Review excerpt:
Songs of Leaving
Angelo Rapân
2015

Angelo Rapân began his musical journey at the early age of 4 being tutored by his Mother, a classical musician.  At the age of 6 he was accepted into the prestigious George Enescu Music Academy in his native Romania.  In Romania when Angelo was thirteen, his parents encouraged him to continue his studies in Spain when the political climate worsened in Romania.  Up until this time he had studied near his family.  He went on to earn a degree in Music Performance at Conservatoir Royal de Bruxelles in Belgium and continued in the classical music field in both Europe and the US.  Mr. Rapân has a very versatile and interesting music background worthy of further inquiry.  His unique musical journey spans several countries. This journey is coupled with an impressive music repertoire that far extends his classical roots.  Woven throughout this album I could hear the influence of several masters such as Rachmaninov coupled with the emotionality of Chopin.  Out of life experiences and collaboration with the acclaimed production/engineering team of Will Ackerman and Tom Eaton at Imaginary Road Studios in Vermont, Songs of Leaving was created.

According to Mr. Rapân, his inspiration for Songs of Leaving was nature, mountain folk tales when visiting his Grandparents in Transylvania, and life experiences.   His music tells an enchanting piano story.  What an amazing journey this classical pianist has embarked on in his life and this journey is beautifully portrayed in his debut album.  [continue]

~ Darla Bower
Enlightened Piano Radio

 

Featured Article excerpt: Pianist and composer Angelo Rapan recently released his debut album, Songs of Leaving. This work, which blends new age with a strictly classical background, tells story about the struggle –and the resolution– associated with departures from one’s home country. It is quite autobiographical: after spending his childhood in Bucharest and then moving to Spain, to Belgium, to the United States and Hong Kong, Rapan has now found a home in Memphis, Tennessee (Great music scene, by the way, he remarks).

He has been playing the piano since the age of four, mainly influenced by his mother and siblings. A longtime believer in improvisation, he used music to overcome shyness when he was a kid: “When they asked me to say something, I was “I am not telling you, but I am playing it for you,” he told us. [continue]

 ~ Angelica Frey
CMuse Magazine

 

Featured Article excerpt: The subtitle under Angelo Râpan’s name on his website reads: “Musical Versatility.” This is a bit of an understatement concerning the talents of this Romanian-born pianist/composer, whose musical repertoire expands beyond his classical roots, encompassing music theatre, opera, music for dance, Argentine tango, world music, and with the latest chapter in his life, which he describes as, “contemporary instrumental music of a reflective, soothing nature.” Although this diversity is not surprising considering that Angelo is truly a citizen of the world … [continue]

 ~ Michael Diamond
Music & Media Focus

 

Angelo Râpan has released his album Songs of Leaving and with that successfully weaved a tapestry of instrumental tales of the heart.

“Remember” is the focus track and my initial thoughts are similar to what Will Ackerman said about the artist. He transfers his mind, body and soul through his fingers to make beautiful and moving music.

Like a clear running stream of cool water ready for consumption he lets his fingers do all the talking. His message to us is to “Remember” who you are, where you have been and where you are going. Listen and you will be able to relate easily!

Angelo Rapan’s successful career as both a classical pianist and music director could scarcely predict how self-assured and accomplished his debut recording as a new player and the contemporary instrumental arena would be.  The latest page in the book of his life has culminated in his collaboration with acclaimed production / engineering team of Will Ackerman and Tom Eaton at Imaginary Road Studios in Vermont.  This album represent a return of sort for the once shy Romanian boy who was more comfortable playing his own music than talking.  His inner journey to explore music as a way of telling his life’s story, communication what it was like for him to endure his early struggles and finally find peace and fulfillment.  Songs of Leaving display not only his considerable talent for weaving classical influence into his piano subtlety and nuance or a commanding presence in drama and passion.

~ BIll Binkelman

BIO

Pianist Angelo Râpan’s musical pathway is both very similar to and also completely unlike most other artists who reside under the umbrella term of “contemporary instrumental music” today. It was a road that was challenging at times and yet also filled with many rewarding moments and triumphs. More than anything else, his voyage to where (and who) he is now displays that the courage to follow your dreams, coupled with support and love from family, and fueled by passion, talent, and perseverance, can propel you to a lofty place and, with some luck along the way, make your dreams come true.

Angelo started taking piano lessons at a very early age. His mother, a classical musician herself, began tutoring him at age 4. By the age of 6, following in his sister’s footsteps, he was accepted into the prestigious George Enescu Music Academy in his native Romania where he was a pupil of Cristina Georgescu. Six years later, he won his first piano competition, a national one at that, in Bucharest, Romania. Over the next several years, he took first and second place at competitions in Romania, Spain and Belgium. However, getting there took sacrifice by both him and his parents. His early studies allowed him to be close to his family, but by the age of 13, as the political climate in Romania worsened, his parents encouraged him to leave and he went to study at the Ars Nova Academy in Barcelona, Spain (which would later be followed by stints at schools in both Switzerland and Belgium). Even with his parents complete support, this was obviously not easy for a boy of 13 to do, but Râpan not only forged ahead, but prospered, earning a degree in Music Performance at Conservatoir Royal de Bruxelles in Belgium.

Râpan quickly ascended to higher heights in the classical music world in Europe and, after moving to America, in the United States as well. He has served as musical director for a variety of organizations in Belgium, New York, Hong Kong, and in his adopted home town of Memphis, Tennessee, where he now resides with his wife. His musical repertoire reaches far beyond his classical roots, encompassing music theatre, opera, dance repertoire, Argentinian tango, world music, and with the latest chapter in his life, contemporary instrumental music of a reflective, soothing nature. This latest page in the book of his life has culminated in his collaboration with the acclaimed production/engineering team of Will Ackerman and Tom Eaton at Imaginary Road Studios in Vermont.

The album that resulted from his visit to Vermont, Songs of Leaving, will be released in the summer of 2015, and it represents a return of sorts for the once shy Romanian boy who was more comfortable playing his own music at the piano than talking. He began an inner journey to explore music as a way of telling his life’s story, communicating what it was like for him to endure his early struggles and finally find peace and fulfillment. A friend of his introduced him to the belief in life being an adventure to live and absorb, not so much a destination to achieve. As he recounts, the doorway to musical improvisation opened early. “My first improvisation…was from age 6-7, [I was] very shy then, [and I] loved to stay in front of the piano and explore scenarios and pathways, discovering emotions that I never discovered with any other artistic expression.” While classical, dance, opera and music theatre dominated his life once his formal studies ended, he has now returned to this more intuitive and emotive composing approach. When quizzed about his inspiration for Songs of Leaving, Angelo remarks “Nature for sure, [and] visiting my grandparents every summer in Transylvania as a little boy…[it’s] amazing the stories and tales that you hear from old folks up in the mountain…very creative and full of emotions.  Life experiences. Thanking my parents for their sacrifice…My sister for her guidance. My wife for the inspiration and strength in very stormy moments in life.  Faith and love that we chose to share with our human family along our journey, that can change our future.”

There can be little doubt that, while his future may be full of new experiences and music collaborations as he forges ahead into relatively new musical territory, Angelo Râpan will not only do “just fine,” but will face what comes with courage, wit, and the will to weather whatever life has in store for him and he’ll come out stronger, wiser, and eager to continue the journey.