Home / Arts and Entertainment / Wang Electrifies, Peltokoski Conducts Wagner's Ring
Wang Electrifies, Peltokoski Conducts Wagner's Ring
2 Mar
Summary
- Yuja Wang's fierce performance of Rautavaara's piano concerto.
- Tarmo Peltokoski's impressive LSO debut leading a condensed Ring.
- Encore performances included Shostakovich and Brahms.
Pianist Yuja Wang captivated the audience with her powerful rendition of Einojuhani Rautavaara's Piano Concerto No 1, a demanding piece that highlighted her bright clarity and formidable physicality. The orchestra, under the adept direction of Finnish conductor Tarmo Peltokoski, provided a fittingly robust accompaniment for Wang's electrifying performance.
Peltokoski, making his debut with the LSO at just 25 years old, also presented an orchestral arrangement of Richard Wagner's epic Ring cycle, condensed into just over an hour. His judicious pacing, initially restrained and then building to passionate gestures, drew rich lyrical playing from the ensemble, culminating in a triumphant climax.
The concert concluded with three encores from Wang, including a soaring Barcarolle by Erkki Melartin and a spirited duet with Peltokoski on Brahms's Hungarian Dance No 6. A standout encore was Wang's own arrangement of the second movement of Shostakovich's String Quartet No 8, performed with exhilarating virtuosity.
