BBC Young Musician on Four

[ardcarp]

Keyboard final predictably produced and presented. Very packaged, very short sound-bites, rapid shots, CBH tarted up in 'Strictly' fashion. Only extracts played...but I suppose it was better than nothing. One can only hope the final is allowed to unfold in real time.

[DublinJimbo]

I spent more time shouting at the screen than soaking up the performances. All pretty dreadful, I thought, from the too-fussy and nightclubby stage setting to the over-emphasis on the home life of the performers to CBH's oh-so-gushy voice-overs and most of all to the utterly irrelevant 'victory music' that accompanied the announcement of the section winner (and did the jury chairman really make that dramatic pause before announcing the (worthy) winner's name, or was that added by the tasteless production team?).

[Nick Armstrong]

CBH

Oh, Jesus

[DracoM]

And you just know that unfortunately Sky Arts would do it better. I hate even thinking let alone writing that sentence.
Was the broadcast on R3? No. Get my drift?
And whichever poor schmuck gets chosen, you also know that In Tune with excruciating Gushing Rafferty is part of the prize.

[VodkaDilc]

I spent more time shouting at the screen than soaking up the performances. All pretty dreadful, I thought, from the too-fussy and nightclubby stage setting to the over-emphasis on the home life of the performers to CBH's oh-so-gushy voice-overs and most of all to the utterly irrelevant 'victory music' that accompanied the announcement of the section winner (and did the jury chairman really make that dramatic pause before announcing the (worthy) winner's name, or was that added by the tasteless production team?).

It sounds as if I was right to avoid it. I would also have been shouting at the screen, which can't be good for the blood pressure. I suppose some promising players will emerge, but it seems a dreadful hurdle to put them through.

[BBMmk2]

Just shows what I've been up to! I coimpletely forgot about this!

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

I saw that it was on.
I recalled.
I avoided.
I felt sad.
I read your comments.
I felt vindicated.

[Pianorak]

Had a feeling it would be pretty dismal - and watched Corrie instead.

[Bryn]

And you just know that unfortunately Sky Arts would do it better.

Would that not rather depend upon who they bought in in from?

Agreed, it was a dismal presentation on BBC FOUR.

[ardcarp]

We did get a few chunks from each performer (all male, as it happens, and so was the 'jury'). It was worth watching for that, but one wonders if in years to come the Beeb will work out a way of removing any actual playing?

[Richard Tarleton]

ICBH's oh-so-gushy voice-overs and most of all to the utterly irrelevant 'victory music' that accompanied the announcement of the section winner (and did the jury chairman really make that dramatic pause before announcing the (worthy) winner's name, or was that added by the tasteless production team?).

Yes CB-H actually talked over the beginnings and endings of competitors' pieces - was that her, or something edited on afterwards? either way, a new low. I only saw about half of it.

[Mary Chambers]

I agree that the presentation was somewhat dire, though not CBH's fault, I imagine. On the other hand, we saw youngsters with real, genuine talent, which made it worth watching as far as I'm concerned. I only wish some of the people who normally watch what passes for talent on television would watch this and see what young people - well, a very few of them - can achieve. I wouldn't have missed it.

That said, the pianists all seemed rather alike to me. Brilliant technicians, but how much else? Hard to tell on this showing.

[Nick Armstrong]

Set to record, then it'll be possible to fast forward to the points (few and far between, it seems ) where some bugger's actually playing the piano...

It's on BBC HD this afternoon....

[VodkaDilc]

Yes CB-H actually talked over the beginnings and endings of competitors' pieces - was that her, or something edited on afterwards? either way, a new low. I only saw about half of it.

If I had started watching, that would have made me turn off.

[Dave2002]

Not seen this yet. Rather sad really, in the early days, IIRC this was really good, with much more time spent on it.