Musk’s rocket has arguably risen more slowly than the career of this brilliant young artist. His local debut took place about 50 miles south of the Space X launch pad at Vandenberg.
Born in Montreal at the end of the 20th century to Chinese parents, this intensely focused man was commanding the stage (and piano) at the Conservatory of the West’s beautiful Hahn Hall from the start on May 16 of this year. He went on to launch a promising career.
Liu’s command of the stage was a combination of dignity, focus and confidence in his (admirable) skills that showed he could handle whatever he chose to play. His intensity and focus (and some challenging pace) may evoke memories of compatriot Glenn Gould. And, while Master Liu’s technique is his own, he embodies the dignity of the ancient masters who communicated through their art, wordlessly but clearly and decisively connecting with their audiences.
The choice of music also reflects shrewd and personal curatorial choices. Yes, the winner of the 2021 Chopin Competition in Warsaw included Chopin in his program. But he also chose Haydn piano sonatas (too little exploration in the program), classical (Haydn, not Mozart), baroque (Jean-Philippe Rameau, not Bach), romantic ( Chopin of course) and Piano Sonata No. 20.
By my estimate the hall was about 2/3 full, but the audience seemed attentive and respectful. It’s a good start, but the addition of such a soloist solidifies the connection with this sympathetic audience through an auspicious debut from this (just entering the Millennium) musician.
He became one with the gorgeous Steinway when he introduced Franz Josef Haydn’s (1732-1809) Piano Sonata Hob XVI:32. This little gem seems to echo the keyboard work of Domenico Scarlatti and the much younger Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791). Haydn wrote about 50? keyboard sonatas (compared to Mozart’s 17), but oddly enough, Haydn has far fewer keyboard sonatas than Mozart.
He went on to play another piano sonata, Chopin’s Second Piano Sonata Op. 35 (the oft-cited “Funeral March”). Andy Lau’s superb technique and meticulous playing clearly illustrate why he won the 2021 Warsaw Chopin Piano Competition.
The author is not familiar with much of the music in the show. Except for the “Funeral March” and Rameau’s “Rapple”, the other works in this recital are all works chosen by Liu Mingzhi that are not often seen in the concert hall. But these works are deeply personal choices that showcase the artist’s strengths, range and passion.
The first half of the program concluded with variation works by Nikolai Kapustin (1932-2020). 41. Since 1984. The late composer was quite prolific (including 20 piano sonatas and a catalog of some 161 works). Before the short intermission, the audience stood up and applauded, and there were multiple curtain calls.
Master Liu returns to the stage to present his selections of music by Jean Phillipe Rameau (1683-1764) Harpsichord works in concert (1741), A set of major Baroque keyboard works. Rameau was a contemporary of Bach, but his works are not often performed in recitals. Liu effectively demonstrated that the work got more hearings.
Following the critical acclaim of Rameau’s work, Liu performed Sergei Prokofiev’s (1891-1953) Piano Sonata No. 7 (1942), one of the composer’s three so-called “war” sonatas. The middle piece of the piece takes us back to the twentieth century. This is an outstanding work in which Mr. Liu combines virtuosity, interpretive skill and pure energy.
Three more curtain calls prompted Mr. Liu to treat us to some lovely encores, including a hauntingly beautiful rendition of Johann Sebastian Bach’s Prelude in E minor (reminding the listener once again of Glenn Gould’s unique interpretation of Bach). Next, Teacher Liu presented a piece that was a real crowd-pleaser, Chopin’s so-called “Minute Waltz.” I didn’t time his performance, but it was every bit as energetic and energetic as his previous work on this beautiful night.
It was truly an exciting night and I recommend listeners to seek out everything this artist has to offer. He did not disappoint.