The world's number one pianist

He Shen looked at Kobayashi Aishi in front of him, watching her holding the thermos, but narrowed his eyes slightly, and did not speak.

Kobayashi Aishi smiled innocently at He Shen and asked.

"He, is there any problem?"

"No..."

He Shen shook his head slightly.

This Kobayashi Aishi in front of him has something, she is not as harmless as she looks on the surface.

Seeing her holding the thermos and sipping the hot water because she is too nervous, it is easy for people to lose some vigilance against her.

But, don't forget.

Kobayashi Aishi is one of the final 10 finalists of the last Chopin International Piano Competition, an absolute top player.

And she is also the seventh in the first round of the Chopin International Piano Competition.

One place higher than the previous Rao Hao.

This is already able to reflect her strength.

And what she just said to herself.

First congratulations, then thanks...

Interesting, this is a provocation to herself.

He Shen's mouth slightly raised, and he couldn't help but look at Xiao Lin Ai Shi more.

First of all, congratulations. Usually, when other people finish playing, most of them will just say thank you for your hard work.

But Xiao Lin Ai Shi didn't, she said congratulations.

What to congratulate?

It's very simple, congratulations to He Shen for successfully making two works that did not reach the peak ignored by everyone.

Let He Shen's shorter side be covered by the longer side.

At least, all the audience under the stage were basically fooled.

Although those judges may not be fooled, at least they can pay less attention to He Shen's weaker parts.

Therefore, this is why Xiao Lin Ai Shi congratulated He Shen.

Others may not be strong enough to hear some adjustments and strategies made by He Shen in the selection of repertoires.

But Xiao Lin Ai Shi is not an ordinary person. She can be regarded as a member of the first echelon of the Chopin International Piano Competition.

Of course, she can hear some hidden skills in He Shen's music.

And the thanks later...

He Shen didn't say anything, just looked at Kobayashi Aishi, and Kobayashi Aishi also looked at He Shen with a smile. Neither of them said anything, just looked at each other.

This thanks was not an ordinary thanks.

It told He Shen that she understood what He Shen did at the end of the piece.

He Shen wanted to make the next contestant lose the stage and not be able to control the whole situation well.

Now He Shen's interpretation of music makes all the audience have very strong expectations for the next contestant.

Looking forward to what kind of interpretation the next contestant can make.

In addition to expectations, this group of audiences may still be savoring He Shen's previous performance.

If there is no way to respond to their expectations, this expectation will turn into disappointment.

And this disappointment will be completely imprinted on the stage, so that the performer's performance will not get a good response.

No matter how he plays, it's all like a stone sinking into the sea, and no one gives him any response at all.

This feeling is very uncomfortable for a performer.

The more the audience is addicted to the music, the more support the performer can get from their atmosphere.

And a performance without any support can easily become boring.

Boring music will naturally not attract anyone.

This is the performance strategy Chen Sa gave to He Shen, a method that can easily eliminate some potential competitors.

However, there is a premise.

Behind He Shen, the second or even third echelon players are needed.

Because only those players, when they encounter this situation, with the strength that they cannot crush, will there be problems.

However, Kobayashi Ai is not an ordinary player, she is a player in the first echelon!

Although she is not as good as the leader of this session in Japan, Fan Tian Kyohei, she is still a player in the first echelon.

Therefore, she will not be overwhelmed by these huge expectations.

On the contrary, she can use this expectation to give herself a little chance to achieve a higher self.

This is why she congratulated He Shen and thanked He Shen.

Congratulations to He Shen for hiding his shortcomings.

Congratulations to He Shen for giving her a perfect opening.

If she can't control such a good opening, then it's her own problem.

It doesn't matter if she is eliminated directly in the second round.

Because if she can't even beat the taillights of the players in the first echelon, then what qualifications does she have to compete for this year's championship?

No qualifications at all!

Kobayashi Aishi looked at He Shen with a smile, holding the thermos in her hand, sipping from time to time, and she didn't look particularly strong at all.

She looked at He Shen and asked a little strangely.

"What's wrong, He? Is there something wrong with me? Why are you staring at me?"

"No..."

He Shen shook his head slightly, staring at Kobayashi Aishi's eyes, suddenly smiled, and said casually.

"No, nothing, try your best."

"Let me see your strength."

After saying that, He Shen turned around and walked out of the concert hall without waiting for Kobayashi Aishi's reply.

Kobayashi Aishi just looked at He Shen's back as he left. She didn't say anything for a long time, sipping the hot water in the cup. No one knew what she was thinking.

He Shen didn't care what Kobayashi Aishi was thinking. He just went back to the concert hall, showed his contestant certificate to the staff, and found an empty seat to sit down.

His certificate was equivalent to a standing ticket. If there was a seat, he could sit down directly.

If there was no seat, then he would stand.

He Shen sat in a corner and looked at Fazioli, who was slowly descending on the stage, with his arms around his chest.

Now the piano was being replaced on the stage. It seemed that the piano chosen by Kobayashi Aishi should not be the same Fazioli as hers.

So, what would she choose?

He Shen was a little curious.

And soon, a piano of the same black color rose from the ground.

Steinway, D274!

A mediocre piano, but with a great feel.

He Shen didn't say anything, just closed his eyes.

Next, there is no need to watch, just listen carefully.

The judges sitting at the back of the concert hall looked at the information sheet in their hands with interest.

"Interesting, did you see it? The next contestant is actually the finalist of the last Chopin International Piano Competition, and the seventh contestant of the first round of this session. Interesting!"

"This is not the point. You should pay attention to her piano choice. This piano choice is a bit difficult..."

"Indeed, it's a pity. The piano choice is generally determined at the beginning. Everyone aims at the familiar and favorite piano feel and chooses the piano they like. There are very few temporary changes in the middle. It's a pity for her Steinway."

"Well, it's really a pity. Steinway is too mediocre. The previous contestant, He, used a Fazioli piano, which has a better tone, but is more difficult to control. He's strong strength completely controlled the tone of that piano and made Fazioli's piano more beautiful. Ori's perfect timbre was fully displayed. If she had chosen a low-pitched and cute piano, it might have been possible, but unfortunately she chose Steinway. "

"Middle means it is difficult to stand out and it is difficult for everyone to be completely attracted by it when they hear the performance for the first time. It is easy to control, but it is..."

"Forget it. No matter what, she is a first-tier player. I am really curious about what level she can achieve with this generation of Steinway."

"That's right. After all, she is a first-tier player. Let's see what happens first!"

"..."

Many judges discussed with each other. Although they were looking forward to Kobayashi Ai's performance, they also had some bad thoughts about Kobayashi Ai's piano choice.

Kobayashi Ai may have lost to He Shen because of this.

They don't want to see a completely crushing game. This is the first in the first round, against the finalist of the previous competition, who is the seventh in the first round of this round.

If you can fight back and forth, it will be so much fun.

Pure crushing is really meaningless.

Of course, this is just the judges' idea, not the actual situation of the competition.

Standing in the backstage, Kobayashi Aishi didn't know what the judges were thinking. She sipped a few sips of water to calm herself down a little bit, and her eyes gradually became extremely firm.

The host stood on the stage, looked at the people around him, and slowly spoke.

"The next contestant, Japan, Kobayashi Aishi!"

"Piano selection: Steinway D274!"

"Repertoire selection: Chopin Fantasy Polonaise in A flat major, 61."

"Chopin Piano Ballade No. 2 in F major, Op38."

"Chopin Waltz in A flat major, Op42."

"Chopin Steady Andante and Brilliant Polonaise, Op22."

As soon as these words came out, the whole audience was shocked, especially all the audience, and some of the people who watched the live broadcast.

All of them were shocked.

Let's not talk about Kobayashi Aishi's identity for now. Everyone knows that she was the finalist of the last session and the seventh in the first round of this session.

The key is the repertoire she chose.

Each of these pieces is very, very difficult!

Each piece has been carefully selected.

And, by luck, the order of performance was different from He Shen's.

Let's not talk about the previous one, Chopin's Fantasy Polonaise, the focus is on the final brilliant Polonaise.

This piece is the same as the one He Shen played.

And this piece was basically decided before entering the stage.

In other words, she happened to be completely different from He Shen.

After all the audience's impression of He Shen's Fantasy Polonaise gradually faded, she started to play.

This order was really a coincidence.

This made the judges who were not optimistic about Kobayashi Aimi show a little surprise.

"Interesting, the song selection of Kobayashi Ai is very, very interesting!"

"There is hope, she has the hope to meet He Shen, I am beginning to be curious, curious about what kind of sparks she and He Shen can create."

"Indeed, this game really feels like it is getting interesting!"

"..."

Everyone was talking, looking at the place where the contestants were entering, revealing a hint of expectation.

Deng Songshan looked at the people around him and shook his head slightly.

He didn't have any special expectations for Kobayashi Aishi.

Or, he didn't have any special expectations for all the contestants.

For him, the contestant was the examinee, not the contestant in the competition.

He only cared whether the examinee passed the exam, not how strong the examinee was.

Or, unless the contestant's strength reached the top level, became a top pianist, or had the strength to compete for the championship.

He didn't care about other people at all.

This seventh place in the last round was just that to him.

Kobayashi Aishi didn't know what the people around her thought, and even if she knew, she wouldn't care too much.

She now focused all her attention on the water cup in front of her, constantly sipping the hot water in the cup to make her nervousness more relaxed.

Then, she loosened the cup, put it aside, walked to the edge of the stage, took a deep breath, and walked onto the stage with cheers.

Boom!

Applause rang out.

Everyone applauded Kobayashi Aishi and looked forward to her interpretation.

After Kobayashi Aishi stepped onto the stage, there was no longer any trace of nervousness and fear about the competition on her face.

As a pianist, a professional pianist.

There can be all kinds of negative emotions off the stage, but when she stands on the stage, she cannot have any negative emotions.

The most beautiful part of music must be appreciated by the audience.

Kobayashi Aishi walked to the edge of the stage, bowed hard to everyone, turned around and sat on her special piano stool, slightly adjusted the distance between the front and back, took a deep breath, and looked forward.

The surrounding sounds gradually disappeared, and no one dared to make any sound. Everyone looked at Kobayashi Aishi, waiting for her performance.

Kobayashi Aishi placed her hands on the piano keyboard 1 mm away, gave her hands a gravitational potential energy, and then her eyes suddenly condensed and pressed her hands hard.

Great!

A soft and strong sound instantly burst out from the piano.

When this voice came out, many people were stunned.

This, this voice?

Why, why is this voice so strong?

Is this the strength of the seventh place in the first round of the Chopin International Piano Competition?

Although it may be slightly worse than He Shen.

But...

She is still very strong!

She is just a girl, a very short girl, and her physical strength and various data are not as good as He Shen.

However, her body is full of strength, which makes her music full of strength!

This power makes the sound she comes out very soft and full of power.

This feeling of sound, this control strength.

Definitely Lv10!

For the judges, there is a difference between just entering Lv10 and reaching the peak of Lv10.

Many of He Shen's works are the peak of Lv10, while Kobayashi Ai's work has just reached Lv10.

The judges can clearly hear the difference.

But the onlookers can't hear it!

It was difficult for them to tell the difference between He Shen and Kobayashi Aishi. They only felt that Kobayashi Aishi was very strong and was worthy of being a first-tier player. She was fully qualified to challenge He Shen.

And her interpretation was also beautiful, and her finger skills were fully displayed.

This kind of technology and strength, as expected, such a competition is worth watching!

What's the point of crushing, it's more interesting to fight against each other!

Everyone looked at Kobayashi Aishi with a hint of praise.

This is called a competition, this is called a world-class competition!

Everyone's emotions are getting more and more excited.

But...

Kobayashi Aishi's face is not good. She originally thought that what He Shen left for her was a very easy-to-control, completely heated scene.

But in fact, it is not the case at all!

She already felt that her current performance was facing a loss of control! More and more people's expectations of her made her a little unsure of how to perform this performance better in the future.

Maybe she was just standing aside before, so she didn't have a clear understanding of the pressure that He Shen could cause.

But now, when she stood on the stage seriously, looking at the eyes from all directions and everyone's expectations of her, she began to feel how much pressure He Shen gave her.

So much that she was a little breathless for a while.

It's not like she had never experienced such a performance before.

After all, she has been seriously on the world stage, chasing the world's top competitions for several years.

Like now, just standing behind He Shen and playing, there is such a great pressure, this is the first time she has seen it.

She looked at her hands, playing the music very seriously, and her teeth lightly knocked on her lips.

"Sure enough, is this He Shen? Is this the strength of the first place in the last round, and the sense of oppression?"

The expectations of the people are getting higher and higher, and Kobayashi Ai's control over the emotions of the people is getting lower and lower.

This also led to her music starting to get a little out of control.

The music that was supposed to be stable at the beginning of Lv10 began to occasionally drop to the peak of Lv9.

The audience didn't notice, but the judges did.

Some judges frowned slightly and shook their heads slowly.

Kobayashi Ai's performance was good, but it was a pity that her control over the music was a bit low.

It was really a pity.

She definitely passed the test, but the road ahead was not easy to walk.

He Shen also opened his eyes at this time and looked at Kobayashi Ai on the stage, a little disappointed.

He originally thought that Kobayashi Ai could put pressure on himself, just like Liu Yu.

Unfortunately, she didn't do this, and she failed in the end.

She was shortlisted in the finals of the last competition, but didn't get a place, which didn't give her enough lessons.

This time she played well enough to get the top six, as for the championship?

She has been eliminated from the championship competition!

[If you like this novel, I hope you can share it on Facebook, the author will be grateful. ]