In 2004, he won the championship of the International Iangnigro Cello Competition (this competition is equivalent to the Chopin Competition in the piano world and the Paganini Competition in the violin world), becoming the first person to win this honor. Chinese. Today, he is the youngest principal cellist of the Netherlands National Symphony Orchestra and a world-renowned solo cellist. People have become accustomed to comparing him with Lang Lang, Li Yundi, Li Chuanyun, and Wang Jian, and some even call him "the successor of Yo-Yo Ma." Last year, Radio Television Hong Kong launched the "Chinese Young Musicians Series" program, which introduced eight Chinese musicians who have performed outstandingly on today's international stage. Li Chuiyi was also on the "list". The remaining seven musicians include Wang Jian, Lang Lang, Li Yundi, Feng Jingxi (piano), Zhang Xian (conductor), Liao Changyong and Li Chuanyun.
The dream of "Family Travel Band"
Li Chuiyi's ancestral home is Xiamen, Fujian, because his mother once taught at the Central Conservatory of Music. He was born in Beijing, but his Hong Kong identity is He grew up in the United States and now lives in the Netherlands. He is the youngest in the family, with two older sisters, and has also learned piano and violin since childhood. Li Chuiyi's choice of cello was completely dictated by his parents. He said: "My mother said that the three of us, my sister and my brother, could form a string trio, and we would have someone to look after us when we go out to perform." However, the Li family's "family travel orchestra" "The dream did not come true in the end - now, the eldest sister has left the music industry, the second sister is working in the Hong Kong Symphony Orchestra, and only Li Chuiyi is touring the world alone. Fortunately, his eldest sister Li Chuiyin became his manager in the past two years, allowing him to have his family by his side every day during his lonely travels.
Practice piano in childhood
Li Chuiyi started learning piano at the age of 3 and cello at the age of 9. Probably except for Mozart, any child would be reluctant to enter the door of music performance. The same is true for Li Chuiyi. He said that he practiced piano very reluctantly in his childhood and was beaten frequently. But even so, he and his two sisters still entered the "genius concentration camp" Juilliard High School with a scholarship at the age of 11. The age of 18 came soon, and the rebelliousness of adolescence made him realize that music was not his own choice. He began to defy his parents' original intentions, and changed his life course on his own to explore a world other than music. Fortunately, he was admitted to a prestigious school - Harvard Business School. Before graduating from Julia High School, Li Chuiyi went to Boston to study economics without looking back.
“I feel relieved when I put down the cello. It’s very comfortable. No one will force me to practice piano anymore. I have hoped to do business in the future since I was a child, although I don’t know what kind of business I want to do.” Although it is In this way, he did not smash the cello. While studying at Harvard, he still used his spare time to play chamber music with his classmates. "The students at Harvard are really hiding something. They learn things that are completely different from music, but high-quality performing talents abound. Being with them, I have not completely lost the 'boy skills' I have developed in those years." ".
Restarting the road of cello playing
After graduating from Harvard, Li Chuiyi naturally came to Wall Street in New York and found a job in a multinational financial consulting company. He made a lot of money. But after five years of ups and downs in the business world, he gradually discovered that his temperament was incompatible with the surrounding environment. By nature, he was convinced that what he loved most and was most suitable for him was the music brought to him by his mother. So he resolutely returned, put aside his gold-collared coat, left Wall Street, and went to Europe to study with his teachers. He furthered his studies at the New England Conservatory of Music and the famous Spanish Conservatory of Music, where he studied under the world-renowned cellist Lester and the Swedish cellist and conductor respectively. Hermonson studied his piano skills and embarked on the road of cello playing again.
Li Chuiyi said, "At that time, many of my friends were surprised and said that I would starve to death if I was engaged in concerts, but I believe that money cannot be carried into the coffin." One or two months before each performance or competition, Li Chuiyi practices the cello for about 7 to 8 hours a day. Although practicing takes a lot of time and energy, Li Chuiyi doesn't find it hard, because at this time, playing the cello has become an important part of his life. This is his own choice.
Talking about his academic journey in Europe, Li Chuiyi said that it was very hard at the beginning.
In fact, the European music scene has always been relatively "exclusive". In the past, some people always thought that it was difficult for Asians to master their classical music culture. This is understandable. We also cannot expect too many foreigners with blond hair and blue eyes to become folk music performers. of everyone. "But this view is quietly changing as we enter the 21st century. With the rise of the younger generation of Chinese performers, the strength of Chinese performers is making more and more Westerners look at them with admiration. They are even scared. , afraid that more Chinese will 'invade' their long-standing traditional culture."
Participating in competitions and winning awards
Li Chuiyi smiled and gave an example of participating in an international competition in 2004. The Jannigro Cello Competition was very cruel from the semi-finals to the finals. A large number of talented European rookies were eliminated. Some were from Croatia, the host country; some were from Russia, Germany and other places with deep roots; there were also many extremely talented Jewish players. Young man of blood. On the day of the final, the losing contestants collectively observed his performance. They colluded to play pranks on him while he was playing, making strange noises in the audience to distract him, in order to help another European opponent win. Later, like this The prank made even the judges unbearable. It was in such a bad environment that he snatched the crown from the Europeans...
Speaking of various competitions, Li Chuiyi He said that many people think it is a competition, like a sports competition. In fact, the competition there is not about skills or musicality at all, because in terms of these, the players participating in the competition are all very strong, and they can all get perfect scores, and there is almost no difference between them. In the end, the competition is whether the music you play can impress the judges present. "I'm lucky that my performance impresses the judges almost every time," Li Chuiyi said modestly.
As Li Chuiyi said, it is never easy to find your place on the European stage, and releasing records is one of them. After winning the competition that year, Li Chuiyi was immediately recruited by EMI Records and released his first album of the same name. Li Chuiyi said that EMI was in a hurry at the time and wanted to help him release the album as soon as possible. The producer also found a performer to be the producer. Riding on its popularity, the first album aims to attract a more diverse audience, so in addition to the competition-winning piece Brahms' "Sonata in D Major", there is also the virtuosic "Flight of the Bumblebee" at the beginning. and the nice "Finnish Tango" etc. However, even such a relatively "popular" album has still managed to make it onto the classical music charts. The international authoritative magazine "The STRAD" gave this album a high rating. The magazine He believes that Li Chuiyi's performance is "extremely comprehensive and he can perform difficult works with ease. In the "Brahms Sonata", the deep emotions and lyrical tones he played perfectly matched the material."