Lang Lang Archive

“New York Rhapsody” – Lang Lang, p. & many others – Sony Classical

“New York Rhapsody” – Lang Lang, p. & many others – Sony Classical

A really amazing crossover album and one of the very best Rhapsody in Blues. “New York Rhapsody” – Lang Lang, p. & many others [TrackList follows] – Sony Classical 889853329229, 70:00 (9/16/16) *****: I almost decided to put this CD in our Popular category, but it certainly is a very intense crossover effort in spite of Lang Lang saying that it is not. At the center of it all is perhaps the very best version of Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue on record, and I am very partial to one with David Golub, conducted by, of all people, Mitch Miller, on Arabesque (1992). That one is great stereo sound and performance but this one is even better. Part of it is the showiness of Lang Lang, which is bound to come out in this album dedicated to America’s most symbolic city as great artists have imagined it. Part of it is also that this is a two-piano version of the Gershwin classic, with jazz legend Herbie Hancock at his Fazioli and Lang Lang at his Steinway, plus the London Symphony! The rest of this CD consists of nine short tracks featuring vocals by Jason Isbell, Andra Day, Kandace Springs, Lisa Fischer, […]

Audio News for October 28, 2016

LA Philharmonic’s Gustavo Dudamel Connecting with Kids and Classical Music – Just like Leonard Bernstein before him, the conductor with the wild curly hair and passionate conducting style has launched a music education program to provide instruments and training for about 800 kids from underserved communities in LA. He founded the Youth Orchestra Los Angeles (YOLSA). It is inspired by El Sistema, the program he has in his home country of Venezuela. The Youth Orchestra is now doing their first tour, after a decade. They have two venues in LA: Disney Hall and The Hollywood Bowl. At the latter they can have 18,ooo people every night. He said: “I don’t like to talk. I prefer to work and build things. I’m not a politician… I’m a musician, I’m an artist…What I can do is spread the message of music and art as a very important element of humanity.” What Lang Lang Loves About New York – Chinese classical pianist Lang Lang has more than 300 dates a year on his schedule, but when he does stay put, he likes to be in New York City. In fact, his new CD is titled New York Rhapsody. He is the city’s first […]