John Pitman Review: Self-titled debut – Pianist Wei Luo
To introduce a pianist saying that he or she started lessons at the age of five is probably not going to raise eyebrows. However, to say that this particular pianist advanced at such a rate that she entered the Curtis Institute at age 13 is something that might catch notice. That’s the first part of Wei Luo‘s story, as the now-19 year old is introduced to the world on the Decca Classics label.
Her disc illustrates her love of Russian repertoire, including some rarities by Rodion Shchedrin (b. 1932), whose Two Polyphonic Pieces were discovered by Luo “by random.” They make for a thrilling and, in her word, “cool” conclusion to her debut disc. Ms. Luo shares more of her story with John Pitman, along with music excerpts.
