Get Happy is a show-stopping, high-energy experience that blends the mystique of the classical genre with the accessibility of popular Broadway material. 

It’s a hybrid sound — a bit of tradition and a bit of pop. It’s fresh, unexpected, unpredictable. The songs are so well written, so warm and welcoming, so delightful as pure music. 

Get Happy is a collection of show tunes by legends including Irving Berlin, George Gershwin, Cole Porter, Harold Arlen, Richard Rodgers and Stephen Sondheim. The songs are arranged for solo piano by artists including Earl Wild, Dick Hyman, André Previn, Stephen Prutsman, Stephen Hough, Marc-André Hamelin and Christopher O’Riley. And the result, at Lin’s fingertips, is a show-stopping high-energy experience that blends the mystique of the classical genre with the accessibility of popular Broadway material.

About the meeting of the “popular” and the “serious” on Get Happy Jenny Lin says: “It depends on how one defines 'popular' and 'serious.' A lot of these pieces are extremely virtuosic. Perhaps the original tunes themselves are popular, but the materials used in the arrangements are serious. What sets these arrangements apart is that they are all by performing pianists. I have always admired pianists who can play and compose, and I wanted to pay tribute to them with this album. They are our present-day versions of Liszt and Busoni. Also, I am always curious about new repertoire, always looking for ideas and music that bring something new to listeners. It’s a hybrid sound — a bit of tradition and a bit of pop. It’s fresh, unexpected, unpredictable. The songs are so well written, so warm and welcoming, so delightful as pure music. George Gershwin, Richard Rodgers and the other composers on this album were genius melodists. They created a universal language that everyone can embrace. And a successful arrangement can only enhance the greatness of this music, giving us a new and surprising way to appreciate it.” 

“Lin plays this music “con amore,” with warmth, a generous tone, and a real romantic lilt that never turns tasteless; and she’s got virtuosity to burn.”

ClassicsToday.com 
 

“After listening to the CD, one cannot help but wear a smile and tingle with goose bumps. Uplifting and effervescent.”   

ConcertoNet
 

“I can’t promise that this album is a medically viable substitute for, say, antidepressants or a loving companion, but it really is an outright joy. It’s something every piano collection should have. For sixty-four minutes, you’ll really believe it’s nothing but blue skies from now on.”

MusicWeb International

 

Album Credits

Get Happy / Jenny Lin • STNS 30011

Release Date: 10/30/2012

Producer: Dan Merceruio
Engineer: Daniel Shores
Assistant Engineer: Adam Olson
Piano Technician: John Veitch
Piano: Steinway Model D #590904 (New York)
Cover Photo: Liz Linder

About the Artist

Jenny Lin is one of the most respected young pianists today, admired for her adventurous programming and charismatic stage presence. She has been acclaimed for her “remarkable technical command” and “a gift for melodic flow” by The New York Times. The Washington Post praises “Lin’s confident fingers…spectacular technique…,” “…surely one of the most interesting pianists in America right now…” and Gramophone Magazine has hailed her as “an exceptionally sensitive pianist.” Her orchestral engagements have included the American Symphony Orchestra, NDR and SWR German Radio orchestras, and Orchestra Sinfonica Nationale della RAI. Her concerts have taken her to Carnegie Hall, Avery Fisher Hall, Kennedy Center, Lincoln Center’s Great Performers, SF Jazz, MoMA, Stanford LIVE, and the National Gallery of Art. She has appeared at Festivals such as Mostly Mozart, BAM’s Next Wave, Spoleto USA, Kings Place London, Chopin Festival Austria, and Schleswig-Holstein Festival Germany.

Since 2000, Jenny’s discography includes more than 30 recordings on Steinway & Sons, Hänssler Classic, eOne, BIS, New World, and Albany Records. She is also the central figure in Cooking for Jenny by Elemental Films, a musical documentary portraying her journey to Spain. Other media appearances include CBS Sunday Morning, NPR Performance Today, and Speaking for Myself, a film about Manhattan as seen through the eyes of eight contemporary artists by filmmaker Bert Shapiro. Born in Taiwan and raised in Austria, Jenny studied at the Hochschule für Musik in Vienna, the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore and the Fondazione Internazionale per il pianoforte in Como, Italy. She holds a bachelor’s degree in German literature from The Johns Hopkins University.

About Steinway & Sons label

The STEINWAY & SONS music label produces exceptional albums of solo piano music across all genres. The label — a division of STEINWAY & SONS, maker of the world’s finest pianos — is a perfect vessel for producing the finest quality recordings by some of the most talented pianists in the world.