MP3 Ren Zhang - Portrait - CLASSICAL: Traditional

"...The brilliance, style, and ease of the vocal line and lightness of filigree were worthy of any Golden Age pianistic giant one would think of..."
- Harris Goldsmith, "New York Concert Review"

15 MP3 Songs
CLASSICAL: Traditional, CLASSICAL: Orchestral



Details:
REN ZHANG, pianist

www.RenZhangPianist.com

".... The brilliance, style, and ease of the vocal line and lightness of filigree were worthy of any Golden Age pianistic giant one would think of...."

- Harris Goldsmith, âNew York Concert Reviewâ

"....rarely have I heard Balakirev's finger-breaking Islamey negotiated with such aplomb and playful indifference to its hair-raising challenges.... while the Moszkowski op.72 no.11 Etude is thrown off with the kind of effrontery one more readily associates with Horowitz. Wow!"

- Julian Haylock, "International Piano Magazine"

"Ren Zhang is a young pianist of enormous gifts - either playing the established repertoire, or like his hero, Shura Cherkassky, relishing the delights of the grand transcription literature. Mr. Zhang's playing in both realms is refreshing, personal, and stylishâ¦."

- David Dubal, Author of "The Art of the Piano", Professor of Piano at the Julliard School


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Pianist Ren Zhang, dedicated to reviving and performing music in the grand romantic tradition, has burst upon the international concert scene as one of the unique pianistic characters of his generation.

A native of Shanghai, Ren Zhang began his piano studies at the age of four. At only twelve, he entered the Shanghai Conservatory of Music. In 1987, Ren debuted with the Shanghai Theatrical Orchestra at the Shanghai Concert Hall as the recipient of the Gold Medal of the National Young Pianist Competition.

Sponsored by a full scholarship, Ren entered the Manhattan School of Music, studying piano with Solomon Milkowsky. There he earned both his Bachelor and Master of Music degrees and received the Elva Van Gelder Memorial Award. Over the years, Ren's artistry and pianistic style have transformed and personalized. "Lifting it far above musty 'scholarship' into soaring realms of communicative vitality", as one critic commented.

Ren Zhang's artistry was further recognized after a highly successful New York recital debut at the Weill Recital Hall of Carnegie Hall, as a recipient of the Shura Cherkassky Award from Artist International, where reviewer Harris Goldsmith praised his performance saying, "This concert was a feast for those who rejoice in the piano as a vehicle for warm, songful expression, orchestral richness and ... tonal adventures." (New York Concert Review)

Chosen as the opening recital for the Sarasota Concert Association at Van Wezel Hall, Ren Zhang also appears annually as guest artist at the Tenerife and Lanzarote International Music Festivals in Spain. Other recent recital engagements have included the Muscle Shoals Concert Association in Alabama, the Joseph G. Astman International Concert Series in New York, the Rolfs International Piano Series in Florida, and the Hong Kong Piano Series in Hong Kong, as well as appearances at Merkin Hall and Alice Tully Hall in New York.

Ren has released a number of live CD recordings, including works by Rachmaninoff, Chopin, Liszt and Godowsky. Ren Zhang's live recordings have been broadcasted by many classical radio stations around the country, including David Dubal's weekly program, "Reflections from the Keyboard" on WQXR, the classical radio station of the New York Times.