Yu Kosuge – Four Elements, Vol. 3: Wind (2021)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 01:18:23 minutes | 1,23 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Orchid Classics
Acclaimed Japanese pianist Yu Kosuge unveils “Wind”, the third in her series of four Orchid Classics albums related to the four elements (Water, Fire, Wind, Earth). Kosuge’s inspiration for these releases stems from her relationship with the music of Beethoven, who was drawn to Greek legends. This led Kosuge to the Greek concept of the four elements as the basis of these albums. Beethoven is one of a varied selection of composers featured on “Wind”.
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Yu Kosuge – Four Elements, Vol. 2: Fire (2019)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 01:16:36 minutes | 2,47 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Orchid Classics
Prometheus defied the gods to steal fire and give it to humanity. The ancient titan’s priceless gift, used since for good and ill, has never lost its fascination. Yo Kosuge, praised for her immaculate technique and penetrating artistry, explores creative responses to fire in the second volume of her Four Elements project. The Berlin-based Japanese pianist’s latest Orchid Classics album moves from pieces filled with nostalgic warmth to others animated by hell’s tormenting flames. “By showing these many different aspects of fire, I want to lead the listener through different stories as told by composers, from the Romantic to contemporary periods,” comments Yu Kosuge. Four Elements: Fire is built around compositions written during the First World War, each hallmarked by harmonic daring and searing emotions. Its tracklist includes a selection of Max Reger’s sublime Träume am Kamin, fireside dreams preserved in the form of musical miniatures; Vers la flamme, among Alexander Scriabin’s final compositions and one his most intense; Debussy’s breathtaking Feux d’artifice, a pyrotechnic tour de force; and the Ritual Fire Dance from Manuel de Falla’s ballet El amor brujo.
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Yu Kosuge – Dai Fujikura: IMPULSE – Piano Concerto No. 3 & Maurice Ravel: Concerto pour Piano et Orchestre (2022)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 54:20 minutes | 1,68 GB | Genre: Classical
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Sony Music Labels Inc.
A concerto album by pianist Yu Kosuge, the first solo release from Sony Music. Kosuga’s concerto recording has been since Mendelssohn’s Concerto No. 1 (2009) with the Mito Chamber Orchestra conducted by Seiji Ozawa. Dai Fujikura’s Piano Concerto No. 3 “Impulse” is a jointly commissioned work by the Monte Carlo Philharmonic Orchestra, the Yomiuri Nippon Symphony Orchestra and the Swiss Romand Orchestra, and was dedicated to Yu Kosuge. Yu Kosuge acted as a solo at the premiere of all three orchestras and became a big topic. Dai Fujikura’s “WHIM” was played by Yu Kosuge during the rehearsal of “Impulse” at the time of the Japanese premiere, asking Dai Fujikura and Kazuki Yamada, the conductor, to “listen to the cadenza.” Has a unique origin that he came up with the idea and decided to publish only the cadenza part independently as a solo piano work. The prestigious BBC Symphony Orchestra conducted by Ryan Wigglesworth of the United Kingdom will be backing along with Ravel’s masterpiece “Piano Concerto in G”, which will be the coupling, and the latest session recording in 2021.
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