mesmerising experience.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another great Valentina Lisitsa DVD!, November 27, 2008

By 

Richard Bellak "composer" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Black and Pink (DVD)

To me, this DVD presents a concert program which, logically, starts with the classical intricacies of Chopin's Op. 2 Variations, continues with four deeply-felt and exquisitely performed Rachmaninoff Preludes, and then ends with dazzling performances of two of Liszt's shorter works and the mammoth "Don Juan" paraphrase of highlights from Mozart's opera (including variations on the same aria utilized by Chopin in his Op.2 Variations). Ravel's Gaspard then functions as a glittering "encore".
The Chopin is an early and rarely heard work for piano and orchestra, played here as a piano solo. Ms. Lisitsa's delightful performance makes a strong case for doing so, since many (including me) would have missed hearing this charming work otherwise. The Rachmaninoff Preludes are presented as artful and eloquent paintings in sound of the composer's inner world. Ms. Lisitsa then rides to victory in Liszt's Grand Galop, not only by easily surmounting the difficult challenges the piece offers, but the easy ones as well. She is the only performer of this work I have heard who accepts Liszt's obvious invitation to make the repeated notes announcing the theme sound like a galloping horse. This element of great fun wins by a nose against some otherwise very formidable competition. The adjective "brilliant" also applies to her performances of La Campanella and Don Juan, the latter involving some extreme tempi that are not arbitrary, but flow from a firm conception of the larger work.
Here are some suggestions for a future Valentina Lisitsa DVD. Beethoven: Op. 106; Liszt: Fountains at the Villa d'Este; Ballade No. 2 (with Liszt's original "big" ending, of course, not the toned-down revised version). Judging from this DVD and her previous Chopin Etudes and Schwanengesang, it would be wonderful.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Black and Pink by Valentina Listisa in DVD, May 16, 2007

By 

David W. Chung - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Black and Pink (DVD)

Excellent sound recording. Beautiful and professional photography. Good music selection. Ms Valentina Lisitsa brings a sparkling interpretation of Liszt, Chopin and Rachmaninoff. The perfect balance of technique and emotion.