Pianist
Haochen Zhang was the youngest-ever winner of the gold medal at the Van Cliburn Competition in 2009, and he has had the wisdom to let his career develop gradually rather than rushing to cash in. A cycle of
Beethoven concertos is a bold undertaking for a pianist still in the early stages of his career, but he and conductor
Nathalie Stutzmann collaborate here on a set that's distinctive in many ways.
Zhang is a fine technician, and his rather uncanny precision is in evidence at many places in the set, but there is interpretive originality as well. The highlight may be the
Piano Concerto No. 3 in C minor, Op. 37, where
Zhang runs counter to type and even to the reflections of his own annotator, who, as usual, stresses the proto-Romantic nature of this minor-key concerto. Instead,
Zhang links it a bit more closely to the first two Classical-style concertos. The opening movement, if not exactly witty, has a certain sharp edge; consider
Zhang's exquisitely controlled transition to the second subject here. The first two concertos are also very strong; the tempos are quick, and the brash, brilliant quality of the young
Beethoven comes through. It is key that
Stutzmann is an ideal foil for
Zhang here. Her readings with the
Philadelphia Orchestra are influenced by historical performance practice, with little vibrato and a punchy feel. Especially notable is the wonderful slow movement in the
Piano Concerto No. 4 in G major, Op. 58, where
Zhang responds reflectively to the almost barked statements of the orchestra. In the outer movements of the final two concertos, where the crisp approach of
Zhang and
Stutzmann is less appropriate, the musicians seem less sure of themselves. Listeners' mileage may vary here, however. It is lovely to hear
BIS' crack engineering team at work in Philadelphia's Verizon Hall, arguably the best acoustically of the major American orchestral halls, and this is, in many respects, a delightfully fresh set of
Beethoven concertos. ~ James Manheim
