The Japanese-born pianist Kenji Miura, winner of the 2019 Long-Thibaud-Crespin Competition in Paris, ponders on the issue of identity, combining music of the French school with two pieces by Toru Takemitsu, a Japanese composer strongly influenced by French composers and by the Second Viennese School. The main works on the album are Franck's PrÃ©lude, Fugue et Variation, Ravel's Valses nobles et sentimentales and Debussy's Six Ã©pigraphes antiques. Born in Kobe in 1993, Kenji Miura studied in the UK and in Berlin, where he is now based. "This album is a reflection of my own personal struggle with identity," he writes. "We live in an increasingly multi-ethnic and multicultural society - my torn-between-worlds feeling is shared by many around the world. This is my small musical letter to all those struggling with the many aspects of identity - a concept that should help us embrace who we are and our complicated, beautiful lives."

Tracklist:

Prelude, Fugue Et Variation, Op. 18, FWV 30 (Transcr. Bauer)
Romance
Rain Tree Sketch II in Memoriam Olivier Messiaen
Jeux D'eau, M. 30
Valses Nobles Et Sentimentales, M. 61: No. 1, Modere Et Tres Franc
Valses Nobles Et Sentimentales, M. 61: No. 2, Assez Lent, Avec Une Expression Intense
Valses Nobles Et Sentimentales, M. 61: No. 3, Modere
Valses Nobles Et Sentimentales, M. 61: No. 4, Assez Anime
Valses Nobles Et Sentimentales, M. 61: No. 5, Presque Lent, Dans Un Sentiment Intime
Valses Nobles Et Sentimentales, M. 61: No. 6, Vif
Valses Nobles Et Sentimentales, M. 61: No. 7, Moins Vif
Valses Nobles Et Sentimentales, M. 61: No. 8, Epilogue. Lent
6 Epigraphes Antiques, CD 139, L. 131: No. 1, Pour Invoquer Pan, Dieu Du Vent D'ete
6 Epigraphes Antiques, CD 139, L. 131: No. 2, Pour Un Tombeau Sans Nom
6 Epigraphes Antiques, CD 139, L. 131: No. 3, Pour Que la Nuit Soit Propice
6 Epigraphes Antiques, CD 139, L. 131: No. 4, Pour la Danseuse Aux Crotales
6 Epigraphes Antiques, CD 139, L. 131: No. 5, Pour L'egyptienne
6 Epigraphes Antiques, CD 139, L. 131: No. 6, Pour Remercier la Pluie Au Matin
L'isle Joyeuse, CD 109, L. 106
Mazurka No. 2 in B-Flat Major, Op. 54

UPC: 190296154584
Label: Warner Classics
Release Date: 1.13.23
Format: CD

Kenji Miura - Identity (CD)