Press
Zhang, at 24, has all the qualities of a great Rachmaninoff interpreter. He can execute warp-speed passages in a whisper, release great surges of energy, command a stentorian sound when things get heroic and, above all, spin out a golden singing line with aristocratic restraint. Zhang’s demeanor at the instrument is poised, relaxed, almost serene. Then, when you least expect it, as in the first-movement cadenza, it’s as though the mouth of hell has opened up, flames leap from the piano strings and the odor of sulfur fills the air. Zhang’s dazzling playing is without gimmick or ostentation. His imagination is what keeps you on the edge of your seat and breathless to hear what comes next. Pianist, conductor and orchestra achieved a rare hand-in-glove sense of ensemble. The instantaneous, vocal standing ovation was as inevitable as it was deserved.
Haochen Zhang: 'One to Watch' according to International Piano Magazine:
[...] Chopin's Andante Spiniato and Grand Polonaise isn't heard as much these days as it used to be either. It is not Chopin at his best, as even Orrin Howard had to admit in his program note. The orchestral part is without interest. Chopin performed it only once.
But the piano writing has elegance, and Haochen Zhang, the gold medal winner of the 2009 Van Cliburn competition, played it with panache. He is a chic young pianist who displays brilliance without undo flashiness and will be worth watching. [...]
[...] Long Yu’s matter-of-fact decisiveness was actually an advantage in the constant tempo changes of Liszt’s concerto. It provided a firm frame for pianist Hoachen Zhang, who proved to be something special. He made the Allegretto dance with Mendelssohnian lightness and Lisztian diablerie, and played the melody of the Quasi Adagio with melting softeness, placing a daring pause before the repeat. That was the evening’s best moment, though there were beautiful episodes of dreamy nostalgia in Chen’s concerto, based on a much-loved Chinese melody. [...]
[...] The entrance of the 24 year-old pianist, Haochen Zhang marked a turning point in the evening. His youthfulness was striking, and the stage looking too big for him, but the piano certainly was not. Zhang’s technique in Liszt’s Piano Concerto no. 1 in E flat major was flawless. His playing was effortless, without strain or tension. I had not realised what a pleasure (or relief) it would be to witness a soloist with whom I was confident that there would be no slips. Though Liszt demands a high level of virtuosity, Zhang avoided flamboyant gestures or distracting showmanship. His immaculate playing was enough. Liszt’s concerto is mostly a virtuosic showpiece, but the nocturne-like passage that opens the slow movement gave a glimpse at the pianist’s thoughtful side. His playing was delicate and considered: he was prepared to give every note its full expression. By the work’s finale, Zhang’s vibrant confidence had rubbed off onto the orchestra, as they finally began to revel in their own sound. [...]
Of the evening’s two soloists, one was Chinese, the other British. Haochen Zhang brought lithe energy, crystal clarity and (once past the crunching wrong notes of the opening flourish) impressive precision to Liszt’s Piano Concerto No. 1. British trumpeter Alison Balsom was then the soloist in a new Chinese work, Qigang Chen’s Joie éternelle, a BBC co-commission receiving its first UK performance – an evocative mood piece, as much French in its subtle impressionism as Chinese, and quite a test for Balsom’s nimble fingers.
[...] The two very different concertos at the programme's centre were more satisfactory. Haochen Zhang was the soloist in Liszt's First Piano Concerto, flamboyantly moody throughout and injecting some much-needed passion into proceedings. After the interval came the UK premiere of Joie Eternelle, a set of variations on a traditional Chinese melody for trumpet and orchestra, written for Alison Balsom by Qigang Chen, Shanghai-born, Paris-based and a pupil of Messiaen.