Back for an encore

German pianist Joja Wendt. Photo provided to China Daily

German pianist Joja Wendt had received strict musical training since his mother, a vocal teacher, first taught him classical piano notes when he was 4. However, to audiences around the world, he is best-known for his ability to improvise the scores of the classical piano repertoires, with a great sense of humor.

Talking with the 50-year-old pianist before his upcoming China tour, which kicks off in Shenzhen on Sept 28, it becomes immediately clear that Wendt, though he chose his instrument as a child, has yet to settle on a musical genre.

"My program selection is not based on any style but uniqueness. Each piece has a story or a clue," he says.

When he recalls his first tour in China last year, he says that it inspired him to further experiment with music.

He has met musicians from different parts of the world occasionally that he couldn't communicate with because he doesn't speak their language - but through music, they became friends. That happened to him with Chinese folk musician Feng Mantian.

"Neither of us speaks each other's language," he says of the player of the ruan, a traditional Chinese plucked string instrument.

"But when we played together, it was magic. We jammed the whole night in a little bar, which is located in a Beijing hutong," he recalls.

For the veteran Feng, jamming with the German musician is also rewarding since both men are keen on crossover experimenting with their instruments.

"Profound technique is necessary but without the musician's own interpretation, the instrument player is merely a technician," says Feng, who looks forward to being part of Wendt's China tour again.

When Wendt performed at Beijing TV's 2013 Spring Festival Gala, he invited famous Chinese table tennis players Liu Wei and Wang Tao to play ping-pong on his piano while he was playing.

"I started to play ping-pong at the same age as I started to play the piano. Both are the most important things in my life. China is known for ping-pong champions in the world so it's perfect to combine the two," says the pianist, who has been playing ping-pong at his home in Hamburg to keep body and mind in tune.

During the upcoming tour, Wendt plans a wine-tasting while playing with his bass player and he might interpret a classical work with a rock version.

"I noticed that I play best when the atmosphere in the audience is relaxed and not self-conscious or tense," he says.

"For me the often rigid distance in so many classical concerts is counterproductive. I don't need that."

For Wendt, keeping his sense of humor is essential for any of his appearances. A good concert, for Wendt, is much more than achieving a brilliant performance.

It requires charisma and presence to engage the audiences.

He takes improvisation as a gift he was born with, but he also attributes his improvisational skills to his study at the Jazz Conservatory in Hilversum, Netherlands, and at the Manhattan School of Music in New York.

His big break came in 1990 when he met blues and rock legend Joe Cocker in Hamburg. Cocker heard him playing in a small pub and asked him to join in his tour.

"We talked about one of his favorite singers, Muddy Waters, and he requested one of his songs. Every night I was playing I've Got My Mojo Working," recalls Wendt.

Since then, he has shared the stage with famous musicians and toured around the world, from New York's Carnegie Hall to a small music school on the Siberian peninsula of Kamchatka.

Steinway & Sons, the traditional and classically orientated company, has acknowledged Wendt as a "Steinway artist".

"I never felt bored because I was always able to play the music that I wanted to. Of course, every pianist has to get through some technical practice that can be exhausting," he says.

"But for me, sitting at the piano is like going on vacation."

IF YOU GO

8 pm, Sep 28. Shenzhen Grand Theater, 5081 Shennandong Lu (Road), Shenzhen, Guangdong province. 400-610-3721.

7:30 pm, Oct 6 and 7. The Cultural Palace of Nationalities, 49 Fuxingmennei Dajie (Street), Xicheng district, Beijing. 010-8319-5319.