Blogcritics: Pianist Haochen Zhang on NYC Lunar New Year Concert

Blogcritics
Jon Sobel

The New York Philharmonic will present a Lunar New Year concert at Lincoln Center on January 28, 2020. Conducted by Long Yu, the program will include pieces by Chinese and Chinese-American composers, but also music by South Korean composer Texu Kim – and by George Gershwin. In his debut with the New York Philharmonic, Chinese-American pianist Haochen Zhang will be the featured soloist on Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue.

Haochen spoke with us in advance of the Lunar New Year concert.

There’s no mention of Gershwin on your website or, for that matter, your Wikipedia page. Have you performed Gershwin before? You’ve described your style as somewhat introverted, but Rhapsody is splashy music. Does this piece, with its jazziness, speak to you differently than that of other composers?

I have performed the Rhapsody only once before. It’s true that this piece is not in any way “introverted”; however, I don’t believe “splashiness” is the only way to interpret it, either. The organicity and spontaneity in its jazziness is, to me, the core of its beauty and charm, and therefore, as someone who is always fascinated by intricate nuances, this piece always speaks to me in a very instinctive way.

To read the complete interview, click here.