In Saturday’s (11/5) Washington Post, Katherine Boyle writes, “Gautier Capucon is flustered. An interviewer has just posed an inaudible question that embarrasses the world-class cellist. He laughs, revealing a broad, affable smile as he shakes his head, which in turn, ruffles thick clumps of his Gallic brown hair. It is 2004, and Capucon is 23 years old. … Seven years later, a video of this scene ranks high in a YouTube search for the musician. We never learn what secrets Capucon refused to reveal, but the content is irrelevant. That he refused to reveal something seems odd. A digital search for Capucon, now 30, offers an array of options for the casual viewer. … in today’s open-source, over-sharing, follow-and-friend frenzy, elite classical musicians, like every other sector of performers, are nothing if not familiar. YouTube celebrates its sixth anniversary this month, and its effects on established classical artists are still largely unquantifiable. Yet, young musicians like Capucon, violinist Charlie Siem and even once-controversial head-turner Lara St. John have seized virtual media not only to showcase their talents, but also to showcase themselves. … That openness may lead a young audience to his performances at the Kennedy Center where Leonard Slatkin will conduct him playing Saint-Saens’s Cello Concerto No. 1. Then again, it may not. Either way, this young crop—ever dedicated to the classical repertoire—has embraced digital media.”
Posted November 8, 2011
