The magnificent modern pianist Lang Lang was born a child prodigy. This happened in the city of Shenyang (Liaoning Province), which was the capital of Manchuria about three hundred years ago. By mid-April 1982, when the future pianist was born, it was already a fairly large financial and cultural center.
The beginning of the way
At two years old, the baby was lucky enough to fall in love with the piano under the influence of the American cartoon about Tom and Jerry (everyone remembers how excellently Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2 was performed by Franz Liszt). That is why, at the age of three, the pianist Lang Lang began his studies at the conservatory, immediately with Professor Zhu. It was 1985. And in 1987, the little pianist Lang Lang won his first victory - the first prize of the Shenyang piano competition.
In 1991, the boy was accepted to study at the main conservatory of China in Beijing, where he found a new mentor - Zhao Pingguo, also a professor. In the same year, the pianist Lang Lang replenished his biography with a new and much more significant victory: he received the main prize in the Fifth Piano Competition of China. Three years later, in 1994, the conquest of Europe took place. Twelve-year-old Chinese pianist Lang Lang won the Fourth International Competition for Young Pianists in Germany.
Mastery
A year later, at the next stage of the Tchaikovsky International Competition, which was hosted by Japan, the pianist from China Lang Lang performed Frederic Chopin - Concert No. 2 for piano (with the Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra). Then the audience heard his interpretation of all twenty-four sketches of Chopin. The thirteen-year-old Chinese pianist virtuoso Lang Lang conquered the whole world with his musicality, original arrangements and exceptionally noble taste.
In 1997, his American life begins, as the family emigrated to Philadelphia. Now you need to engage in young talent at the Music Institute with Harry Graffman, a student of Vladimir Horowitz. And success follows success. In 1999, he performed the first concert of Tchaikovsky with the famous Chicago Symphony Orchestra, causing exceptional enthusiasm of the press around the world. Then begins a dense concert activity.
Concerts
At some concerts there were almost as many listeners as the stadium could accommodate. For example, in Beijing. Over the next few years, the young man played in the best concert halls in the world: in London and Washington, Paris and Vienna. He traveled a lot in Asia and America. In 2002, he won the Leonard Bernstein Award for his extraordinary musical talent. In a year, this young man will be named among twenty teenagers who will change the world.
In 2003, a CD was released on the studio Grammophon (Germany), which did not leave the first stage of ratings for more than forty weeks. A year later, a concert was held at Carnegie Hall. The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) marks the young pianist with an embassy post, after which Lang Lang is actively fighting malaria in African countries. This does not interfere with his musical career. In 2006, Lang Lang after a concert in Berlin receives the title "Musician of the Year."
Today
Now Lang Lang is considered the brightest of the pianists in the world performing classical music, and the most beautiful of musicians, which was repeatedly noted by The Times magazine. In addition, the Chinese pianist was named among the hundred most influential people on the planet. A huge repertoire has been accumulated over these several years, including only thirty-seven concerts for piano and orchestra. There are few pianists in the world (there is only one Chinese, and this is Lang Lang) who have played with all five of the world's most famous orchestras.
It would seem that nowadays there are a dime a dozen great pianists, just to be counted, any major competition shows this, especially the Moscow named after Tchaikovsky. And all of them have impeccable technical skills, brought up by the taste of absolute musical ear. The coordination of Lang Lang is amazing. So only Svyatoslav Richter could: his signature, giving an autograph, he performed without rupture of the pen in Latin script calligraphic - Richter, turning into mirror writing in a single line. And Lang Lang can simultaneously give two autographs. His left hand and right hand work the same.
Personal life
Lang Lang is a great pianist not only due to high-class finger acrobatics, he is charming in his emotions and cannot be disliked by a non-musical person. But not everyone likes musicians. He gives more than one hundred and fifty concerts a year. This is an unthinkable figure for a pianist of his age. Plus a very high saturation of social activity. There is very little time left for personal life.
Nevertheless, Lang Lang always finds time for those who are not so successful. That is why he is a paradoxical figure who cannot but cause controversy, both enthusiasm and discontent at the same time. As a pianist, he is not characteristic of modernity, since his popularity is comparable to any of the rock or movie stars.
Disputes
And in disputes, too, there are no pronounced two sides in opinions. The first ones say that the secret of such success is poetry, and now everyone has such a technique. The second ones laugh: his game, they say, is unmistakable, like all Chinese pianists, more similar in mechanicality to a computer. Still others say that the young man Lang Lang was the reincarnation of Horowitz, and is now so commercialized that the beauty of his sound is devoid of true content. And all these people are professional musicians.
For example, the conductor Yuri Temirkanov does not tolerate flirting with the public, and he told the pianist: “Another smile - that's all, we no longer play.” But very, very many critics say that the pianist still manages to convey to the listener the true beauty of the music performed, and this is not narcissism at all. Lang Lang is a popularizer, and this he sees as his main task.
Interview
This pianist since childhood was a charismatic magician. Now he is already an adult. And when he performed in Russia in 2017, he gave several interviews, preceding them with a request not to recall his jokes with Chopin’s etude performed with an orange, with “Flight of the Bumblebee” played on the iPad, and much more. Some journalists have no questions left after this request.
They asked about the use of influence as one of the hundreds of the most influential on the planet. It turns out that the pianist is engaged in a lot of musical projects, and also he has his own foundation. And he considers it his duty to transmit classical music to future generations. Chinese pianist opens music schools around the world: in San Francisco, New York, Chicago, in China. Now the project continues in Europe. For Chinese children, he considers it important to receive an international music education, bring teachers from abroad, and teach himself.
Russian school
All Chinese teachers of this pianist at one time studied in the Soviet Union. And his American teacher has a Russian school, and what a school! Now he knows Italian, German, and some other European pianistic schools. And changes the methodology in the study: Prokofiev plays in Russian, and Beethoven tries to perform in German.
And even the most picky opponents are forced to admit: the musician does it superbly. Each time he proves that it is not in vain that he bears the title of the best pianist of our time on a global scale. He has an amazingly beautiful sound, filled with strength and emotions, true lyricism and poetry.