Composers: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Marc-André Hamelin – Cliburn Concerts 2015–2016

Marc-André Hamelin
Cliburn at the Bass
Cliburn Concerts 2015–2016

October 6, 2015
Bass Performance Hall  I  Fort Worth, Texas, USA.

PROGRAM:
MOZART Sonata in D Major, K. 576
DEBUSSY Images, Book II
HAMELIN Variations on a Theme by Paganini (2011)
SCHUBERT Sonata in B-flat Major, D. 960

Marc-André Hamelin’s blend of startlingly original musicianship and virtuosity has earned him legendary status as a true avatar of the piano. Long known for his matchless exploration of unfamiliar pianistic terrain, he is now recognized worldwide for the originality and technical brilliance of his performances of the classic repertoire. His career has been replete with accolades—among them nine Grammy® nominations, the 2014 ECHO Klassik Instrumentalist of the Year, and the German Record Critics’ Lifetime Achievement Award. Writing in The New Yorker, Alex Ross praised his “monstrously brilliant technique and his questing, deepthinking approach” and called Hamelin’s hands “among the wonders of the musical world.”

Evelyn Mo – Cliburn Junior 2015 Quarterfinal Round Recital

EVELYN MO
United States |  Age 16

2015 Cliburn International Junior Piano Competition and Festival
June 21–28, 2015  I  TCU
Fort Worth, TX, USA

Program:
BACH Prelude and Fugue in C-sharp Major, Book I, BWV 848
MOZART Sonata No. 18 in D Major, K. 576: I. Allegro
CHOPIN Nocturne in E-flat Major, op. 55, no. 2
CHOPIN Ballade No. 1 in G Minor, op. 23
RAVEL “Ondine” from Gaspard de la nuit

Evelyn Mo made her orchestra debut at age 13 with the Montgomery Symphony Orchestra, and has since performed with the Orchestra of Northern New York, Camerata New York, and Shenandoah University Symphonic Orchestra. Currently under the guidance of John O’Conor, she has previously studied with Thomas Mastroianni, and attended the Lee University and Southeastern Piano Festivals and the International Institute for Young Musicians. In addition to piano, Evelyn plays the violin and is active at her school as member of the yearbook staff, writer for the newspaper, and coordinator for Tomorrow’s Women in Science and Technology.

Arsenii Mun – Cliburn Junior 2015 Preliminary Round Recital

ARSENII MUN
Russia  |  Age 16

2015 Cliburn International Junior Piano Competition and Festival
June 21–28, 2015  I  TCU
Fort Worth, TX, USA

Program:
MOZART Sonata No. 12 in F Major, K. 332
LISZT Paganini Etude No. 3 “La campanella”

Born in St. Petersburg, Arsenii Mun began studying music at age 6 and entered the Special Musical School-Lyceum of the State Conservatory in 2010. He gave his recital debut in 2012, and has since performed throughout Russia and with the St. Petersburg State Academic Symphony, Tchaikovsky Symphony, and Tallin Chamber Orchestras. He has won prizes in the 2011 Horowitz International Piano Competition, 2012 International Televised Competition for Young Musicians “Nutcracker” in Moscow, and the 2014 Yamaha Music Award. Also interested in chamber music, Arsenii has attended the Musica Mundi festival in Belgium—where he received feedback from Daniel Barenboim, Maxim Vengerov, and Itamar Golan—the Peter de Grote Festival in the Netherlands, and the Salzburg International Summer Academy.

Natasha Wu – Cliburn Junior 2015 Preliminary Round Recital

NATASHA WU
United States/Taiwan  |  Age 15

2015 Cliburn International Junior Piano Competition and Festival
June 21–28, 2015  I  TCU
Fort Worth, TX, USA

Program:
MOZART Sonata No. 18 in D Major, K. 576: I. Allegro
LISZT Paganini Etude No. 3 “La campanella”
CHOPIN Ballade No. 2 in F Major, op. 38

Born in California, Natasha Wu overcame idiopathic thrombocytopenia at an early age, which has informed her commitment to serving the community through music. Now living in Taiwan, Natasha has performed to raise funds for the Taiwan Fund for Children and Families and the Yong-Fu Elementary School education fund for the needy. She began lessons at age 6, at which age she also won her first national piano competition. At age 10, she won her first international prize at the Tureck International Bach Competition in New York, resulting in a performance at Lincoln Center. She has also won prizes in the Hong Kong Asian Piano Competition, Kawai Asia Piano Competition, International Chopin Piano Competition in Asia, and International Tchaikovsky Competition for Young Musicians in Moscow. Natasha currently studies with Grace Chung.

Deirbhile Brennan– Cliburn Amateur 2016 Semifinal Round Recital

DEIRBHILE BRENNAN, 46
Accountant
Dublin, Ireland
Ireland

2016 Cliburn International Amateur Piano Competition
Semifinal Round – Thursday, June 23, 2016
Van Cliburn Recital Hall
Fort Worth, Texas, USA

At age 5, Deirbhile Brennan began her piano studies at the Royal Irish Academy of Music and later studied with Frank Heneghan at the DIT Conservatory of Music and Drama for 10 years, winning many prizes and awards. Ms. Brennan holds a degree in music from Trinity College Dublin after which she took a lengthy break that included forging a career as an accountant; she currently works as senior operations manager at the National Treasury Management Agency. Ms. Brennan returned to the piano in 2009 studying with Dr. Hugh Tinney. She has won a number of awards at piano competitions including in the United Kingdom (finalist 2012), Ile De France, Paris (first prize 2012), and Chicago (first prize 2014). She performs regularly; but notably in 2014, she performed at Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall, and last year she performed at the Les Amateurs Piano Festival in Morocco. The mother of four children ages 8 to 16, she enjoys spending time with family and friends as well as attending concerts and plays.

Program:
MOZART, Variations on “Ah, vous dirai-je, Maman,” K. 265 (300e)
SCHUBERT, Impromptu in A-flat Major, op. 142, no. 2
CHOPIN, Ballade No. 4 in F Minor, op. 52

Brianna Donaldson – Cliburn Amateur 2016 Quarterfinal Round Recital

2016 Cliburn International Amateur Piano Competition
Quarterfinal Round
Van Cliburn Recital Hall
Fort Worth, Texas, USA
Tuesday, June 21, 2016

Brianna Donaldson, 35
Nonprofit director
Santa Cruz, California
United States

Brianna Donaldson began private piano lessons in 1988, and by the time she finished high school, her dream was to pursue a career as a piano teacher and performer. An injury during college, however, sidelined that goal, so Dr. Donaldson instead forged a career in cognitive psychology. She received her doctorate from Indiana University in 2008. When her husband’s job necessitated a move to Austin, she began studying under Dr. Betty Mallard at the University of Texas. Under Mallard’s tutelage, she realized: “Despite having a full and wonderful life as a working professional, wife, and mother of two young sons, it is the piano that completes me.” To that end, she says she looks forward to meeting other kindred spirits during the Amateur Competition. An avid reader and outdoorswoman, Dr. Donaldson enjoys spending time with her family and giving community concerts.

Program:
MOZART, Sonata No. 15 in F Major, K. 533/494: III. Rondo: Allegretto
CHOPIN, Ballade No. 4 in F Minor, op. 52

Kuei-Ling Hsu – Cliburn Amateur 2016 Preliminary Round Recital

2016 Cliburn International Amateur Piano Competition
Preliminary Round
Van Cliburn Recital Hall

Kuei-Ling (Christine) Hsu, 39
Pediatric dentist/assistant professor
Columbia, Maryland
Taiwan/United States

Kuei-Ling “Christine” Hsu’s Cliburn connection began even before she was accepted into this Competition. After starting piano lessons at age 10, she continued them at a “casual pace”—her words—until dental school. A few years later, she resumed while doing her dental residency at the University of Alabama Birmingham, as the pupil of Tatiana Kasman—who happens to be the wife of Yakov Kasman, the silver medalist of the 1997 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition. Dr. Hsu, who is now an assistant pediatric dentistry professor at the University of Maryland School of Dentistry, credits Ms. Kasman with renewing her passion for the instrument. A Baltimore Ravens and Orioles fan, she also loves exploring new restaurants with her husband, as well as cooking and knitting.

Program:
CHOPIN, Etude in E Major, op. 10, no. 3
MOZART, Sonata No. 8 in A Minor, K. 310: III. Presto

Miyu Shindo – Cliburn Junior 2019 Quarterfinal Round Recital

Miyu Shindo
Japan  | Age 17

Quarterfinal Round Recital – Monday, June 3, 2019 – 8:54 p.m. CDT
Caruth Auditorium, SMU  I  Dallas, Texas, USA

Program:
SCHUBERT Impromptuin G-flat Major, op. 90, D. 899, no. 3
LISZT Rhapsody espagnole
MOZART Sonata No. 11 in A Major, K. 331 (I)

In addition to recitals in her home country of Japan, Miyu Shindo has performed in the Great Hall at the Moscow Conservatory and at Carnegie Hall, and in Austria and Italy. She has collaborated with the Nagoya Philharmonic, Central Aichi Symphony, and Obu Philharmonic Orchestras, and placed in several international competitions. Miyu recently moved to Russia to study with Valery Piassetski at the Central Music School in Moscow, where she notes that there are many different people from many different places. They speak Russian to each other, but “sometimes we can’t understand what the other person wants to say. When we talk about music, though, we can talk forever!” Outside of piano, she likes to listen to music and read books.

“If every human in this world will love music and tell each other ‘thank you for giving me wonderful happiness,’ we would not hate anyone. I believe that music has a big power to change the world.”

Lindsay Garritson- Cliburn 2013 Preliminary Recital II

LINDSAY GARRITSON
United States | Age 25

Fourteenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition
Preliminary Round Recital II
Bass Performance Hall

Program:
MOZART Sonata in B-flat Major, K. 333
LISZT Les jeux d’eaux a la Villa d’este I Transcendental Etude No. 8: Wilde Jagd
CHOPIN Ballade No. 4 in F Minor, op. 52

Second-prize winner at the 2011 Montreal International Musical Competition and winner of the 2011 Yale School of Music Woolsey Concerto Competition, Lindsay Garritson has performed at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. and at Steinway Hall in New York. She has taken the stage as soloist with the Atlantic Classical Orchestra, the European Philharmonic Orchestra in France, the Orchestre Métropolitain in Montreal, the Orquestra Sinfónica Barra Mansa in Brazil, the St. Louis Youth Orchestra, and the Yale Philharmonic Orchestra, among others. Ms. Garritson holds a Bachelor of Arts in music from Principia College and a Master of Music and artist diploma from the Yale School of Music.

Eric Zuber- Cliburn 2013 Preliminary Recital I

ERIC ZUBER
United States | Age 28

Fourteenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition
Preliminary Recital I
Bass Performance Hall

Program:
MOZART Rondo in A Minor, K. 511
CHOPIN Twelve Etudes, op. 10

After making his orchestral debut at the age of twelve with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, Eric Zuber went on to perform with the Calgary Philharmonic, Cleveland, Israel Philharmonic, and Minnesota Orchestras, in addition to various others. He has also given solo recitals at Carnegie’s Weill Recital Hall, Dublin National Theatre, the Kennedy Center, the Great Hall at the University of Leeds, and the Seoul Arts Center. He has been finalist and prizewinner at nine international piano competitions, including the Arthur Rubinstein, Bösendorfer, Cleveland, Dublin, and Honens. Mr. Zuber holds a bachelor’s degree and an artist diploma from the Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University, as well as an artist diploma from the Curtis Institute of Music, and a master’s degree from The Juilliard School. He is currently pursuing a doctoral degree at the Peabody Institute.

Tomoki Sakata- Cliburn 2013 Preliminary Recital II

TOMOKI SAKATA
Japan | Age 19

Fourteenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition
Preliminary Recital II
Bass Performance Hall

Program:
MOZART Variations on a Minuet by Duport, K. 573
ALBENIZ Iberia, Book II
TCHAIKOVSKY-PABST Concert Paraphrase on Eugene Onegin

Born in Nagoya, Tomoki Sakata received his first piano lesson at the age of five. A prizewinner at various competitions throughout Asia and Europe, Mr. Sakata has appeared in concert in Osaka, Tokyo, and Yokohama, as well as in Geneva, Lugano, Paris, Prague, Utrecht, Vienna, and in Moscow for the twelfth International Festival “Musical Kremlin.” He has also performed as soloist with the Hamamatsu Symphony, Lubrin Philharmonic, and Tokyo City Philharmonic Orchestras. Mr. Sakata currently studies at both the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music and at the International Piano Academy Lake Como.

François Dumont- Cliburn 2013 Preliminary Recital I

FRANÇOIS DUMONT
France | Age 27

Fourteenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition
Preliminary Round Recital I
Bass Performance Hall

Program:
MOZART Sonata in A Minor, K. 310
RAVEL Gaspard de la nuit
CHOPIN Scherzo No. 3 in C-sharp Minor, op. 39

Born in Lyon, François Dumont entered the Paris Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique when he was fourteen years old, and later studied at the International Piano Academy Lake Como in Italy. He has performed in many of the major venues in France, and has been invited to perform as soloist with the Chamber Orchestra of Lausanne, the Mariinsky Theatre Orchestra, the National Philharmonic Orchestra of Poland with Antoni Wit, and the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra, among others. He has taken the stage in Belgium, China, France, Germany, Latvia, Poland, and the United States. Mr. Dumont’s recording of the complete Mozart sonatas for Anima Records received the Maestro Award from Pianiste magazine. Other solo recordings include works by Chopin and the complete piano works of Ravel. Mr. Dumont currently resides in Brussels, Belgium.

Fei-Fei Dong- Cliburn 2013 Semifinal Round Recital

FEI-FEI DONG
China | Age 22

Fourteenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition
Semifinal Round Recital
Bass Performance Hall

Program:
MOZART Sonata in D Major, K. 576
THEOFANIDIS Birichino
CHOPIN Twenty-four Preludes, op. 28

Born in Shenzhen, Fei-Fei Dong gave her first recital at age ten; this was followed three years later by her orchestral debut with the Macau Youth Symphony Orchestra. She has since made debuts in Alice Tully Hall and the Louvre Auditorium, and with the Aspen Music Festival, Hong Kong, Juilliard, Shanxi, and Shenzhen Symphony Orchestras. Ms. Dong is a first-prize winner of several competitions in China, including the Schumann International Piano Competition for Young Musicians, the Asia-Pacific International Chopin Piano Competition, and the 65th Steinway & Sons International Youth Piano Competition. Ms. Dong currently lives in New York, where she is pursuing her Master of Music degree at The Juilliard School.

Alessandro Deljavan- Cliburn 2013 Preliminary Recital II

ALESSANDRO DELJAVAN
Italy | Age 26

Fourteenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition
Preliminary Recital II
Bass Performance Hall

Program:

MOZART Variations on Gluck’s Unser dummer Pobel meint,” K. 455
SCHUMANN Fantasy in G Major, op. 17
SCHUBERT Variation on a Waltz by Diabelli, D. 718

 

Alessandro Deljavan began studying piano before he was two years old, and went on to win top prizes at national and international competitions as a child and teenager. He has since performed in the major cities of Italy, as well as in Argentina, Colombia, France, Germany, Greece, Poland, Slovakia, Switzerland, and the United States, and with the Haydn Orchester, as well as the Mariinsky Theatre Orchestra. He has recorded the works of Alkan, Brahms, Busoni, Cramer, Rubinstein, Satie, Schubert, and Schumann for the Naxos, Brilliant, OnClassical, Piano Classics, and Stradivarius labels. He will also be featured alongside Evgeny Kissin, Antonio Pappano, and Charles Rosen in a film about Liszt, produced and broadcast by Italian RAI TV. An avid chamber musician, he has performed with the Sine Nomine Quartet, the Takács Quartet, and the Orchestra Sinfonica Verdi, with which he also conducted. He plays regularly with his violinist partner Daniela Cammarano as well. Mr. Deljavan makes his home in Pescara, Italy, and is currently a Theo Lieven Scholar at the Conservatory of Lugano.

Nikita Abrosimov- Cliburn 2013 Preliminary Recital I

NIKITA ABROSIMOV
Russia | Age 24

Fourteenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition
Preliminary Recital I
Bass Performance Hall

Program:
MOZART Fantasia in C Minor, K. 396
BRAHMS Sonata No. 1 in C Major, op. 1

Nikita Abrosimov began studying piano at the age of six and made his recital debut when he was fourteen. He has since made appearances at La Scala in Milan, Alice Tully Hall in New York, Mariinsky Concert Hall in St. Petersburg, and in venues throughout France, Italy, Portugal, Russia, Switzerland, South Korea, Ukraine, the United Kingdom, and the United States. He has recently performed with the Nizhny Novgorod Symphony, Kostroma Symphony, and Stanford Symphony Orchestras, as well as with the Mariinsky Theatre Orchestra under the baton of Valery Gergiev in St. Petersburg’s Stars of the White Nights Festival. Mr. Abrosimov earned degrees at the Balakirev Music College and at Indiana University South Bend. He currently lives in London, where he studies at the Royal College of Music.