Gritting your teeth over Natasha Le on America's Got Talent?

To the pianists, if you even bother to watch this train-wreck of a
show, how many dozen 8-year-olds do you personally know who would eat
her for breakfast in an actual piano competition? Does it make your
teeth itch to see her touted as a "prodigy"?

Morwenna Beale...

Mixed feelings on little Natasha Lee. On the one hand, yes, it's great
that she can play the piano that well. On the other hand, her comments
about not being able to make a single mistake and how she practices 3
hours a day bothered me. When does she have time to play with Barbies
and ride a bike and just be a normal little girl? She's got the rest of
her life to play piano. She's only going to be 8 once.

Spob...

What I heard was a somewhat less than truthful comment that she didn't miss
any notes.

3 hours of practice a day from an early age isn't unusual for an aspiring
classical pianist. Just like kids in other "my darling little
trained-monkey" pursuits like gymnastics or other sports, those who are
going to excel at it have to devote a huge chunk of their lives to it to be
competitive though the vast majority won't have much to show for all the
years and money spent on it. Fact of life. A theory teacher in college
claimed that Vladimir Horowitz was practicing 14 hours a day at one point in
his life. A handful actually achieve some level of acclaim or make any
sizeable money at it. Quick, who came in second and third to Van Cliburn?
Who won the silver and bronze behind Nadia Comaneci or Mark Spitz?

However brief, this kid has achieved more notoriety here than she probably
ever will trying to slug it out in classical piano competitions.

John...

I caught her encore, which wasn't perfect, but to answer your question,
I don't 'know' any other 8-year olds who can play at her level. Maybe

David Bruce Murray...

If it's a talent showcase, the fact that it's an eight year old performer
should have nothing to do with the outcome. If she doesn't compare in
quality to the other artists on the program, she shouldn't win.

tralfaz...

When I was a kid I went to a skateboard competition for kids. Some of the little guys were really talented and performed all the
tricks they had been practicing so hard on. Then comes this tiny kid about 5 years old, clumsily trying to ride a skateboard. All
the adult judges said "awh.. ain't he cute?" and gave him first prize. It was sickening to see the emotional results on the older
kids who had practiced so hard before the contest, only to see a "cuteness" contest win in the end. To this day I carry with me a
disgust for that kind of thing and that kind of thinking. There's nothing wrong with encouraging a little kid but not at the
expense of the real meaning of the competition.
tralfaz

because I don't get out much. Piano being such a popular past-time for
our kids these days, there must be large numbers of 8-year olds who can
play piano better than her.

You should be acknowledging her skill and courage to get on stage,
rather than dragging her down because of the television show she
appeared on. John

Spob...

The problem I have isn't so much with her as with the ridiculous
acclaim. I'm sure she's a very nice little girl but as a piano player
she's nothing special.

As far as acknowledging her skill, listen to the winner of a national
contest in her age bracket, or even the top 20 and then see what you
think of her playing. Last night she hit more clams than right notes,
her tempo is all over the place.

Maybe she needs a better teacher.

mikeha.ca...

I agree, I thought her performance was sloppy, she made quite a few
mistakes, and her keyboard work in general is sloppy. I find in general
these "prodigies" may technically be able to play the music, but there
usually is no feeling in it either.