Described as “his homage to the city that defined 20th-century music,” Chinese pianist Lang Lang’s new album, New York Rhapsody, comes out Sept. 16 via Sony Music Masterworks. The album includes classics such as “Rhapsody in Blue,” “Empire State of Mind,” “New York Minute,” “Moon River,” “Tonight” and the Spider-Man theme song, and features guest artists Andra Day, Herbie Hancock, Jason Isbell, Jeffrey Wright, Jerry Douglas, Kandace Springs, Lindsey Stirling, Lisa Fischer, Madeleine Peyroux and Sean Jones.
“I made this album because I wanted to pay homage to the city that I love,” says Lang Lang, who was named New York City’s first-ever NYC Cultural Tourism Ambassador in partnership with NYC and Company in celebration of this year’s “China-U.S. Tourism Year,” designated by Chinese President Xi Jinping and President Barack Obama. “This city has changed the course of music more than any other in the last hundred years. It has inspired and enriched me beyond words and has become my home away from home.”
For New York Rhapsody, Lang Lang teamed up with Grammy-winning producer Larry Klein, who, inspired by the E.B. White essay “Here Is New York,” “assembled musical ideas and energies that both reflect New York’s past and evoke its dynamic present,” according to a press release.
Following the release of the album, Lang Lang will take part in a PBS concert special, Live From Lincoln Center, set to air on Nov. 25 as part of the PBS Arts Fall Festival.
JazzTimes is proud to premiere “Moon River,” a cut off the new album, featuring singer Madeleine Peyroux.
