American Piano Concertos
Xiayin Wang; Royal Scottish National Orchestra; Peter Oundjian
Chandos CHAN 5128
Over the years, American composers have contributed to the piano concerto genre as significantly as their European counterparts; this Chandos recording with concertos by Barber, Copland and Gershwin featuring pianist Xiayin Wang with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra conducted by Peter Oundjian is a fine cross-section of American music spanning a 35-year period. Wang studied at the Shanghai Conservatory and later at the Manhattan School of Music, where she earned her bachelor’s, master’s, and professional studies degrees. A winner of numerous prizes, she’s since earned an international reputation as a recitalist, chamber musician and orchestral soloist.
Samuel Barber has long been regarded as one of the most romantic of American composers. His Pulitzer Prize-winning concerto from 1962 is a true study in contrasts, with more than a stylistic nod to Bartók and Prokofiev. Wang’s formidable technique is clearly evident in the frenetic first and third movements, but the lyrical “Canzone” demonstrates a particular sensitivity with just the right degree of tempo rubato.
While Barber’s work is music by a veteran composer, the piano concerto by Aaron Copland was the creation of a youthful 26-year-old, and is very much a product of the jazz age with its bluesy themes and jazzy rhythms. As in the other two works, Oundjian and the RSNO produce a lush and confident sound, very much at home with this 20th century repertoire.
If Copland’s concerto was somewhat influenced by the music of the 1920s, Gershwin’s was even more so. This concerto is clearly stamped “Broadway, 1925.” Wang has a particular affinity for this music, already having recorded Earl Wild’s Gershwin transcriptions, and here she embraces the syncopated rhythms and lyrical melodies with great panache.
An Asian soloist with a Scottish orchestra led by a Canadian-born conductor performing American music may seem an unlikely combination, but the result is some wonderful music making. Samuel, Aaron and George would all be proud!
