Pathfinder pianist

Chinese pianist Lang Lang shows his Officier des Arts et Lettres (Officer of Arts and Letters) medal after a ceremony at the 47th MIDEM (International record music publishing and video music market) in Cannes January 27, 2013.[Photo/Agencies]

Lang Lang is at the top of the world – not just the world of classical music, but a wider world where his impact is felt, such as music education. He has received numerous awards, performed with many of the world's top orchestras and appeared in special functions with world leaders and state dignataries that testify to his stature more clearly in the eyes of those who cannot tell Chopin from a showtune.

Lang has had his share of detractors, though. He has been criticized as "immature" or "lacking sensitivity". But he remains unfazed. "I seek a challenging style," he explains, "the Russian school, with Gary Graffman as my teacher. It's a physically demanding style. I played Tchaikovsky piano concerto No.1 and Rachmaninov piano concerto No.3, fit for a teenager and the audiences loved it."

But Lang understands that he has to expand his repertory. "You should not lose yourself, but keep growing and never be stagnant." When he switched to a heavily Austro-German repertory, he changed many minds. A lot of his early critics were won over and morphed into fans.

Lang recounted an incident in 2007 when the top ten classical music critics in France were gathered to listen to seven different recordings of Beethoven's piano concerto No.1. They were not told which one was by which world-renowned pianist. When they realized they had collectively selected Lang Lang's version, conducted by Christoph Eschenbach, as the most idiomatic, they were taken aback by their own selection.

That changed a lot of opinions that Lang Lang was good only with Russian music. Strange to say, in unpretentious Germany, Lang was embraced most quickly. More music lovers realized that he is not only technically brilliant, but possesses great capability for sutblety and sensitivity.

"People tend to see Asian musicians as technique-oriented but lacking emotions," Lang says.

"Now people have accepted me as the proponent of a new style, of an innovative approach fit for the 21st century."