Waves
Deutsche Grammophon, 2023
9/10
The highly anticipated debut studio album from the pianist Bruce Liu, Waves spans two centuries of French keyboard music that touches on work by Jean-Philippe Rameau, Charles-Valentin Alkan and Maurice Ravel.
Rameau’s “Gavotte Et Six Doubles” opens the listen with the unparalleled key patterns emitting much warmth and skill, as Liu’s playing shifts in tone and mood abruptly, and “Barcarolle”, by Alkan, follows with a dreamy intimacy that showcases Liu’s absorbing and timeless prowess.
In the middle, the playful and animated finger acrobatics of “Les Sauvages” interprets the Rameau original with much flair, while Ravel’s “Miroirs” emits a bit of mysteriousness via the flowing patterns and atmospheric gestures.
Closer to the end, the rumbling versus light dynamics of “Le Festin D'Ésope” is quite unpredictable and the album’s best, and Rameau’s “La Poule” exits with the quick, dynamic piano manipulation that unfolds with so much precision.
Liu made quite an impression at the Chopin Piano Competition in October 2021, where he won, and his well received singles since then have left classical fans eagerly awaiting Waves, which truly does not disappoint.
Travels well with: Yuja Wang- Rachmaninoff; Jonathan Tetelman- The Great Puccini