Classical Music in Poland and the Europe of Chopin - From the Reviewer's Notebook

Thoughts and Highlights from Stage I DAY 1 Without what might appear as hyperbole and gross exaggeration, this competition is surely a unique event in the musical life of Europe and the world. I remember when the idea of a Chopin Competition on period pianos was first mooted over five years ago, how this concept was met with a degree of derision and scorn except from musicians with vision and the experience of playing instruments of the period, evoking that rare, irreplaceable soundscape and 'opening the doors of perception' of former times.  With technological advances, we are moving exponentially further and further from the source of this sublime music, ravaged rather by the our constructed notion of linear time. The preservation and context of these precious lost worlds of sound has massively advanced in importance. The range of original and newly crafted period pianos assembled in Warsaw for this competition is greater than ever as are the number of experienced applicants