Chen made his European concert debut at the Grossensaal of the Vienna Konzerthaus in 1984 to considerable acclaim and his career as a concert pianist has never looked back. He has performed in many of the great concert halls of the world and worked with some of its most notable orchestras. Although he returns to Taiwan regularly, he says he feels as much European as Taiwanese. “After all, I have spent longer abroad than I have in Taiwan,” he said. Chen said that having been thrown into a foreign environment at such a young age, he needed to educate himself in a way that many other young Asian pianists do not. “At the time, few aspiring Asian musicians would have gone overseas so young [Chen was just 13], or at least they would have traveled in the company of their parents. I was on my own and had to deal with everything myself. My career is a totally different world for my parents, one that they have little understanding of.”
Chen’s performance style has been deeply influenced by his last mentor, the Russian virtuoso Berman.
The pianist said that he was the only Asian student ever taken on by Berman and talked about his work developing a feel for the Russian composers. “In playing a piece like Petrushka, the technical challenges are considerable. You need a total command of the skills, before you can start giving it the true Russian feeling … The physical demands are huge.” At the Taipei concert, Chen attacked and caressed the piano by turn, giving substance to a much quoted Boston Globe review describing his performance style as one of “white-hot energy, steel-fingered power and athletic virtuosity.”
Chen’s combination of technical skill and Russian passion will be on display at the Chunghsing Concert Hall, Taichung (台中中興堂), 291-3 Chingwu Rd, Greater Taichung (台中市精武路291之3號) on April 6. A small number of tickets are still available and can be purchased through ERA ticketing by calling (02) 2341-9898, or from www.ticket.com.tw.
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