On the night of June 1^st, internationally acclaimed pianist Yuja Wang, returned to the NCPA after a three-year hiatus and gave a piano recital as part of the NCPA Piano Virtuosos series. The recital featured Romantic, Impressionist and modern music from different countries including France, Russia and the UK. Yuja Wang captivated the Beijing audience once again with her consummate pianistic technique and profound emotional expression.


The concert took place without an intermission. Yuja Wang interpreted all the pieces as an artistic whole, sharing her unique artistic vision through a grand musical narrative. Her performance began with Chaconne, composed in 1962 by Gubaidulina, an atonal work that is not structured around a melody. When interpreting the 24 variations, Yuja Wang expressed diverse emotions in varied musical tones, leading the audience through a modern musical adventure. Then came Chopin’s Nocturne in C Minor, a piece of less than five minutes and dramatically tragic. Yuja Wang touched the keys precisely with restraint. As the work unfurled from its serene and profound opening, she gave an engaging rendition of the restless soul, rendering the music profoundly moving. Ravel is known as a master of tone colour. His early Impressionist work, Miroirs, is an iconic piece that depicts natural light and shadow on the piano. That night, Yuja Wang played the finale, La vallée des cloches, creating a visually evocative musical realm through delicate, lively tonal layers in a novel harmonic language, leaving space for imagination and understanding of the music.

Then Yuja Wang performed four musical works by Rachmaninoff that she particularly favours. The Scherzo, adapted from Mendelssohn’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, features exquisite playing techniques. With superb finger skills, Yuja Wang rendered this piece so wonderfully that it sounded very lively and delightful. The next was Sorrow in springtime from 12 Romances. After a brief silence, there suddenly came the melody of the Prelude in G Minor, with soul-stirring, dramatic chords instantly immersing the audience in a solemn and melancholy atmosphere. Strength was gradually built up, finally bringing a hearty emotional outburst as if there were a delicate yet intense inner storm breaking out. The Prelude in D Major was then played, sounding like a gentle lullaby, with everything calming down in the soothing music. As bright and somber moods gave way to each other in turn, the audience had their feelings fully released.

With an open mind to modern and contemporary music, Yuja Wang always tries unfamiliar or challenging works at her recitals. This has helped broaden the aesthetic vision of her audience constantly. At this recital, she performed Powder Her Face, which is adapted from contemporary British composer Thomas Adès’ opera of the same title. Adès’ characteristic satire and humour shine through irregular tempos, creating an eccentric, abstract rhythmic feel.

The concert concluded with Ravel's La Valse, a piece in which the composer fully exploits the piano's orchestral potential. Through demanding techniques, Ravel creates a richly textured sound world. It is this level of technical challenge that makes the work a rarity on concert programmes. Yuja Wang played it effortlessly with a full, powerful touch, drawing on her strength and endurance, so that everything—harmony, speed, texture, register—was under her perfect control. Beyond her brilliant virtuosity, her profound musical expression is particularly impressive, too. Unlike traditional waltzes, this composition is dramatically distorted, moving from gentle to vehement. As the music came to a close, tension mounted so perceptibly that the recital reached its climax along with an extremely exhilarating outburst.

Recital over, Yuja Wang stood up in greeting, receiving prolonged applause. Then she gave a total of 13 encores, sending her love and gratitude to the Beijing audience. This sincere piano feast will surely be remembered forever by the music lovers. On the night of June 2^nd, Yuja Wang will continue her musical journey. Let’s look forward to her next performance.