Piano Concerto (Abrams)
| Piano Concerto | |
|---|---|
| by Teddy Abrams | |
 Audio recording album cover | |
| Genre | Contemporary classical, Orchestral jazz |
| Composed | 2022 |
| Duration | c. 38 minutes |
| Scoring | Piano concerto |
| Premiere | |
| Date | January 7, 2022 |
| Location | Kentucky Center for the Performing Arts |
| Conductor | Teddy Abrams |
| Performers | Louisville Orchestra, Yuja Wang |
The American composer and conductor Teddy Abrams composed his Piano Concerto for pianist Yuja Wang, who was his classmate during their student days at the Curtis Institute of Music.[1][2] Wang performed its world premiere in Whitney Hall at the Kentucky Center for the Performing Arts with the Louisville Orchestra conducted by Abrams on 7 January 2022.[3][4] An audio recording of the performance on the next day, 8 January, was released by Deutsche Grammophon on 12 January 2023 as the main piece in the album The American Project.[5] The album received a Grammy Award for Best Classical Instrumental Solo on February 4, 2024 for Wang and Abrams. [6][7][8]
Composition
[edit]Abrams initially developed this composition as a short companion to Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue,[9] then following a discussion with Wang about her recording the Rhapsody with the orchestra, the work transformed into a standalone orchestral showpiece and was dedicated to Wang.[10][11] [5]
The Gershwin influence is apparent in the big-band overture and an “orchestra break”.[5] Orchestration is more than big-band, however: the premiere employed more than 60 orchestral players, "including several imported for the occasion (on three saxophones, electric guitar and bass, drum kit, etc.), a band within the larger group".[12][4] Four semi-improvised cadenzas in the classical style showcase the virtuosity of the soloist. [13][14] Several other instrumental solos are featured throughout the piece, including violin, oboe, trumpet, and saxophone.[15]
A performance of the piano concerto has a duration of roughly 35 to 40 minutes.[9][12][16] The single-movement concerto is constructed in eleven sections, traversing multiple genres and styles.[13]
- I. Overture. Swing
- II. Cadenza I
- III. Exposition
- IV. Orchestra Break
- V. Exploration
- VI. Cadenza II
- VII. Relaxed
- VIII. Solos
- IX. Cadenza III
- X. Return. Swing
- XI. Cadenza IV & Coda
Reception
[edit]Annette Skaggs of Arts-Louisville thought it was "a marvelous and charismatic concerto", though it "needs to be honed a little more", and sometimes "it was very difficult to hear the sax".[15]
David Mermelstein of the Wall Street Journal found "it lacks originality, even as it revels in craft", and is "missing a vision beyond the sum of its parts".[12]
Richard S. Ginell of San Francisco Classical Voice said "I rather like this piece" even though the “Solos” section "gets a bit awkward".[2]
Nathan Cone of Texas Public Radio was "immediately taken from the get-go", only wishing "the strings could have been mixed a little hotter, as they sometimes get overpowered by the brass and saxophones".[14]
References
[edit]- ^ "Teddy Abrams conductor". Los Angeles Philharmonic Association. Retrieved April 12, 2023.
- ^ a b Richard S. Ginell. "Yuja Wang Dazzles With Teddy Abrams's Boisterous Piano Concerto". San Francisco Classical Voice. Retrieved April 12, 2023.
- ^ "Yuja Wang Archived Concerts - 2022". Yuja Wang Archives. Retrieved April 12, 2023.
- ^ a b Amanda Kern. "Louisville Orchestra Performance Preview: Yuja Wang Premiers Teddy Abrams' First Concerto". Audience502. Retrieved April 12, 2023.
- ^ a b c "American Beauty – Yuja Wang's Artistry Shines in World Premiere Recording of Teddy Abrams' Piano Concerto". Deutsche Grammophon. January 12, 2023.
- ^ "Congratulations to Curtis's 2024 GRAMMY Nominees". curtis.edu. November 10, 2023.
- ^ "Yuja Wang wins her first Grammy Award". www.deutschegrammophon.com. Retrieved 2024-02-05.
- ^ "Yuja Wang wins Best Classical Instrumental Solo at the GRAMMYs". www.intermusica.com. Retrieved 2024-02-05.
- ^ a b "Pianist Yuja Wang's New Album "The American Project"". The Violin Channel. March 16, 2023.
- ^ Richard Fairman (March 17, 2023). "Yuja Wang: The American Project album review — glittering finger-work". The Financial Times. The Financial Times Ltd.
- ^ Claire Jackson (April 18, 2023). "The American Project (Yuja Wang)". Our Media Ltd.
- ^ a b c David Mermelstein (January 11, 2022). "His Concerto Panders for Praise". Wall Street Journal. Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
- ^ a b Azusa Ueno (March 20, 2023). "Review: The American Project – Yuja Wang, Piano". The Classic Review.
- ^ a b Nathan Cone (April 16, 2023). "Yuja Wang's blazing hot 'American Project'". Texas Public Radio.
- ^ a b Annette Skaggs (Jan 11, 2022). "ROUSING & ROLLICKING WORLD PREMIERE (LOUISVILLE ORCHESTRA)". Arts-Louisville.
- ^ Tom Huizenga (March 9, 2023). "Yuja Wang, 'You Come Here Often?'". NPR.