Young Chinese violinist Tianwa Yang, born in Beijing in 1987, recorded Paganini at age 13 and has been termed a prodigy. By the time she recorded this disc of Sarasate violin-and-orchestra favorites in 2008, she was less a prodigy than a veteran, with several Sarasate discs already to her credit. She seems to be getting better and better, and to be emerging as a major star. She's had the technical chops since her early teens, and, unlike with some Eastern technicians, there's no shortage of passion in her playing. What she ...
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Young Chinese violinist Tianwa Yang, born in Beijing in 1987, recorded Paganini at age 13 and has been termed a prodigy. By the time she recorded this disc of Sarasate violin-and-orchestra favorites in 2008, she was less a prodigy than a veteran, with several Sarasate discs already to her credit. She seems to be getting better and better, and to be emerging as a major star. She's had the technical chops since her early teens, and, unlike with some Eastern technicians, there's no shortage of passion in her playing. What she adds this time around is control over a performance, and one involving a group of real Sarasate veterans at that; the Orquesta Sinfónica de Navarra was founded by Sarasate himself. Yang sets herself up as the star in the best sense. For example, in Sarasate's best-known orchestral showpiece Zigeunerweisen, Op. 20, (Gypsy Style), and in Mirarmar-Zortzico, Op. 42, she pushes the orchestra forward as the high point of the music approaches. Her tone in the Nocturne-sérénade, Op. 45, is...
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