評判 – 國際青年音樂家

Uniquely combining the superlative technique of a classical virtuoso with his prowess in jazz, world music and free improvisation, pianist, composer and arranger Matt Herskowitz has carved out a unique and personal voice in music. Over the course of the last decade, Matt has produced a series of critically-acclaimed recordings, premiered his works in settings from New York’s Central Park to Germany’s Köln Philharmonie, collaborated with top classical, jazz and pop artists, and has performed at music festivals across the globe.

In addition to his other projects, Matt is also half of the Montreal-based piano duo, Piano Chameleons. With acclaimed jazz pianist John Roney, the duo creates unique jazz arrangements of popular classical pieces. Their victims include Bach, Rachmaninoff, Chopin, Schumann, Debussy, Grieg, Brubeck and Gershwin. Their debut album was released in October 2016 on Justin Time Records, and has received much critical praise in Canada.

Matt also records and performs with renowned Canadian violinist Lara St. John. Their first album together, Shiksa (2015, Ancalagon Records), features original compositions and arrangements based on traditional eastern European folk songs that Lara has collected throughout the years. She also commissioned Matt to compose a piece for the album, Nagilara, based on the famous Jewish folk song Hava Nagila. Shiksa has been enormously popular with both critics and audiences alike since its release in 2015. Their second album, Key of A, released this past April on Ancalagon Recores, features César Franck’s hugely popular Sonata in A Major for Violin and Piano and L.V. Beethoven’s great “Kreutzer” Sonata. The duo’s fresh new interpretations of these warhorses has already received rave reviews and sparked interest from National Public Radio in the US.

A graduate of the Juilliard School in New York and the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, Matt is originally from Rensselaerville, New York, and has made Montreal his adopted home since 1999.

Pianist, composer and arranger Derek Wieland is a Juilliard graduate whose technique, artistic prowess and genre-crossing versatility has received critical acclaim in performances throughout the United States, Europe, Asia and South America.

As a concert pianist, Wieland has performed at Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall, with the Cleveland Orchestra and others. In 1987, he was the first pianist to win the Seventeen Magazine/General Motors Concerto Competition (violinist Joshua Bell won five years earlier).

Wieland composed, music directed, and performed The Public Theater’s Shakespeare in the Park: Othello, his contemporary score praised by the New York Times to “have done double duty for an episode of Showtime’s The Tudors.” Wieland has collaborated in additional theatre, film, and live performance projects, including the theatrical work “Things of Dry Hours” directed by R. Santiago-Hudson, “Feather: A Musical Portrait” (New York Musical Theatre Festival), and “An Evergreen Christmas” (Netflix).

A lover of rock and roll music, Wieland has an extensive pop/rock repertoire, performing on Al Di Meola’s LP “All Your Life (A Tribute To The Beatles Recorded at Abbey Road Studios, London)” and working with six-time Grammy Award-winning producer/engineer, Brent Maher, on several Nashville records.

Since 2006, Wieland has served as Music Director for the Trans-Siberian Orchestra, conducting and performing on tour in 105 shows in 61 cities each year to millions of TSO fans. His piano playing and arrangements are heard on many TSO recordings.

Wieland’s live radio and television appearances cross genres from classical concerts on New York’s WQXR Classical Radio with David Dubal’s “Reflections from the Keyboard,” to progressive rock music on Jimmy Fallon and Live with Kelly and Michael.

Growing up in Long Island, Wieland began to play piano at the age of 5 and entered Juilliard Pre-College at age 11. At Juilliard, he studied with legendary pianist György Sándor (a prominent student of classical composer Béla Bartók).

An internationally acclaimed pianist, educator and ambassador for the arts, Michelle Kim has performed in concert halls throughout the US, Europe and Asia including performances at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Caramoor, New Jersey Performing Art Center, Sejong Cultural Center, Hong Kong Cultural Center, LACMA and Chicago Cultural Center, among others. She has performed as soloist with numerous orchestras across the world including the New Jersey Symphony, the Brevard Music Festival Orchestra, the Seoul Philharmonic, the Xiamen Philharmonic, the Bergen Philharmonic, Bangor Symphony, Ridgefield Symphony, Reading Symphony Brooklyn Symphony, the Orchestra del Teatro Massimo di Catania, and many others. Her performances have been televised in the US, Europe and South Korea and broadcast on radio stations throughout the US and abroad.

An advocate for young artists and disadvantaged youth, Michelle is motivated by a profound belief in music’s power to transform lives. In 2009, she founded Hong Kong Generation Next Arts (HKGNA), a Hong Kong Charity dedicated to nurturing artistic excellence and personal success in young artists and changing lives through music. In 2011, she was awarded ‘a Hong Kong & Shenzhen Lifestyle Award’ by the Southern Metropolis Daily for being an ambassador for culture and performing arts and promoting youth development in Hong Kong. Featured as one of the “Inspiring Women of Hong Kong” in the October 2013 Anniversary Issue of Marie Claire, she has performed numerous concerts to raise money for Hong Kong Charities including performances with violinist Lu Siqing at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre and “Concert of Power” with renowned evangelist and motivational speaker, Nick Vujicic. Michelle was invited to speak at TEDxWanchai and shared a talk “Finding the True Gift of Music.” She was also invited by Humanitarian Affairs, UK, in partnership with the Hong Kong Government to speak at the 6th University Scholars Leadership Symposium, which was attended by over 700 student leaders representing 69 different countries. Recently, Ms. Kim received the 2020 Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism Award from the South Korean Government for her dedication and contribution to Korean classical music abroad and enhancement of the reputation of Korea.

Born in Seoul Korea, Ms. Kim began her musical training at age four. At age ten, she gave her orchestral debut with the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra. She went on to graduate from The Juilliard School earning both a Bachelors and Masters of Music. She was also the recipient of the prestigious Arthur Rubinstein Award and garnered top prizes in numerous international competitions.

With performances described by the New York Times as “breathtakingly beautiful”, violinist Sean Lee has captured the attention of audiences worldwide with his lively performances of the classics. A recipient of Lincoln Center’s Avery Fisher Career Grant, his debut album, released by EMI Classics, reached the iTunes top 20 classical bestsellers list. In 2018, Lee released his second album, SONGBOOK, and continues to draw attention to his educational YouTube series, Paganini POV, which utilizes modern technology to share a unique perspective on violin playing.

Lee has appeared as a soloist with orchestras including the San Francisco Symphony, Jerusalem Symphony, Utah Symphony, Orchestra Del Teatro Carlo Felice, and Israel Camerata Jerusalem. His recital appearances have taken him to Carnegie Hall’s Weill Hall, Tel Aviv Museum of Art, Festival di Carro Paganiniano of Italy, and Vienna’s Konzerthaus. A top prizewinner at the “Premio Paganini” International Violin Competition, Lee embraces the legacy of his late mentor, violinist Ruggiero Ricci, as one of few violinists who dare to perform the complete 24 Caprices of Niccolò Paganini in recital.

Lee has collaborated in performances with Itzhak Perlman, James Galway, Deborah Voigt, and members of the Emerson and Guarneri String Quartets. As an artist with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, Lee has performed often at Lincoln Center, as well as internationally at Lobkowicz Palace in Prague, Czech Republic; LG Arts Center in Seoul, Korea; National Theater in Taipei, Taiwan; and the White Nights Festival in St. Petersburg, Russia.

Born in Los Angeles, Lee studied in Southern California with Robert Lipsett of the Colburn Conservatory, and with violin legend Ruggiero Ricci. Moving to New York City at age 17, he began studies at the Juilliard School with the internationally acclaimed Itzhak Perlman. Lee earned both Bachelor and Master of Music Degrees at the Juilliard School, and received the William Schuman Prize upon graduation. Also a dedicated educator, Lee is a member of the chamber music faculty of the Juilliard School’s Pre-College Division, as well as the violin faculty of the Perlman Music Program.

Lee performs on a violin originally made for violinist Ruggiero Ricci in 1999, by David Bague.

Born in Seoul, South Korea, cellist Clara Minhye Kim has performed as a soloist, recitalist, and chamber musician throughout Canada, England, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Israel, Japan, Switzerland, Thailand, and the U.S. She has been a guest performer and faculty member at the Jerusalem Music Center in Israel, Norfolk Chamber Music Festival and Perlman Music Program in the U.S., Seoul Music Festival, Busan Music Festival, and Pyeongchang Great Mountains music festivals in Korea, Beauvais and Festival Music Alp in France, and Morningside Music Bridge in Poland.

As a recipient of numerous scholarships and fellowship grants from Juilliard, New England Conservatory (BM), and Yale and Columbia universities (MM, EdDCT); her principal teachers included Channing Robbins, Laurence Lesser, and Aldo Parisot

Kim founded and heads the cello section of the New York Music Competition, which has been sponsored by the Korea Times since 2007, and she conducts master classes throughout the world. She has served as an adjudicator for various national and international competitions and has recorded for the CRI, SNK, and Albany record labels. Her book on cello method was published by the Korea Economic Daily and Business Publications Inc.

In 2011, she was chosen by the U.S. State Department as one of the Korean-American representatives in the arts for South Korean President Lee and U.S. Secretary of State Clinton. Kim’s students have been recognized at numerous national and international competitions and awards including the Jack Cooke, Janos Starker, Irving Klein, Johansen, Andre Navarra, Pablo Casals, and Young Tchaikovsky competitions. In addition to being on the Juilliard college and Pre-College faculties, she is also on the Columbia faculty.

Korean-born cellist Na-Young Baek made her American debut with the Philadelphia orchestra in 2000. She has also appeared as soloist with the Hudson Valley Philharmonic, DuPage Symphony Orchestra, Seoul Philharmonic, and the Korean Chamber Ensemble. Recent highlights include playing Dvorak Cello Concerto with Wonju Philharmonic Orchestra at Seoul Arts Center and Greenwich Village Orchestra in New York City.

She was the youngest winner in history of the prestigious Choong Ang Times competition in Korea and was also awarded the “Virtuoso Prize” at the first Tchaikovsky Competition for Young Musicians in Moscow, Russia. She won the first prize in Hudson Valley Philharmonic Competition and the Holland-America Music Society Competition. An avid chamber musician, she has performed at Marlboro Music Festival, the Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival, Casals Festival in Prades, the Aspen Music Festival, and the Isaac Stern Seminar in Israel. At 15, Ms. Baek entered Curtis as a student of Orlando Cole. She pursued studies with Aldo Parisot on a full-scholarship at Yale School of Music, where she received the “Aldo Parisot Prize.” After the Artist Diploma program at Juilliard, she completed the Doctor of Musical Arts degree at Stony Brook University, where she studied and performed with Colin Carr. Her dissertation, “Historically Informed Playing of Bach Suite No. 5”, was based on the comparison of the fifth cello suite with the corresponding g minor suite written for the lute.

Critically acclaimed Canadian violinist Jing Wang is one of the most versatile and dynamic violinists of his generation. Since his solo recital debut in Marseilles, France at the age of six, Wang has garnered prizes in top international competitions, including the first prize at the 2007 Irving M. Klein International Strings Competition. In 2003, Wang was awarded the “Young Soloist of the Year” by Les Radios Francophones Publiques, a broadcast network of four countries including France, Canada, Switzerland, and Belgium. As a part of the award, Wang’s first CD album including works by Beethoven, Ravel and Gershwin was released in Europe.

Wang has appeared as a soloist with major orchestras in Europe and North America, including Czech Radio Philharmonic, the Moscow State Symphony Orchestra, l’Orchestre National de Lorraine, l’Orchestre de Picardie, the Metropolitan Orchestra of Montreal, and the Montreal Symphony Orchestra. He has played with the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Zubin Mehta and in November will perform with China Philharmonic under Maestro Osmo Vanska. He has collaborated with renowned conductors such as James DePreist, Claus Peter Flor, Yoav Talmi, Jacques Lacombe, Joseph Rescigno and Anne Manson.

Wang’s chamber music performances and solo recitals at major venues, such as National Arts Centre in Ottawa, and Lincoln Center, received critical acclaim and his performances are heard frequently on CBC Radio-Canada. Additionally, Wang is one of the founding members of Ensemble75, a chamber music series based in Dallas, Texas.

Under Maestro Graeme Jenkins, Wang was the Concertmaster of the Dallas Opera from 2010-2013. He previously served as guest Concertmaster for the Kansas City Symphony under Maestro Michael Stern and the San Antonio Symphony under Maestro Sebastian Lang-Lessing. Appointed by Maestro Jaap van Zweden, Wang is currently Concermaster of the Hong Kong Philharmonic since 2013. He plays a 1760 G.B. Guadagnini violin, a loan arranged by the Y. S. Liu Foundation.

Born in Vienna of Chinese parents, Michael Ma was taught the violin initially by his father before being accepted at age 14 to the Curtis Institute and the New School of Music, Philadelphia, to study under Ivan Galamian and Adolph Brodsky. Upon graduating, he began performing with the Concerto Soloists of Philadelphia and founded the New Art String Quartet which toured throughout Europe, United States and the Middle East. He has appeared frequently as soloist, and held the position of concertmaster with many orchestras including the Oklahoma Symphony Orchestra, the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra, the Santa Fe Opera Orchestra, the Mainly Mozart Festival, San Diego, and the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra.
Prior to his appointment as Head of Strings at the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts in 1996, he was Professor of Violin at the University of Oklahoma.