Evocative and romantic music from Spain on this week’s Album of the Week. Xiayin Wang is a young Chinese-American pianist who takes on the solo piano music of Enrique Granados in her most recent release. Included are the 6 pieces that make up Goyescas, inspired by the paintings of Goya, as well as piano showpieces, Zapateado and Allegro de concierto.
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Pianist Xiayin Wang has recorded the famous Goyescas, based on paintings of Francisco Goya (1746-1828), by Enrique Granados (1867-1916). She talked with Michael Keelan from Steinway Hall in New York about the character of the great Spanish pianist and composer, who died when his ship was torpedoed by Germany during WWI.
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“Across the repertoire featured here, this album reveals the genius of Granados, a composer of wide contrast whose music deserves to be heard more often.”
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“There is a beautifully natural flow to Wang’s playing and she catches the spirit of youthful Spanish ardour nicely…Chandos’s marvellous sound has depth and clarity that places this disc at the top of the pile”
“Pianist Xiayin Wang has made several recordings that show her affinity for kaleidoscopically rich and colorful music – music of Scriabin, Ginastera, and Danielpour all stand out. Now, she handles Goyescas with mastery and love, capturing the glistening effects and layered voices that are such a challenge in this music. The result is magical.”
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“Xiayin Wang brings colossal technique and ardent affection to the music of Enrique Granados…Ms. Wang infuses [the Goyescas] with a rich tapestry, volatile and dignified at once.”
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“There is no questioning Xiayin Wang’s keyboard prowess, nor her ability to navigate the pianistic intricacies of Granados’ Goyescas to world-class standards…I’ve rarely heard such a nimble and effortless account of the frothy Allegro de concierto.”
“‘Zapateado’ (the last of the Six Pieces on Spanish Folk Songs) and the Allegro de concierto, both exhilarating and exuberant, make one regret the fact that more pianists don’t programme Granados, and exude an infectious spontaneity”
“[Wang’s] tone is full and rounded, never aggressive or percussive. Her touch is luminous, embracing the listener with its subtleties of color and accent…Anyone who loves Granados should find much to savor in Xiayin Wang’s album. Given Wang’s breadth of repertoire and taste for new horizons, she is an artist we should be hearing much of for years to come. Highly recommended.”
“When compared with his Spanish contemporaries, Granados is decidedly less flamboyant…Wang seems to appreciate this rhetoric of understatement; and her performances draw our attention to the music itself, rather than the showy pianist.”
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