Yuja Wang - Piano Concerto No 3 / Piano Concerto No 2 - [CD]

Young Chinese virtuoso Yuja Wang plays two of the most demanding of all piano concertos in one concert, joining an orchestra and conductor of similar age.brbrThe first recording with a soloist for the Simon Bol?var Orchestra and Gustavo Dudamel captures the extraordinary energy levels of a very special evening in Caracas.brbrThis very special concert celebrated the 38th anniversary of the founding of Venezuelas unique music-education system, El Sistema.brbrYuja Wang describes the performances with the Venezuelans as, a little explosive but controlled and very communicative.brbrThe two Russian piano concertos on the album were written just three years apart though they present very different perspectives, with Rachmaninov celebrating the tradition of the 19th Century and Prokofiev facing forward into the 20th.brbrRachmaninovs hugely popular Piano Concerto No.3 is his longest, most ambitious and most technically complex work for piano and orchestra. Yuja Wangs international performances of the concerto have already garnered great critical acclaim. Here she connects with the orchestra and conductor, as Gustavo Dudamel says, as if were playing chamber music.brbrProkofievs Piano Concerto No.2 is phenomenally emotional and intense music that also presents huge technical challenges for the soloist - particularly in the long and ferociously complex first movement cadenza.