How Abstract Is It? Solo Piano Recital by Lyndon Ji

How Abstract Is It?

The answer in this program is mostly “not very.” Only the préludes by Boulanger and Dutilleux remain somewhat obscure in their references, though the latter at least hints at the symmetrical connections throughout.
The first three works explicitly refer to art, whether it be a specific work such as Velázquez’s St. Thomas, Goya’s dramatic etchings in Los Caprichos, or the notion of a “tableau” as in Rachmaninoff’s aptly nicknamed “The Snowstorm”. Messiaen displays his spirituality in an altogether different manner from Velázquez through his own use of symmetry in these evocatively titled pieces.
The French connection takes us to the autodidactic and Messiaen-inspired Takemitsu. Through Litany, he offers a stark tribute to his friend Michael Vyner.
In the most overtly “Asian” work of the program, Zihan Wu draws upon the sound of the qeej, a 3000-year-old homophonic wind instrument played by the Hmong people in Southwest China.
Finally, Australian-Chinese composer Sam Wu’s “cities of ash and dust” reflects upon the current state of the world at war. The unifying theme between these works is art, memory, and influence. As Lilly Wei asks, “How can these works of art contribute to a better world? How civilizing are they? How humane? How truthful?”

Program:

Ben Webster New work (Untitled) (6-8 min)
Sergei Rachmaninoff Etude-Tableau in E-flat minor op. 33-6 (2 min)
Enrique Granados El Amor y la Muerte (13 min)
Lili Boulanger Prelude in D-flat major (3 min)
Henri Dutilleux Le Jeu des contraires (7 min)
Olivier Messiaen Ile de Feu 1, Preludes No. 5 & No. 8 (13 min)
No. 5: Les sons impalpables du rêve
No. 8: Un reflet dans le vent
Tōru Takemitsu Litany II (5 min)
Zihan Wu Rhapsody of Hmong (8 min)
Sam Wu cities of ash and dust (7 min)

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