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Nataliya Shakhovskaya’s (member of the cello jury) commentary to the “Culture” TV correspondent after the first round

Question: How good is the average level of performing on the competition?

Mrs. Shakhovskaya: It is very good that plenty of gifted young people attended the competition. Cellists from the former USSR republics sounded quite impressive. Never mind that somebody was not admitted to the second round, my opinion is that their performing is real victory of the local performing schools.

Indeed, program of the second round is bigger and more difficult, so there may be some changes in disposition, but generally I liked the level of performing and it seems to me that the competition should be successful.
   Americans do not seem to be doing well judging from the first round of eliminations for Cello. I am especially amazed that Clancy Newman of the USA was cut. His was a virtuoso performance that brought the house down. He played from the heart. Tchaikovsky would have been proud and impressed that someone at last had the courage to play his work creatively, unshackled by the rigid rules of technique and interpretation that have been imposed on his works. In Newman's case, it seems that the audience was much more sophisticated than was the jury.

Colin Heston, USA

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