After hearing the host's introduction, those who were dissatisfied with Zero Hour had different reactions.
"It's OK for him to recruit some laymen on the Internet, but it won't work at all in a place like a piano competition where there are the most professionals."
“Playing live is different from recording… There are countless opportunities for failure in recording, but there are none in live performance.”
Some people were sneering and whispering to each other.
There were more than 2,000 seats in the venue, at least half of whom were midnight fans, all of whom were concentrating and staring at the stage.
At the same time, a person walked out from the dark corner of the curtain beside the stage.
As the figure's face appeared, he was wearing a gentleman's hat, a tuxedo, a white shirt and a black bow tie. The key point was that the painting had a mask with the number zero on it.
His steps were steady and powerful, and his arms hung naturally. Because his face and expression could not be seen, his black and white, wordless and colorless image looked elegant, but also gave people an indescribable sense of oppression.
Elegant, noble, dignified, mysterious, confident, his unique appearance makes his aura fully open, as if a very special being is walking towards him, extremely charming.
“Pah pah pah pah!”
For a moment, the whole audience was in an uproar, and fans were applauding enthusiastically to welcome them.
"Master Zero Time!"
“So handsome!”
“Neon’s No. 1 pianist!”
Some fans couldn't contain their excitement and didn't care about the rules of the concert hall at all. They shouted his name and couldn't help cheering.
The scene in the audience was divided into two camps: lively and silent.
In fact, there are still many contestants in the audience, whether they were eliminated before the finals or those who have just finished the competition.
The emergence of Zero Hour has made it the most controversial piano artist in recent years.
He has the ability, that is an undoubted fact, but he is overhyped by outsiders and fans.
“And he’s the No. 1 pianist in Japan… How ridiculous.”
"People who hide their heads and faces are not worthy of being accepted by the upper class."
"I guess he doesn't look that good, otherwise why would he wear a mask."
In an instant, anyone who had learned piano or had listened to piano music for decades felt speechless.
This should have been an elegant music hall, but at this moment, there were cheers and boos at the same time.
Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Lingshi showed no strange expression and just walked step by step to the front of the host.
The hostess saw him approaching, and when he came beside her, she felt inexplicably frightened.
Because this 1.8-meter-tall man wearing a piano uniform and a mask exudes an extremely strong sense of oppression in his silence.
"At midnight, before we play the closing remarks for the competition, how about an opening speech?"
However, as a professional host, she regained her composure and handed the microphone to the mask.
"I am Zero Hour."
As the microphone was extended to him, Lingshi lowered his head slightly and spoke.
No extra words, just a brief self-introduction.
The deep and magnetic voice, through the microphone, resounded throughout the venue.
"It really is Master Zero Time!"
For a moment, his words directly ignited the enthusiasm of the fans, and the cheers became more enthusiastic.
This self-introduction is a familiar opening line for fans.
"Is he handsome? Does he have a nice voice?"
When Shiina Lan heard this, she was so excited that she shared it with the sisters around her.
"Handsome, handsome, and his voice is nice too."
Seeing her reaction of being so excited that she was about to jump up, Ichinose Yuki smiled and agreed.
It must be said that she also thought the voice was very nice, although not as good as Brother Guang's.
As the fans got excited, the opponents all rolled their eyes in silence.
A piano concert, when has there ever been such a thing? This is an elegant concert, not some idol concert.
However, the famous pianists from all over the world sitting on the jury were very interested and expectant.
Anyone who truly understands piano, as long as they have watched the video, can tell that Ling Shi’s piano level is very high.
However, that video alone is not enough to call him the number one pianist in Neon, but how high his level is remains to be seen.
"That's a really brief self-introduction. Could you please tell us about the piece you're going to play tonight, Croatian Rhapsody? What's the inspiration for the piece, and what kind of emotion do you want to express?"
The host also knew from the reminder of the organizer that the man in front of him had a very high level of piano skills. He smiled and asked.
“Even if the flames of war burn everything and turn everything into ashes, we must rise from the ruins. Even if we have nothing, we must start from scratch.”
Lingshi pondered over this question for a while and then answered briefly.
"This emotion is worth praising. In other words, the passionate and high-pitched melody of this song is meant to express the emotion that makes people face difficulties and obstacles, but also face them and keep moving forward?"
In order to avoid the audience from not understanding, the host read it over and understood it, and then changed it to a more understandable way.
"yes."
Lingshi thought about it and felt that this interpretation was fine, so he nodded.
“A great piano piece usually has its own story and meaning. Now, the meaning of Croatian Rhapsody is clear. Please play this piece for the pain of war for us at midnight.”
At this point, the host felt that he was not very talkative, and did not force the issue, but rather declared that it was time to end.
"etc."
After saying this, the host bowed to the audience and was about to walk off the stage when he was stopped.
"yes."
When the host heard the request to stay, he stopped and handed the microphone to him.
"I want to apologize to all the fans who love and support me here at midnight."
Lingshi lowered his head in front of the microphone, facing the judges and the audience below the stage, and spoke.
"???"
When these words were spoken, the fans who were originally very agitated and excited were all shocked and didn't know where these words came from.
"Everyone has come here from all over the country to listen to the live performance of Croatian Rhapsody. But after careful consideration, I decided to change it to a classic piece of classical piano, which is Liszt's Bells. But please rest assured, I will never let you down."
Before anyone could react, Ling Shi added.
His words were calm, but they were like a meteorite falling from the sky, hitting the earth and causing the large concert hall of the Tokyo Bunka Kaikan to shake and tremble.
"Liszt's The Bells?"
“Can he play ‘The Bells’?”
“Is this true or false?”
"This is impossible. How could he have such a level? If he really had such a level, he would have become famous long ago. How could he have become famous with a modern piano piece like Croatian Rhapsody, which is very easy to play?"
As soon as these words were spoken, both professionals and people who had been immersed in piano music for decades became uneasy.
Liszt's "The Bells" is a piece of music that, throughout the long history of the piano that spans hundreds of years, there are very few people who can play it well. It is recognized worldwide as one of the most difficult piano pieces to play.
Franz Liszt, also known as the King of Piano, shocked the world when he composed this piece, because the difficulty of playing this piece exceeded the ability of ordinary pianists and had the power to make the audience astonished.
It is no exaggeration to say that even in modern times, anyone who can play the piece "The Bells" is a piano master.
"What is Liszt's The Bells?"
Shiina Lan was a little surprised when she heard this.
"Who is Liszt?"
Ichinose Yuki was also confused.
“Can the Master of Zero Hour actually play Liszt’s “The Bells”?”
Kitajima Shizuka was so excited when she heard these words.
For a time, many spectators who were unable to come to the scene and could only watch it through TV broadcasts and online live broadcasts were also completely shocked.
"Mr. Kawai, is he going to change the song? Is this really possible?" At the same time, the host was also shocked. He took a few steps back, turned around and lowered his head to communicate quietly with the backstage using the headset.
As a host, she has to deal with all emergencies, and she also has to use earphones to communicate with the backstage.
"Sure, his agent has already told me about it."
In response to this question, a deep male voice sounded in her ears.
"Is his piano playing so good?"
Ninomiya Chizuru was sitting in the audience, terrified.
She knew that Kurosawa had great talent and piano skills, but even she had not expected that Kurosawa could play Liszt's "The Bells".
Faced with surprise, doubt, admiration and excitement, Lingshi always stood on the stage, standing straight and facing it all calmly.
He waited quietly for a moment, until the audience had passed the most agitated moment, handed the microphone to the host at midnight, and then turned around and walked towards the Kawai grand piano.
Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Lingshi sat at the piano.
With his coming to power, even the opposition and those who disliked him kept their mouths shut and kept quiet.
Because piano performance is sacred and solemn, under the rules of musical etiquette, all noisy and loud discordant notes are rejected.
Even the audience in front of the screens and mobile phones gradually quieted down as the atmosphere became quieter.
At the same time, Ling Shi raised his hands, placed them on the piano keyboard, and began his performance.
The prelude of "The Bell" is very brief, like a whisper before people realize that a storm is about to come, and everyone begins to choose a quiet and safe habitat.
In fact, piano playing is not only about the interpretation of piano sounds, but also about the interpretation of emotions. The performer's expression and body movements are also very important.
However, Lingshi was wearing a mask, so his facial expressions couldn't be seen clearly, which was a fatal minus point.
It should have been so, but the moment Lingshi's hands, those long and slender fingers, danced on the piano keys, the aura emanating from the inside out was so moving.
He just sat there, without saying a word, expressing his emotions solely through the sound of the piano.
Watching him and his performance, the audience became more focused and quiet... People could feel that there was a rage about to burst out.
The clear and melodious sound of the piano resounded throughout the concert hall.
After a brief calm, when Lingshi's hands played in the high pitch, with a combination of staccato playing and clear and pleasant piano sounds, a series of small bells rang, finally opening the curtain of this piece.