The Disney Book

Lang Lang

Released on 16/09/2022 by Deutsche Grammophon (DG)
Main artists: Lang Lang
Genre: Classical

Available in

24-Bit/192 kHz Stereo

Unlimited Streaming

Listen to this album in high quality now on our apps

Start my trial period and start listening to this album

Enjoy this album on Qobuz apps with your subscription

Digital Download

Purchase and download this album in a wide variety of formats depending on your needs.

Pianist Lang Lang and his Deutsche Grammophon label have apparently decided that his last peak to scale is that of massive crossover stardom, and the fact that he had a childhood affection for Disney films and their music during the first years in which they were available in China, provided the ideal opening. Listeners' reactions to The Disney Book will probably largely depend on whether they think this is a desirable development. Three things, however, should be noted. First, Lang Lang has enlisted top-flight arrangers in the cause, among them pianist Stephen Hough. The music on this album sounds fresh because it is indeed freshly made. The arrangers strike a good balance between the world of Disney songs and Lang Lang's general high Romantic idiom. Second, animated film and classical music used to be more closely linked than they are today. In a way, The Disney Book is a welcome throwback to the days of Fantasia. Third, on the pop side, Lang Lang's abilities are undoubted. With many classical pianists, even those who have recorded a lot of material derived from pop, one can still sense the level at which they were taught to clap on the downbeat. Not so with Lang Lang, as a sample of the fun he has with the likes of The Bare Necessities will testify. Listeners delighted with the idea of a big treatment of Disney classics will be pleased here, and even those less enamored might give the album a try. There are guest vocal stars, including Andrea Bocelli and Lang Lang's wife Gina Alice; they are pretty much smoothed down so that they blend into the scenery that will spill across one's phone if one finds the Deluxe Version. Conductor Robert Ziegler, leading the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, also had a tough row of balances to hoe and succeeds admirably. Probably the crossover event of 2022.

© James Manheim /TiVo

More info

The Disney Book

Lang Lang

You are currently listening to samples.

Listen to over 100 million songs with an unlimited streaming plan.

Listen to this playlist and more than 100 million songs with our unlimited streaming plans.

From kr124,99/month

Beauty and the Beast (From "Beauty and the Beast")

00:04:09

Robert Ziegler, Conductor, MainArtist - Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Orchestra, MainArtist - Ian Watson, Asst. Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Ted Jensen, Mastering Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Alan Menken, Composer - Howard Ashman, Author - RON FAIR, Producer - Lang Lang, Piano, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Christopher Alder, Editor, Recording Supervisor, StudioPersonnel - Philip Siney, Asst. Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Philip Krause, Mixer, Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel