“His greatness, his overwhelming authority as musician, technician and probing intellect emerges quickly as he plays. Within minutes, we are totally captured by his intensity and pianistic achievement.”
— Los Angeles Times

He was born to Polish parents—both Holocaust survivors—in 1949 in what is now Lviv, Ukraine. They moved to Winnipeg, Canada, when he was a young boy and eventually settled in Manhattan in an apartment across the street from Carnegie Hall.

In 1973, he debuted in his adopted hometown. “A young pianist with the hard-to-forget name of Emanuel Ax has one thing going for him before he plays a note,” The New York Times critic wrote. “But brand identification, as advertising men term it, helps in the long run only if the product delivers, and Mr. Ax’s recital at Alice Tully Hall on Monday night fortunately carried the stamp of quality.” That quality created one of the most lasting and impactful careers known by an American pianist.

20 Grammy nominations and eight wins. A touring career that has taken him to every major venue and orchestra in the world. An Avery Fisher Prize. A commitment to new music resulting in a long list of world premieres. Profound chamber partnerships, including five decades of collaboration with Yo-Yo Ma. Honorary doctorates from Skidmore College, New England Conservatory of Music, Yale University, and Columbia University. As the headline of a recent The New York Times profile put it: “For 50 Years, Emanuel Ax Has Made Music Sound Simply Right.”

He’s easily in the top rank of international piano stars, and he returns to the intimate Kimbell Art Museum with a program of Fantasies (Beethoven, Corigliano, Schumann) that he’ll play later that month at Carnegie Hall and the Chicago Symphony Center. Get your tickets right away.

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GENERAL CONCERT INFORMATION

Patrons must be 8 years of age or older to attend Cliburn Concerts.

For questions about ticketing please contact the Bass Hall Box Office at 817.212.4280.

The on-site will call and box office will open in the Renzo Piano Pavilion lobby one hour prior to concert time.

For information on parking, please visit kimbellart.org.

Photography and recording are strictly prohibited.

For further information on attending Cliburn events please read our Patron Guidelines.

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KIMBELL ART MUSEUM RENZO PIANO PAVILION

“Jean-Guihen Queyras and Alexander Melnikov convince with their mastery, their formal perfection and the contrast they establish between the two instruments… Sparkling or muffled, the shimmering of the keyboard responds to the Olympian tranquility of the cello, which progresses in these often-agitated pages like a ship accustomed to facing storms.”
— Diapason Magazine

Curiosity, diversity, and complete dedication to the music define the work of French-Canadian cellist Jean-Guihen Queyras. His approach to music focuses on the principle that composer, performer, and audience must share the same inner motivation to achieve a moving, clear concert experience. This philosophy, alongside a flawless technique and a clear, engaging tone, has formed a foundation for a flourishing, decades-long career: regular performances with renowned orchestras, including the Philadelphia Orchestra, Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks, London Symphony Orchestra, Gewandhausorchester, and Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich; an impressive 27 recordings in as many years; and artist-in-residence appointments at Concertgebouw Amsterdam and Festival d’Aix-en-Provence, Vredenburg Utrecht, De Bijloke Ghent, and Orchestre Philharmonique de Strasbourg.

Pianist Alexander Melnikov’s “fine, highly musical phrasing, his brilliant touch and his desire to interact with the musicians as closely as possible” has led to an extraordinary career as a soloist with orchestras such as Philadelphia, NDR Elbphilharmonie, HR-Sinfonieorchester, Munich Philharmonic, Rotterdam Philharmonic, and BBC Philharmonic, as well as intensive chamber music collaborations. As a solo artist, his last season saw recitals at Berliner Philharmonie, Toppan Hall in Tokyo, Wigmore Hall, Amsterdam’s Muziekgebouw, and Munich’s Prinzregententheater. And his recording of Preludes and Fugues by Shostakovich was awarded the BBC Music Magazine Award, Choc de classica, and the Jahrespreis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik, and was also named one of the “50 Greatest Recordings of All Time” by BBC Music Magazine.

Both of these world-renowned artists make their Cliburn Concerts debut next April.

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GENERAL CONCERT INFORMATION

Patrons must be 8 years of age or older to attend Cliburn Concerts.

For questions about ticketing please contact the Bass Hall Box Office at 817.212.4280.

The on-site will call and box office will open in the Renzo Piano Pavilion lobby one hour prior to concert time.

For information on parking, please visit kimbellart.org.

Photography and recording are strictly prohibited.

For further information on attending Cliburn events please read our Patron Guidelines.

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KIMBELL ART MUSEUM RENZO PIANO PAVILION

“Porter’s silken-toned virtuosity puts her right up there with the finest interpreters of her generation.”
— Chicago Classical Review

“[Pouliot is] one of those special talents that comes along once in a lifetime.”
— Toronto Star

Violinist Simone Porter has been recognized as an emerging artist of impassioned energy, interpretive integrity, and vibrant communication–whose “silken-toned virtuosity puts her right up there with the finest interpreters of her generation” (Chicago Classical Review). In the past few years, she has debuted with the New York Philharmonic, Philadelphia Orchestra, and Los Angeles Philharmonic; and with a number of renowned conductors, including Stéphane Denève, Gustavo Dudamel, Yannick Nézet-Séguin, and Nicholas McGegan.

A tenacious young artist with a passion that enraptures his audience in every performance, violinist Blake Pouliot has performed with the orchestras of Philadelphia, Aspen, Atlanta, Detroit, Dallas, Montreal, Toronto, San Francisco, and Seattle, among many others. Blake’s debut album earned a 2019 Juno Award nomination for Best Classical Album. He has been NPR’s Performance Today Artist-in-Residence and won the Grand Prize at the 2016 Orchestre symphonique de Montréal Manulife Competition.

Pianist Hsin-I Huang has made guest appearances at the Hollywood Bowl, LA Philharmonic Chamber Music Series, Aspen Music Festival, Celebrity Series of Boston, Ravinia BGH Classics Series, Grand Teton Winter Music Festival, La Virée classique OSM, Fête de la Musique de Tremblant, and on NPR’s Performance Today.

And next spring, this trio of young classical phenoms each make their Cliburn Concerts debut!

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GENERAL CONCERT INFORMATION

Patrons must be 8 years of age or older to attend Cliburn Concerts.

For questions about ticketing please contact the Bass Hall Box Office at 817.212.4280.

The on-site will call and box office will open in the Renzo Piano Pavilion lobby one hour prior to concert time.

For information on parking, please visit kimbellart.org.

Photography and recording are strictly prohibited.

For further information on attending Cliburn events please read our Patron Guidelines.

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KIMBELL ART MUSEUM RENZO PIANO PAVILION

“Haochen Zhang has something more: a rare gift for painting scenes in music, creating visions and telling stories. His technique is likely second to none, but his true distinction is his ability to use it in communicating  his extra-musical ideas to listeners.”
— Boston Musical Intelligencer

In the 15 years since he won Cliburn gold at the age of 19, Haochen Zhang has captivated audiences in the United States, Europe, and Asia with a unique combination of deep musical sensitivity, fearless imagination, and spectacular virtuosity. He’s already appeared with many of the world’s leading festivals and orchestras including the BBC Proms with Long Yu and the China Philharmonic; the Munich Philharmonic with Lorin Maazel in a sold-out tour in Munich and China; the Philadelphia Orchestra with Yannick Nézet-Séguin; the Sydney Symphony and David Robertson in a China tour; and the NDR Hamburg and Thomas Hengelbrock in a tour of Tokyo, Beijing, and Shanghai.

In recent seasons, he debuted with the New York Philharmonic and Lucerne Festival Orchestra; performed with the Filarmonica della Scala, NHK Symphony Orchestra, and Staatskapelle Berlin; toured Asia with The Philadelphia Orchestra and the United States with the Atlanta Symphony; made extensive recital and concerto tours in Asia with performances in China, Hong Kong, and Japan; and gave a concerto performance at Carnegie Hall with the NCPA Orchestra, which was followed by his recital debut at Carnegie’s Zankel Hall.

And he’s built an already impressive discography, including last year’s release of the Liszt Transcendental Etudes, which Gramophone calls “a performance of unusual focus” that “no lover of Liszt, or of 19th-century piano repertoire more generally, can afford to miss.”

Help us welcome Haochen home.

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GENERAL CONCERT INFORMATION

Patrons must be 8 years of age or older to attend Cliburn Concerts.

For questions about ticketing please contact the Bass Hall Box Office at 817.212.4280.

The on-site will call and box office will open in the Renzo Piano Pavilion lobby one hour prior to concert time.

For information on parking, please visit kimbellart.org.

Photography and recording are strictly prohibited.

For further information on attending Cliburn events please read our Patron Guidelines.

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KIMBELL ART MUSEUM RENZO PIANO PAVILION

“It’s hard not to be a little awestruck by the breadth of Stephen Hough’s passions, to say nothing of his talents. [He] is simply one of the most interesting musicians around.”
— The Boston Globe

One of the more distinctive artists of his generation, Sir Stephen Hough combines a distinguished career as a pianist with those of a composer and writer. Named by The Economist as one of 20 Living Polymaths, he was the first classical performer to be awarded a MacArthur Fellowship, was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 2014, and was knighted in the Queen’s Birthday Honours in 2022.

He has performed with the world’s major orchestras and given recitals at the most prestigious concert halls—including 25 concerto appearances at the BBC Proms; his 50 albums hold four Grammy® nominations and eight Gramophone magazine awards; and he holds positions at Cambridge University, the Royal Northern College in Manchester, and The Juilliard School. Sir Stephen is a prolific composer who has written works for orchestra, choir, chamber ensemble, organ, harpsichord, and solo piano, and has been commissioned by the likes of Wigmore Hall, the Louvre, the Berlin Philharmonic Wind Quartet, and the Cliburn—for the 2022 Competition, where he also served on the jury. A noted writer, he’s published four books and contributed articles for The New York Times, The Guardian, The Times, Gramophone, and BBC Music Magazine.

This beloved member of the Cliburn Family returns this January to again perform in the gorgeous Kimbell Art Museum—as well as to make his first appearance with Cliburn Sessions.

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GENERAL CONCERT INFORMATION

Patrons must be 8 years of age or older to attend Cliburn Concerts.

For questions about ticketing please contact the Bass Hall Box Office at 817.212.4280.

The on-site will call and box office will open in the Renzo Piano Pavilion lobby one hour prior to concert time.

For information on parking, please visit kimbellart.org.

Photography and recording are strictly prohibited.

For further information on attending Cliburn events please read our Patron Guidelines.

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KIMBELL ART MUSEUM RENZO PIANO PAVILION

“Her attention to detail and clarity is as impressive as her agility, balance and velocity.”
— The Washington Post

She first came to international attention in 2005 when, at 19, she took home the Cliburn silver medal, along with special prizes for best chamber music and new work. Seoul-born Joyce Yang has since made more than 1,000 concert appearances in the world’s prestigious venues and with the New York, Los Angeles, and BBC Philharmonics, the Deutsches-Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, and the Chicago, Philadelphia, Toronto, Sydney, and New Zealand Symphony Orchestras. She’s also a Grammy®-nominated recording artist praised for her “imaginative programming” and “beautifully atmospheric playing” (Gramophone).

Recent years have included an exploration of “art-inspires-art;” she’s curated and performed concerts that highlight the relationship between music and dance, including a major collaboration with the Aspen Santa Fe Ballet. She’s currently artist-in-residence for Grant Park Music Festival and is touring to more than 30 cities this season.

And this fall, the extraordinary, innovative, and elegant Joyce Yang returns to Fort Worth to open our season with Tchaikovsky Seasons, Rachmaninov preludes, and Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition.

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GENERAL CONCERT INFORMATION

Patrons must be 8 years of age or older to attend Cliburn Concerts.

For questions about ticketing please contact the Bass Hall Box Office at 817.212.4280.

The on-site will call and box office will open in the Renzo Piano Pavilion lobby one hour prior to concert time.

For information on parking, please visit kimbellart.org.

Photography and recording are strictly prohibited.

For further information on attending Cliburn events please read our Patron Guidelines.

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KIMBELL ART MUSEUM RENZO PIANO PAVILION