Search - Recorded Sound, Robert Schumann, Franz Joseph Haydn :: Lang Lang Live at Carnegie Hall [Deluxe Edition] [CD & DVD]

Buy Elton John's Live Performance CD/DVDs Instead

John Kwok | New York, NY USA | 03/03/2009

(2 out of 5 stars)

"It was truly a pleasure hearing Lang Lang in his Carnegie Hall debut several years ago playing the Grieg Piano Concerto, accompanied by the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra with distinguished conductor Yuri Temirkanov at the podium. Alas, the same could not be said for his Carnegie Hall recital debut in Stern Auditorium, of which this CD was recorded partly live, and then, afterwards, in a studio recording inside an empty Stern Auditorium. Regrettably, this CD reflects all of Lang Lang's flaws, with his only virtue being his superb technical brilliance at the keyboard. Indeed, he plays 18th Century Classical and 19th Century Romantic piano music with all the flamboyance of an early 1970s Elton John, even with his own somewhat flamboyant sartorial elegance in a rather outlandish Mao jacket that he wore on stage.



I was cringing and shaking my head as he performed Haydn as though it was composed by Schumann and then, Schubert and Schumann as if their works had been composed by Prokofiev and Rachmaninov. In plain English, Lang Lang played these works without showing much understanding or compassion for these scores, emphasizing the exuberance of an Argerich or Uchida, without knowing that their exuberant styles are coupled with a deeper understanding for the works they are playing. The worst travesty was Schubert's "Wanderer" Fantasy, which I have heard played with much grace and style - either recorded or on stage - from the likes of Brendel, Kempff, Perahia and Schiff, to name but a few; however in Lang Lang's hands it had all the swagger and technical brilliance of Elton John playing "Bennie and the Jets".



Lang Lang needs to show more sensitivity and understanding of the works he is playing before I will listen to him again, either on stage or on a recording. I am amazed that Deutsche Grammophon is investing so much of its publicity on him when there are other, more mature artists such as violinist Hilary Hahn and pianists Yundi Li and Helene Grimaud who deserve such recognition. If I wish to hear Elton John play classical music, I'll see him and his band perform the next time they play at Madison Square Garden or Radio City Music Hall or see his superb DVD of his Royal Academy of Music fundraising concert at London's Royal Opera Hall once more; I won't bother hearing Lang Lang perform like Elton John at Carnegie Hall. So my recommendation is to skip this recording and buy those from the likes of Brendel, Kempff, Perahia, Schiff and Uchida for classical piano music or buy instead one of Elton John's live concert performance CDs or DVDs."