If you would like to vote for this cd please vote HERE

On March 10^th, 2014, the newest album of the Chinese pianist, Yundi, will be released internationally and on the same day you will be able to listen to it on at Radio Romania Music. Furthermore, you will be able to rate him through the Vote the Best Classical Album of 2014 campaign.

Yundi is a pianist with the fame of a rock star in China and he is well known in the rest of the world as well. The pianist made his breakthrough in 2000 by receiving the grand prize at the International Chopin Piano Competition held in Warsaw, when he was only 18.

I do not think you will understand the real image of Yundi in China unless I give you some numbers: 15 millions followers on the Chinese Twitter, 11 albums as best sellers in China, 50.000 listeners from 33 cities have been to his concerts during his tour in China in 2013. The fans are desperate to get autographs, an atmosphere best described by the video at the bottom of the page.

And if you might regard with displeasure Yundi’s accomplishments in China let’s take a look at the cover of the album that will be released on 10^th March – Yundi performs the Piano Concert No.5 in E-flat major (Emperor) by Beethoven with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Daniel Harding. Therefore, Yundi performed together with one of the most important orchestras in the world, one of the most high-end orchestras on European territory: a revelation!

In my opinion, the reference version of this concert is the one signed by Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli and the conductor Sergiu Celibidache and I admit that I have never listened to any other version so similar to the one I consider a reference point. Here, in the recording signed by Yundi, I rediscovered the classical balance, but also the introverted sensibility from the second part, which brings the feeling that we are in front of a perfectly polished diamond.

Yes, most of the great performance competitions nowadays are won by Asian musicians, but very few also manage to assert themselves in front of the international concert world and remain in the great talent gallery. After having studied in Europe or America there are a few names, in spite of their youth, which through their extraordinary innate talent confirm their place: Yundi, Lang Lang, Yuja Wang. And millions of Chinese children want to learn to play the piano in order to imitate them. I can’t even imagine what will happen in 20 years when these millions of little pianists will try to conquer the world. And even if only a few hundred names turn out to be valuable, it will be more than enough to change the face of the classical music world.

However, we cannot predict the future. We can enjoy the present and Fantasie in C by Robert Schumann, proposed by Yundi on the same album released internationally on 10^th March, 2014.