About this Release
“This album, recorded by Yiming Zhang, a rising star, exemplifies an enormous variety of my piano music. 12 Preludes is one of my earliest works dating back 40 years, and is based on elements of Chinese folk music. Each of the four movements of Ancient Music was inspired by Chinese traditional instrumental sonorities - “Gong”, “Qin”, “Pipa” and “Drum”. As in Chinese traditional music, Ancient Music is concerned with the living essence of every tone. Wrong, Wrong, Wrong! and Hard, Hard, Hard! are inspired by the poems in the same titles by Lu You and his former wife Tang Wan, respectively, in the 12th century. I purposely used cheap, often unstable instruments and the pianist’s untrained voice to achieve a most serious, sophisticated and heartfelt melodrama.” — Yiming Zhang
GE GAN-RU (b. 1954)
Piano Works • 1
- Yiming Zhang, piano
Ge Gan-ru has always sought to bind the sounds and character of his native Chinese music to Western techniques, and his solo piano music provides some of the best examples. Based on folk songs – either transcribed or presented in fragments—Twelve Preludes for Piano is a major early work heard here in its revised version. In Ancient Music he employs the prepared piano to evoke the intimate sounds of Chinese instruments such as the qin (a horizontal lute) to create a unique acoustic effect, a quality that also permeates Wrong, Wrong, Wrong! and Hard, Hard, Hard! written for toy piano.
This recording was made on modern instruments:
Steinway, Model D [Tracks 1–16];
Toy Piano: Schoenhut, Model 6637B [Tracks 17 and 18]
Tracklist
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12 Preludes (1979) (00:32:01 )
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1
No. 1. Largo (00:03:26)
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2
No. 2. Allegretto (00:01:27)
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3
No. 3. Largo (00:02:23)
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4
No. 4. Presto (00:02:16)
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5
No. 5. Lento tranquillamente (00:03:39)
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6
No. 6. Moderato (00:01:41)
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7
No. 7. Grave (00:03:34)
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8
No. 8. Allegro vivace (00:01:57)
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9
No. 9. Allegretto (00:01:53)
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10
No. 10. Adagio (00:02:46)
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11
No. 11. Allegro (00:02:07)
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12
No. 12. Lento (00:05:01)
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Gu Yue (Ancient Music) (1985) (00:17:00 )
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13
I. Gong (00:03:31)
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14
II. Qin (Chinese zither) (00:03:05)
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15
III. Pipa (Chinese lute) (00:04:53)
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16
IV. Drum (00:04:44)
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17
Wrong, Wrong, Wrong! (2006) (00:12:09)
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18
Hard, Hard, Hard! (2011) (00:10:59)
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The Artist(s)
YIMING ZHANG is a dedicated performer of Chinese piano works, as well as an active lecturer. Zhang has also translated and published several books from English to Chinese, including Carl Czerny’s On the Proper Performance of All Beethoven’s Works for the Piano, Alban Berg’s piano sonatas, as well as Durand’s edition of Debussy’s piano works. Yiming Zhang was awarded his doctoral degree in piano performance from Temple University, where he studied with Harvey Wedeen (piano) and Lambert Orkis (fortepiano, contemporary music, and chamber music). He currently teaches at the piano department of Xinghai Conservatory of Music. The Composer(s)
GE GAN-RU, ‘China’s first avant-garde composer’, is regarded as one of the most original voices of his generation. Composed in close collaboration with pianist Yiming Zhang, 12 Études for Extended Piano explores techniques using the hands on the strings and keys of the piano, as well as employing a variety of objects to create effects that range from menacing darkness to the kaleidoscopic magic of harmonics, and from skilful drumming to atmospheres as calm as flowing water. Yiming Zhang continues his survey of Ge Gan-ru’s piano music in this second volume of the composer’s works. 
Grand Piano has gained a reputation for producing high quality recordings of rare keyboard gems. Dedicated to the exploration of undiscovered piano repertoire, the label specialises in complete cycles of piano works by many lesser-known composers, whose output might otherwise have remained unknown and unrecorded.
- info@grandpianorecords.com
