JERRY WONG

• Prokofiev: Piano Sonata No.8 - III. Vivace (excerpt)

“Wong characterizes the contrasting moods unerringly... Wong reveals impressive technical prowess.”

Howard Smith, Music & Vision [February 2016]

"Jerry Wong's disc paints an commendably rounded composer portrait... The incisive whimsy of Visions Fugitives obliges Wong's instinctive poeticism... "

Paul Riley, BBC Music [February 2011]

"[Wong's] approach is perfect for the Visions Fugitives, easily the best complete set I’ve heard. Just as fine are Op. 4. Wong coaxes a wide range of sonorities here, from the quiet legato of ‘Reminiscences’ to the steel-fingered accented climax of ‘Suggestion Diabolique’.. These are fine sounding recordings, with perceptive notes, and have been a source of many enjoyable listening hours over the past month."

Harrington, American Record Guide [January / February 2011]

"[Jerry Wong's] Prokofiev program nicely charts the composer’s stylistic development from the enfant terrible of the Op. 4 pieces through the surreal fantasy world of the Visions Fugitives to the epic Soviet Modernism of the mighty Eighth Sonata... In the two earlier sets, he is at his best where rich-toned warmth is called for... The epic canvas of the sonata seems to suit him...in an altogether coherent and satisfying overall conception. He possesses an acute ear for color—hear his richly varied unfolding of the opening paragraphs, and the way he taps into the second theme’s vein of nostalgic yearning, with its undercurrent of unease... the massive structures of the outer movements are well paced and sustained, and he rises to the final climax of the finale with some exciting playing."

Pomeroy, Gramophone [January 2011]

"A satisfying program... Jerry Wong is an expressive pianist with a good ear for color and contrast... [In the Visions Fugitives] his playing is limpid and energetic, and he elicits a wonderfully crystalline tone..."

Kevin Sutton, MusicWeb International [January 2011]

"Jerry Wong brings both depth of feeling and powerful technique... we can savor Prokofiev’s by-turns sweet and acerbic writing, especially since Wong plays with much expressivity and a wide dynamic range, well captured by the MSR engineers in a powerful recording."

Lee Passarella, Audiophile Audition [October 2010]

"Wong has no trouble at all with the technical demands and plays with good energy and strength. Yet he also gives them a thorough and thoughtful musicality that might not necessarily be associated with such youthful music. Wong applies the same maturity to everything here, from the briefest of the Visions Fugitives to the fullness of the opening of the Sonata No. 8... He knows these are major works and performs them with seriousness, but he is not so earnest as to miss the hallmark signs of Prokofiev's wit when they appear, particularly in the Visions, where he navigates easily through the rapidly changing moods. In places like that, where some pianists would take a more percussive approach to their attack, Wong pays more attention to the overall pianistic qualities of Prokofiev's writing. The sound of the recording is very deep and picks up Wong's attention to the colors of the instrument. A worthy recording of these works."

* * * * (*)   Patsy Morita, All Music Guide [October 2010]

“Wong performs all these works with concision, a sense of elegance (in the scientific sense of no wasted motion whatsoever), and an unerring instinct for placing just the right emphasis in the right place in order to achieve the desired effect. When the subject is Prokofiev, that’s very important, for his music cries out for the bold, precise characterization that Wong gives it... Wong brings [introspection and gentle nostalgia to this music] better than anyone I have heard to assay the Eighth since the late Emil Gilels... [In Visions fugitives] Wong plays the gently elegiac 7, Comodo, to utter perfection."

Phil Muse, Audio Society of Atlanta [September 2010]

“[Jerry Wong’s playing was] eloquent and elegant… [with] passion and introspection…sensitivity and a finely honed sense of style”.

Martin Bernheimer

“…a young Murray Perahia.”

Orange County Register

“…elegant rubatos….[and] interpretive imagination.”

New York Concert Review

During his youthful years, Sergei Prokofiev was acknowledged as the enfant terrible of the musical world. He recognized the piano as a percussive instrument, and his music brought an element of motoric energy and sarcastic wit to a level never before explored. In 1918, an American critic described Prokofiev’s piano performance style: “steel fingers, steel wrists, steel biceps and triceps… he is a tonal steel thrust,” an approach of playing that translated into his compositions as well. Nevertheless, lyricism was also an integral component for Prokofiev, who described melody as “the most important element of music.” The three works on this disc reveal both the romantic and lyrical facets of Prokofiev’s work. In addition, they also trace three distinct periods of his life: the Four Pieces, as a 17-year old student at the St. Petersburg Conservatory in the Russian Empire; Visions fugitives, as a frequent traveler abroad, working with Sergei Diaghilev and his Ballets Russes; and the Sonata No.8, as permanent resident in the Soviet Union.

JERRY WONG has performed throughout the United States, Europe and Asia in such prestigious settings as the Kravis Center in West Palm Beach, National Concert Hall of Taipei, National Gallery of Art in Washington D.C., Opera City Hall in Tokyo, PianoForte in Chicago, Shriver Hall in Baltimore and Weill Recital Hall in New York City. His many prizes and awards include the Bartók-Kabalevsky-Prokofiev, Grace Welsh, IBLA Grand Prize and Yale Gordon Competitions, as well as the Prix-Ville de Fontainebleau in France, which was personally presented to him by Philippe Entremont. He frequently presents recitals, lectures and master classes at colleges, universities and music teachers’ organizations throughout the United States. Mr. Wong’s festival appearances include the Cleveland Institute of Music’s Summer Sonata, Indiana University Piano Academy, Kent’s Blossom Music, the Pacific Music Festival and the Stony Brook International Piano Festival. His performances and interviews have been featured on HCTV, KHSU, WCLV, WKSU, Finnish National Radio, Living & Travel on MSNBC, Nippon Television and Radio Video Mediterranean. In 2009, the Akron Arts Alliance awarded him Outstanding Artist in Music for his frequent performances in northeast Ohio, as well as his work as an educator and advocate of the performing arts. A graduate of Indiana University, the Peabody Conservatory and the Manhattan School of Music, Mr. Wong’s major teachers have included Menahem Pressler, Ann Schein, Sara Davis Buechner and Byron Janis. He presently holds the position of Associate Professor of Piano at Kent State University, where he is also co-director of the Piano Institute at Kent State.

Jerry Wong is a Steinway Artist. SERGEI PROKOFIEV
PIANO SONATA NO.8 IN B-FLAT MAJOR, OP.84
I. Andante dolce - Allegro moderato (inquieto) – Andante dolce, come prima -Allegro
II. Andante sognando
III. Vivace - Allegro ben marcato - Andantino – Vivace, come prima

FOUR PIECES, OP.4
Réminiscences
Élan
Désespoir
Suggestion diabolique

VISIONS FUGITIVES, OP.22
Lentamente
Andante
Allegretto
Animato
Molto giocoso
Con eleganza
Pittoresco (Arpa)
Comodo
Allegretto tranquillo
Ridicolosamente
Con vivacità
Assai moderato
Allegretto
Feroce
Inquieto
Dolente
Poetico
Con una dolce lentezza
Presto agitatissimo e molto accentuate
Lento irrealmente
 



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