CARNEGIE HALL PRESENTS
Yuja Wang, Piano
Part of: Keyboard Virtuosos II
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Performers
Yuja Wang, Piano
Program
GALUPPI Andante from Keyboard Sonata in C Major
SCRIABIN Piano Sonata No. 5, Op. 53
RAVEL "Une barque sur l'océan" from Miroirs
MOMPOU "Secreto" from Impresiones intimas
BERG Piano Sonata
BACH Toccata in C Minor, BWV 911
CHOPIN Mazurka in A Minor, Op. 67, No. 4
BRAHMS Intermezzo in E Minor, Op. 119, No. 2
CHOPIN Mazurka in C-sharp Minor, Op. 30, No. 4
BRAHMS Intermezzo in C-sharp Minor, Op. 117, No. 3
CHOPIN Mazurka in B Minor, Op. 33, No. 4
BRAHMS Romance in F Major, Op. 118, No. 5
SCRIABIN Piano Sonata No. 4, Op. 30
Encores:
SCHUBERT "Gretchen am Spinnrade," D. 118 (arr. Franz Liszt)
PROKOFIEV Toccata in D Minor, Op. 11
GLUCK Mélodie from Orfeo ed Euridice (arr. Giovanni Sgambati)
Event Duration
The printed program will last approximately two hours, including one 20-minute intermission.In honor of the centenary of his birth, Carnegie Hall’s 2019–2020 season is dedicated to the memory of Isaac Stern in recognition of his extraordinary contributions to Carnegie Hall, arts advocacy, and the field of music.
At a Glance
This evening’s program is as wide-ranging stylistically as it is chronologically. By juxtaposing music written in closely related keys, Yuja Wang shows how composers in different historical and cultural milieus deployed the resources of traditional tonality. Her selections further highlight the enduring appeal of the short “character piece”—one of the most characteristic genres of the 19th century—as well as the freely improvisational impulse that underlies music as outwardly diverse as Bach’s toccatas, Chopin’s mazurkas, and Brahms’s valedictory piano miniatures.
The rest of the program plunges into the musical maelstrom of the early 20th century. It’s framed by a pair of radically compressed but fundamentally Romantic sonatas by the visionary Russian composer-pianist Scriabin. Berg’s atonal but richly expressive piano sonata likewise makes a virtue of concision, while the small-scale musical essays by Ravel and Mompou hark back to the programmatic ethos of the 19th century.
Bios
Yuja Wang
Critical superlatives and audience ovations have continuously followed Yuja Wang’s dazzling career. Celebrated for her charismatic artistry and captivating stage presence, she achieves new heights during the 2019–2020 season, which features recitals, concert series, season residencies, and tours with some of the world’s most venerated ensembles and conductors.
Season highlights include Ms. Wang’s yearlong Artist Spotlight series at London’s Barbican Centre, for which she curates and performs in four events, including a solo recital; recitals that feature cellist Gautier Capuçon and clarinetist Andreas Ottensamer; and the London premiere of John Adams’s new piano concerto, entitled Must the Devil Have All the Good Tunes?, for which Ms. Wang gave the world premiere last spring. She brings the work to Boston and New York this season with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and Gustavo Dudamel.
In the fall of 2019, Ms. Wang toured to China with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, presenting concerts in Macao, Guangzhou, Shanghai, and Wuhan. In 2020, she reunites with Mr. Capuçon for a recital tour that features 11 concerts presented in Europe’s premier venues, including Paris’s Philharmonie and Vienna’s Konzerthaus. Ms. Wang then embarks on an extensive solo recital tour from February to April, appearing in renowned concert halls throughout North America and Europe that include Davies Symphony Hall in San Francisco and the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam.
Ms. Wang will also be the featured soloist this season with some of the leading North American orchestras, including the Boston Symphony Orchestra conducted by Andris Nelsons; the Toronto Symphony Orchestra conducted by Gustavo Gimeno; the San Francisco Symphony conducted by Michael Tilson Thomas; and The Philadelphia Orchestra conducted by Yannick Nézet-Séguin.
Ms. Wang was born into a musical family in Beijing, China. After childhood piano studies, she received advanced training in Canada and at the Curtis Institute of Music under Gary Graffman. Ms. Wang’s international breakthrough came in 2007 when she replaced Martha Argerich as soloist with the Boston Symphony Orchestra. She signed an exclusive contract with Deutsche Grammophon two years later and has since established her place among the world’s leading artists with a succession of critically acclaimed performances and recordings. Ms. Wang was named Musical America’s 2017 Artist of the Year.