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Recordings of Tchaikovsky's The Seasons, Op. 37a, tend to come with disclaimers, and so it is here. "Perhaps not every rising-star performer would choose to record Tchaikovsky's solo piano music," writes annotator Jessica Duchen. Tchaikovsky wrote the 12 pieces (one for each month of the year) quickly for publication in a magazine, and they are pure light music. To disvalue them for this reason, though, is nuts; they are perfect examples of the genre, and not everything has to be the grim "Pathétique" Symphony. They run into trouble when they are overlaid with too much sentimentality, and pianist Bruce Liu does an admirable job of avoiding that trap here. His performances are beautifully self-effacing, and they let the spontaneous-seeming details of Tchaikovsky's writing come through. The "Song of the Lark" (March) is a lovely and fresh treatment of that highly common theme. Consider "The Hunt" (September), which also avoids clichés while vividly portraying that event. Liu has avoided joining the crowd of Chopin specialists since his Chopin International Piano Competition win, and he has likewise declined to compete with the young virtuosos on the scene, although he certainly could. Instead, he is carving out a niche with sensitive interpretations of Romantic repertory, not always the most-often-heard stuff, and he takes a step forward with this understated release. Deutsche Grammophon's Siemens-Villa studio sound corresponds ideally with Liu's aims. Liu was rewarded here with an appearance on classical best-seller charts in the late autumn of 2024.
© James Manheim /TiVo
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The Seasons, Op. 37a (Pyotr Illitch Tchaïkovski)
René Möller, Producer, MasteringEngineer, MixingEngineer - Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Composer - Jakob Böttcher, DigitalEditingEngineer, BalanceEngineer - Bruce Liu, Piano, MainArtist
℗ 2024 Deutsche Grammophon GmbH, Berlin
René Möller, Producer, MasteringEngineer, MixingEngineer - Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Composer - Jakob Böttcher, DigitalEditingEngineer, BalanceEngineer - Bruce Liu, Piano, MainArtist
℗ 2024 Deutsche Grammophon GmbH, Berlin
René Möller, Producer, MasteringEngineer, MixingEngineer - Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Composer - Jakob Böttcher, DigitalEditingEngineer, BalanceEngineer - Bruce Liu, Piano, MainArtist
℗ 2024 Deutsche Grammophon GmbH, Berlin
René Möller, Producer, MasteringEngineer, MixingEngineer - Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Composer - Jakob Böttcher, DigitalEditingEngineer, BalanceEngineer - Bruce Liu, Piano, MainArtist
℗ 2024 Deutsche Grammophon GmbH, Berlin
René Möller, Producer, MasteringEngineer, MixingEngineer - Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Composer - Jakob Böttcher, DigitalEditingEngineer, BalanceEngineer - Bruce Liu, Piano, MainArtist
℗ 2024 Deutsche Grammophon GmbH, Berlin
René Möller, Producer, MasteringEngineer, MixingEngineer - Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Composer - Jakob Böttcher, DigitalEditingEngineer, BalanceEngineer - Bruce Liu, Piano, MainArtist
℗ 2024 Deutsche Grammophon GmbH, Berlin
René Möller, Producer, MasteringEngineer, MixingEngineer - Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Composer - Jakob Böttcher, DigitalEditingEngineer, BalanceEngineer - Bruce Liu, Piano, MainArtist
℗ 2024 Deutsche Grammophon GmbH, Berlin
René Möller, Producer, MasteringEngineer, MixingEngineer - Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Composer - Jakob Böttcher, DigitalEditingEngineer, BalanceEngineer - Bruce Liu, Piano, MainArtist
℗ 2024 Deutsche Grammophon GmbH, Berlin
René Möller, Producer, MasteringEngineer, MixingEngineer - Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Composer - Jakob Böttcher, DigitalEditingEngineer, BalanceEngineer - Bruce Liu, Piano, MainArtist
℗ 2024 Deutsche Grammophon GmbH, Berlin
René Möller, Producer, MasteringEngineer, MixingEngineer - Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Composer - Jakob Böttcher, DigitalEditingEngineer, BalanceEngineer - Bruce Liu, Piano, MainArtist
℗ 2024 Deutsche Grammophon GmbH, Berlin
René Möller, Producer, MasteringEngineer, MixingEngineer - Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Composer - Jakob Böttcher, DigitalEditingEngineer, BalanceEngineer - Bruce Liu, Piano, MainArtist
℗ 2024 Deutsche Grammophon GmbH, Berlin
René Möller, Producer, MasteringEngineer, MixingEngineer - Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Composer - Jakob Böttcher, DigitalEditingEngineer, BalanceEngineer - Bruce Liu, Piano, MainArtist
℗ 2024 Deutsche Grammophon GmbH, Berlin
René Möller, Producer, MasteringEngineer, MixingEngineer - Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Composer - Jakob Böttcher, DigitalEditingEngineer, BalanceEngineer - Bruce Liu, Piano, MainArtist
℗ 2024 Deutsche Grammophon GmbH, Berlin
Album review
Recordings of Tchaikovsky's The Seasons, Op. 37a, tend to come with disclaimers, and so it is here. "Perhaps not every rising-star performer would choose to record Tchaikovsky's solo piano music," writes annotator Jessica Duchen. Tchaikovsky wrote the 12 pieces (one for each month of the year) quickly for publication in a magazine, and they are pure light music. To disvalue them for this reason, though, is nuts; they are perfect examples of the genre, and not everything has to be the grim "Pathétique" Symphony. They run into trouble when they are overlaid with too much sentimentality, and pianist Bruce Liu does an admirable job of avoiding that trap here. His performances are beautifully self-effacing, and they let the spontaneous-seeming details of Tchaikovsky's writing come through. The "Song of the Lark" (March) is a lovely and fresh treatment of that highly common theme. Consider "The Hunt" (September), which also avoids clichés while vividly portraying that event. Liu has avoided joining the crowd of Chopin specialists since his Chopin International Piano Competition win, and he has likewise declined to compete with the young virtuosos on the scene, although he certainly could. Instead, he is carving out a niche with sensitive interpretations of Romantic repertory, not always the most-often-heard stuff, and he takes a step forward with this understated release. Deutsche Grammophon's Siemens-Villa studio sound corresponds ideally with Liu's aims. Liu was rewarded here with an appearance on classical best-seller charts in the late autumn of 2024.
© James Manheim /TiVo
About the album
- 1 disc(s) - 13 track(s)
- Total length: 00:54:02
- 1 Digital booklet
- Main artists: Bruce Liu
- Composer: Pyotr Illitch Tchaïkovski
- Label: Deutsche Grammophon (DG)
- Genre: Classical
© 2024 Deutsche Grammophon GmbH, Berlin ℗ 2024 Deutsche Grammophon GmbH, Berlin
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