Yuja Wang captivated the audience at San Francisco’s Davies Symphony Hall last Sunday afternoon. A change in the program resulted in an unexpected bonus—she performed not just one but two piano concertos. For many attendees, Ravel’s intense Piano Concerto for the Left Hand was the primary attraction. However, another intriguing work also stood out: Finnish composer Einojuhani Rautavaara’s Piano Concerto No. 1.
The concert opened with Debussy’s Images pour orchestra, which was divided into two sections—the shorter Gigues and Rondes de printemps—before Ravel’s Piano Concerto in D major for the Left Hand followed.
After intermission, Rautavaara’s Piano Concerto No. 1, composed in 1969, began with a thunderous solo that balanced lyrical melody and dissonance. The piece immediately immersed the listener in Rautavaara’s distinctive musical world. While the concerto may seem avant-garde or atonal at first glance, it possesses remarkable beauty and originality.
Einojuhani Rautavaara, born in 1928 in Helsinki, grew up in the post-World War II era. This period shaped his artistic development, as described in John Mauceri’s The War on Music:
“A number of young, creative people growing up in a devastated Europe embraced a new, unemotional, and intellectually challenging music. Their young lives emanated from a cold, dark place that demanded rules (new rules) to make sense of life and culture after a war they barely understood but the effects of which were everywhere to be found.”
This atmosphere influenced Rautavaara’s early years as he studied composition at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki. A grant from the Koussevitzky Music Foundation later enabled him to train in the U.S. with Aaron Copland and Roger Sessions at Tanglewood, as well as Vincent Persichetti at the Juilliard School. During this time, he developed an eclectic musical style that blended 12-tone serialism, avant-garde techniques, and neoclassicism. Over time, he moved away from serialism, embracing neo-Romanticism, which is evident in Piano Concerto No. 1. He once explained, “I wanted in my concerto to restore the entire rich grandeur of the instrument—to write a concerto in ‘the grand style.’”
The concerto’s opening immediately establishes its bold character. The use of tone clusters—a technique where multiple adjacent notes are played simultaneously—creates a distinctive effect. The left hand plays a fluid glissando over the lower keys, producing a shimmering sound that is both dissonant and melodic.
The orchestra and piano engage in a dynamic dialogue, with the piano introducing themes and the orchestra responding emphatically. As the first movement nears its climax, the pianist is instructed to strike the keyboard with their entire forearm to produce a massive three-octave cluster chord. Wang executed this with stunning precision, using her right forearm and elbow in a moment that was both shocking and aesthetically fitting. The effect was so unexpected that it provoked laughter from some audience members, a reaction of exhilaration at its sheer audacity.
The second movement, by contrast, is tranquil and almost mystical. It begins with violins and violas sustaining a single C note, creating an ethereal drone as the piano introduces a sparse, contemplative melody. The strings maintain their note for a full three minutes before gradually joining the piano’s melodic progression. The result is cinematic and deeply moving, embodying the sweeping Romanticism Rautavaara sought to achieve.
Without pause, the second movement transitions into the high-energy third movement. Wang and the orchestra propelled the piece toward its thunderous conclusion, which was met with a resounding ovation. Some audience members remained momentarily stunned, still processing the performance.
Wang’s ability to lose herself in the music while maintaining technical precision remains remarkable. She effortlessly transitions between delicate, expressive passages and fiery, explosive moments, demonstrating boundless energy and commitment to detail.
Her brilliance was further evident in the encores she offered—two in total. For the second encore, she performed a piano arrangement of the third movement of Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 6 (“Pathétique”), effectively condensing the full orchestra’s textures into a single instrument. Her execution was nothing short of sensational.
Audiences should not miss the opportunity to witness Wang’s extraordinary artistry. A performance of Rautavaara’s Piano Concerto No. 1 by her is a rare and unforgettable experience.
Related Topics
- NJZ Teases Drum N Bass Beat and New Content for Upcoming Release
- Carnival’s Drum Masters Keep the Beat Alive
- Bastl Kastle 2 FX Wizard: A Compact and Versatile Effects Box
