One of the most challenging technical hurdles of all that pianists have to overcome is keeping dynamics in check when playing lightning fast passages. Because nervous tension and energy kick in when playing at full velocity, it's much easier to let loose and play loud than to keep emotions at bay and, when it's called for as in the Feux follets etude, play everything quietly and delicately. As clearly demonstrated in this recording, Chinese pianist Haochen Zhang has obviously mastered this issue, as he runs through Feux follets (Will-o'-the-wisp) with mercurial agility and transparency. His delicate and quicksilver interpretation allows each and every note, as quickly as they come and go, to sound out clearly, accurately and expressively. In 2009, Haochen Zhang was the youngest pianist ever to receive the Gold Medal at the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, whilst still in his teens.

These formidable piano works were an attempt by Franz Liszt (1811-1886) to take this type of technical piece out of the study and onto the concert stage by bolstering them with vividly dramatic imagery. They are considered to be some of the most difficult piano pieces to not only play, but to express as intended. I myself once attempted to learn the first etude titled Preludio (audio clip below). I quickly realized that before I went bald from tearing my hair out, I should give it up. Haochen Zhang makes it seem like a walk in the park.