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Pianist Yan Shen all-Chopin Recital

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Yan Shen in New York

Yan Shen’s New York Debut

On Friday August 13th, Houston-based pianist Yan Shen made her New York debut at Robin Shoemaker’s NYC salon.

Her all-Chopin program consisted of 3 polonaises, 8 mazurkas, and a 25-minute sonata.

Chopin: Polonaise Op. 40 No. 1

At first the cultivated pomp of this polonaise seems grandiose. You can hear drums and marching armies, hence its nickname “Military Polonaise”.

But the polonaise is not really about glory. Instead, it reflects the dreams of Chopin’s Poland, a nation oppressed by opportunistic adversaries. At times Ms. Shen’s Polonaise hesitated with Shostakovich-like sarcasm, as if doubting the promise of those dreams.

Chopin: Mazurka Op. 6 No. 1-4

Yan Shen New York August 2021

Yan Shen speaking

At the International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition everyone has to play mazurki. Some are slight works that leave little impression. Others are more consequential, but hard to recognize by Opus Number because Chopin wrote so many.

Op. 6 No. 1, however, is innately memorable. It has a delicious swirl to it, which Ms. Shen evoked with characteristic economy. Some pianists use leaps and hand-crossing as visual flair, but Ms. Shen just took them in stride.

Ms. Shen’s Opus 6 No. 3 also stood out. With its bright, declamatory opening and cute descending bass motif it was a clean, happy performance.

Chopin: Polonaise Op. 26 No. 1

This polonaise opens with Beethoven-like drama. before evolving to slower, more melodic passages. Ms. Shen seemed very much at home with this work, which is one of Chopin’s earliest polonaises.

Chopin: Mazurka Op. 68 No. 1-4

In Mazurka Op. 68 No. 2 Yan Shen’s rubato was more pronounced, adding sway to this delightful gem. It had exquisitely executed twirls reminiscent of those in Op. 6 No. 1. We also enjoyed Op. 68 No. 3, with its stop-start feel and the Bartok-like folk dance in the middle.

Chopin: Polonaise Op. 53

Robin Shoemaker with pianist Yan Shen

Robin Shoemaker with Yan

Known as the Heroic Polonaise, this technically demanding work is a concert favorite. Unlike the Military Polonaise, here Chopin’s grandeur is unforced, and Ms. Shen hammered out an impressive performance.

There were a couple of moments where the tempo seemed to run ahead of the pianist, but it must be hard to control one’s adrenalin when playing such stirring repertoire.

Chopin: Sonata No. 2

Chopin’s 2nd Sonata is an immense work and a personal favorite of mine. Yan Shen’s interpretation was spirited and intense from start to finish. Afterwards there was a moment of awed silence before applause broke out.

Steve Ho: Kung Fu Rhapsody

As an encore Ms. Shen played Kung Fu Rhapsody by contemporary Hong Kong composer Steve Ho. It starts with a pulsing, cartoonish thread that morphs into pentatonic melody before returning to its more energetic core. I found this work entertaining, but am not familiar with the movie that inspired it.

Closing Thoughts

Chopin’s portrayal of grandeur was the anchor of this recital. Starting with the Military Polonaise, it evolved to the Heroic Polonaise, and culminated in Sonata No. 2. These works were interspersed with lighter fare, allowing the performer to pace herself and peak with her memorable rendition of Chopin’s Sonata No. 2.

Pianist Suejin Jung at Central Park West

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Suejin Jung at Central Park West 2/15/2010

Suejin Jung, 2/15/2020 at Central Park West

Suejin Jung and Gustavo Miranda-Bernales

Pianist Suejin Jung brought a guest pianist to her February 15th recital at the Shoemaker Salon at Central Park West.  Chilean pianist Gustavo Miranda-Bernales and Suejin took turns at the piano, ending with a four-handed duet.

Curtis Curtis-Smith: Etude No. 9

Gustavo Miranda-Bernales opened the recital with Curtis Curtis-Smith’s Etude #9 “for the Independent Rubato of the Right Hand”. A millenial work published in the year 2000, it quickly revealed its own unique and pleasant harmonic spatter. There were also hints of jazz and new age piano.

Debussy: Feux d’Artifice

Gustavo Miranda-Bernales

Gustavo Miranda-Bernales plays Debussy

Debussy’s Feux d’Artifice (“fireworks”) is a swirling, percussive drama. Mr. Miranda-Bernales gave a clear, jagged rendition, climaxing with a gut-punch from the bottom A of the Shoemaker Steinway, followed by a searing glissando and then fading away over a distant thunder of rolling bass.

Published in 1913, the work now appears to herald the opening salvos of the First World War.

Debussy: Étude 7 pour les degrés chromatiques

Suejin Jung played this challenging étude with ease. Musically, it felt somewhat harsh and unrewarding, but as a technical exercise it was impressive.

Debussy: Préludes, Book 1

Suejin Jung played the following well-known preludes from Book 1. I particularly appreciated the first, Les sons et les parfums. Apropos of nothing, Les sons ends with the same bottom A that I mentioned in Mr. Bernales’ Feux d’Artifice.

Franz Schubert: Fantasie in C major Op. 15 “Wanderer”

Schubert’s restless, charming Fantasie contains hints of the darker edge of his later sonatas. But even in Gustavo Miranda-Bernales’ commanding hands, it could not rise to the level of e.g. the great D 960 sonata in B flat Major.

Nevertheless, MIranda-Bernales’ compelling execution of this difficult work earned him raucus applause.

Frédéric Chopin: Sonata No. 3 in B minor

Robin Shoemaker, Gustavo Morales and Suejin Jung

Robin, Gustavo and Suejin

Chopin’s Piano Sonata No. 3 in B minor Op. 58 is like a tray of jewels spread in front of the listener. How can one describe such glittering beauty and magical craft?

I was struck by how balanced Suejin Jung’s presentation was. Each movement and every section felt not too hot and not too cold, but just right. Her Largo was exquisitely paced and luminous, Chopin at his most sublime.

And even the galloping Presto, which opens with weighty romanticism reminiscent of Schubert, was reined back sufficiently by Suejin that it morphed from manic to majestic.

For this reviewer, Suejin Jung’s Chopin was the highlight of the evening. It was still playing in my head on the long ride home.

Encore: Fauré Le Pas Espagnol

Le Pas Espagnol is the last section of Faure’s Dolly Suite for four-hand piano. For this rousing Spanish dance, the pianists sat together with Gustavo playing the primo (upper) part. It was a delightful way to close the evening, leaving everyone with a smile on their face.

Rosa Chang, Carlos Arcos perform with Ivan Gusev in NYC

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On May 23rd, 2019 I was privileged to attend an opera recital at the Shoemaker Salon on Central Park West in New York. The event featured Korean soprano Rosa Chang, Ecuadorian baritone Carlos Arcos, and Russian pianist Ivan Gusev.

Ms. Chang previously sang at this venue in January 2018, which I reviewed here. Mr. Gusev recently gave a recital that included some of the works played this evening, reviewed here.

Rosa Chang: Rossini, Liszt and Fauré

Rosa Chang

Ms. Chang introduced each program item before singing it. This was informative and at times entertaining, making for a lively evening.

Rosa Chang’s La Promessa was a treat. Gusev’s sparkling piano intertwined with her conversational phrases in a charming duet. The aria closed on a sustained octave leap, which Ms. Chang hit and held flawlessly.

Throughout the evening Ms. Chang showed fine control over every aspect of her performance: her voice, expressions and gestures.

Carlos Arcos: Tosti, Reynaldo Hahn

Carlos Arcos

Mr. Arcos’s Tosti showcased his passionate delivery and magnificent voice. An Ecuadorian, he convinced me that he had become Italian for Tosti’s Non t’amo piu.

Carlos Arcos’s A Chloris opened with a harmonic progression on the piano that is reminiscent of Pachelbel’s Canon. Indeed after his performance, a member of the audience asked Arcos about possible influences.

Ivan Gusev plays Rachmaninov

Ivan Gusev: Rachmaninov, Paganini-Liszt

Rachmaninov’s Études Tableaux in A minor (“The Sea and the Seagulls”) is one of the composer’s crowning achievements.

Gusev’s performance was mesmerizing. I looked for a comparable performance on the Internet and found just one, by Vladimir Ashkenazy.

The work opens in a dream-like state. The right hand crosses the left to punctuate Rachmaninov’s reflective arpeggios with a slow bass motif..

This morphs into waves of excruciating collapse at 2:20, 2:50 and beyond. Then it transitions to a major key, only to slip back to the opening calm. These timings are with respect to Gusev’s 2018 Youtube video.

Gusev also played Liszt’s La Campanella, a demanding work that is as much fun to watch as it is to listen to.

Rigoletto, Don Pasquale, Camelot, La Traviata

After a short Intermission we heard three more excellent arias from Rosa Chang and one song from Carlos Arcos.

I don’t have room here to give a run-down on each item. However I would single out Mr. Arcos who, supported by pianist Gusev, gave a heartfelt rendition of If ever I would leave you, the show-stopping romantic ballad from Camelot.

Encores

Ivan Gusev, Robin Shoemaker, Rosa Chang, Carlos Arcos

Carlos Arcos sang Pampamapa by Carlos Guastavino. The piano accompaniment for this Argentinian song at times imitates the strumming of a guitar.

Rosa Chang sang Puccini’s O mio babbino caro, The aching beauty of this aria is so typical of Puccini. Ms. Chang’s refined vibrato and her perfect attack once again resulted in an exquisite performance.

Ivan Gusev closed the evening with a virtuoso performance of Chopin’s Minute Waltz. I loved how he played with pacing in order to magnify the accelerando of the waltz.

Closing Thoughts

In these troubled times it is reassuring to see such diverse musicians collaborate to present an evening of great music.

Rosa Chang stood out as as a superlative soprano who could perform for the most discriminating audience.

Carlos Arcos pulled off a win despite joining the program at short notice.

And pianist Ivan Gusev played tirelessly through the entire evening, both as an accompanist and as a soloist.