Chenyu Wang in the USA for the Keyboard Trust
“Ms. Wang commanded the audience’s attention from the moment she stepped onto the stage. Her carefully judged opening of Bach’s Capriccio in B-flat, shaped by pianissimos of exceptional softness and resonance, established the intimacy of a true salon recital. Chopin’s Barcarolle confirmed the afternoon’s deeply personal character, drawing listeners into an inner world whose more private contours emerged through a carefully chosen group of Scriabin works. The Prelude (Op. 11, No. 13) and Album Leaf (Op. 45, No. 1) were remarkably soulful, their emotional directness as compelling as the virtuoso fireworks of Sonata No. 5. In the sonata, playfulness and exuberance animated the display, with Ms. Wang’s broad smile reflected throughout the house.
Whereas other artists might program their second half with massive works, in both virtuosity and length, Wang chose miniatures: Prokofiev’s Visions Fugitives Op. 20 and Schubert’s Drei Klavierstücke, D. 946. The thorns and thistles of Prokofiev were never harsh or heavy, rather, the piece was spoken with the poetic ease of an omniscient sage.
Then, Schubert was unlike anything we had heard. The sensitivity and time Wang put into voicing and registering Schubert resulted in guttural reactions from our 21st century audience as she delivered the narrative. Although it was quite a musically informed audience that afternoon, they found themselves attempting to applaud Wang after each movement! No one was bothered by the numerous repetitions [a long debated problem of the piece].
We would’ve wished her to keep repeating – we didn’t want Wang’s story to end.”
