she comes to shore

The most unique genius to touch a keyboard in Canada since Glenn Gould

– Harry Currie, Kitchener-Waterloo Record

“In the first [movement], lush string textures are overlaid with a complex filigree of tintinnabulation from the piano. The second movement is much more dramatic with roiling and pounding from both the piano and the full orchestral forces. This gives way seamlessly to a gentle and extended cadenza in which the piano is eventually joined by a soaring Hollywood-like orchestral melody, primarily in the strings. This piece has been something of a guilty pleasure to the modernist in me, but it is so gorgeous that I have found myself indulging time and again.”

– David Olds, The Whole Note

“[T]he musicianship here is more on the sensitive and personal side. Lee Pui Ming’s technique and imaginative inventiveness cast a wide net, and there is always an underlying sense of direction and structure in her improvisations. “[T]he actual musical content turns an interesting idea into a fascinating and emotive work, provided with effective climaxes and a good deal of structural integrity. Imagine something a bit like Gorecki’s Symphony of Sorrowful Songs adapted to make a richly textured piano concerto and you might have some idea as to what to expect from the first movement … The second movement is a darker affair, with, after a gentle introduction, the string sonorities punctuated by stabbing low brass and close clusters from the piano. Throw in percussion and we’re in cinema land, a cataclysmic event of some kind putting us all in extreme peril. The final movement is a resolution and rescue from this turbulent central section, more lyrical material creating a serene landscape of high mountains and a calm sea. “This CD is well recorded and highly involving and entertaining, showcasing the remarkable talents of a fine musician at their best … such personal and emotively charged statements deserve respect, and have certainly gained my admiration.”

– Dominy Clements, MusicWeb International

“What we hear here is vintage Pui Ming: rocking back and forth between romance and intensity, coupling a classical precision on the keyboard with a seemingly effortless flow of improvisational ideas. The works themselves, while predominantly improvised, display clarity and precision that employ the best of the twin avatars of major piano work: classical and jazz … This is an impressive series of works from one of the best.”

– Nilan Perera, Exclaim!

Proprio come il bel dipinto che campeggia in copertina, la musica della compositrice Lee Pui Ming contenuta in questo nuovo cd Innova è classificabile come espressionismo astratto. Dove lì ci sono macchie di colore acceso spruzzate e schizzate sulla tela, qui ci sono colate laviche di suoni incandescenti che si riversano violentemente sull’ascoltatore. La matericità delle improvvisazioni pianistiche della Ming è talvolta smorzata da momenti di intimo lirismo, in relazione all’ispirazione dell’autrice-performer, senza tuttavia che si arrivi a un qualche barlume di narrazione. Di trama si può però parlare nel brano che dà il titolo al cd, She comes to shore, un trittico per orchestra e pianoforte solista, dove la prima esegue una partitura scritta che fornisce un appiglio armonico e ritmico cui le improvvisazioni pianistiche della solista si aggrappano, addirittura abbandonandosi, nel pannello conclusivo, in un inaspettato e sognante romanticismo.

– Filippo Focosi, Kathodik