Credits:

Fukuma Kotaroh

Description:

A recording of the young pianist in his younger days is now available with a new look. It has been 10 years since he won the Cleveland Competition. The debut recording of this young Japanese pianist, who is currently the focus of much attention, has been re-released in high sound quality and with domestic specifications. The debut disc features the debut of Japan's hottest young pianist, Koutaro Fukuma, who won the first prize at the 2003 Cleveland International Piano Competition. The program is an all-Schumann program, but the selection of pieces that are not ultra-major pieces is intriguing. The youthful and gorgeous "Abegg Variations," the poetic and full-bodied "Eight Novelettes," and the somewhat austere "Three Fantastic Pieces," all overflowing with Schumann's romanticism, are truly challenging pieces that cannot be performed with brute force alone. The "Three Fantastic Pieces" are full of Schumann's romanticism, but they are difficult pieces in the true sense of the word.And Fukuma succeeds in bringing out the charm of the music beautifully Naxos Japan