Cellist Quirine Viersen and Pianist Thomas Beijer with Hong Kong Camerata Strings and Conductor Jeremy Williams
- September 23, 2019
- Posted by: admin
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Nov 19, 2019 (Tue) 7:30pm
JC Cube, Tai Kwun
$300*， $200*，$100 (*with concession)
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Hong Kong Generation Next Arts (HKGNA) is proud to co-present with the Netherlands Consulate General in Hong Kong and Macao, the extraordinary Dutch Cellist, Quirine Viersen, in HKGNA’s Music Festival 2019, “Great Women Artists of the World!” Top prize winner in numerous major international competitions including Concours de violoncelle Rostropovich and the International Cello Competition in Helsinki, Ms. Viersen has the distinction of being the first Dutch musician to win top prize in the Tchaikovsky International Competition. She was also the recipient of the Dutch Music Award, the highest award for classical musicians by the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science. Ms. Viersen has performed as soloist with many international orchestras, including the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra with Herbert Blomstedt and Bernard Haitink, the St. Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra with Valery Gergiev and the Vienna Philharmonic with Zubin Mehta, to name a few.
Her music partner, Pianist Thomas Beijer, will join Ms. Viersen to perform works of Beethoven and Janáček. Mr. Beijer is a young pianist and composer praised for his excellent technique and artistic integrity. Ms. Viersen will perform Dutch composer, Escher’s Sonata for cello solo.
Hong Kong’s best youth string ensemble, the Hong Kong Camerata Strings, under the direction of Conductor Jeremy Williams will join Ms. Viersen. They will perform Haydn’s Cello Concerto No.1 in C Major.
HKGNA is thrilled to present the great Dutch Cellist Quirine Viersen and Pianist Thomas Beijer with the Hong Kong Camerata Strings and Jeremy Williams. Together, they will inspire audiences and profoundly impact our Hong Kong community!
Program
Beethoven
7 Variations on “Bei Männern, welche Liebe fühlen”, WoO 46
L.Janáček
Pohádka
R. Escher
Cello Sonata
Intermission
Haydn
Cello Concerto No.1 in C Major, Hob.VIIb/1
Festival Artists
Amongst other concerts this season, Quirine Viersen will give multiple performances of the Barber Cello Concerto with the Niederrheinische Sinfoniker under Diego Martin-Etxebarria. For the international Cello Biennial Amsterdam 2018, she looks forward to revisiting Korngold”s Cello Concerto, as well as playing the world premiere of Glacier, a solo piece JacobTV wrote for her. 2019 will see the collaboration with both the Arnhem Philharmonic Orchestra/Lucas Macias Navarro and the Netherlands Chamber Orchestra for the cello arrangement of Mozart”s Flute Concerto.
In 2011, Quirine recorded the Bach Suites for Cello for the first time. The Strad wrote: [her] “interpretations are characterised by poise, imagination and a pleasing sense of fantasy.” New perspectives have led to a second recording, to be issued this year.
After working and recording extensively with Silke Avenhaus for almost twenty years, Quirine has sought out new duo collaborations. Recitals with pianist Enrico Pace kicked off with great success at the Concertgebouw, Amsterdam in 2017.
Quirine”s father, Yke Viersen (cellist in the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra), was a logical first influence on her talent, followed by Jan Decroos and Dimitri Ferschtman. At sixteen, Quirine was the youngest prize winner ever at the Scheveningen International Music Competition.
The insights of Ralph Kirshbaum and Natalia Gutman and Heinrich Schiff proved to be defining. Heinrich Schiff was her all-encompassing mentor, teaching her to make music with the cello as her instrument. The “Navarra” technique enriched her playing greatly. Amongst others, she was prize winner at the Rostropovich Competition Paris 1990, at the International Cello Competition Helsinki 1991, and at the Tchaikovsky Competition Moscow 1994. In the same year, she received the most prestigious classical state prize, the Dutch Music Award.
Quirine Viersen performs on the “Joseph Guarnerius Filius Andreae” from 1715, previously played by André Navarra. With help of Heinrich Schiff, it was kindly provided by the Dutch National Instrument Fund. Schiff complemented this instrument with one of his bows as a gift.
Being awarded the Credit Suisse Young Artist Award, Quirine performed with the Vienna Philharmonic under Zubin Mehta at the Lucerne Festival in 2000.Since then, Quirine has played the cello concerto repertoire with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra under Herbert Blomstedt, Ingo Metzmacher and Bernard Haitink, Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra/Marc Albrecht, St. Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra/Valery Gergiev, Frankfurt Radio Symphony/Hugh Wolff, Israel Philharmonic Orchestra/Georges Pehlivanian, Vienna Chamber Orchestra/Heinrich Schiff, Malmö Symphony Orchestra/Lawrence Renes, Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra/Jean Fournet and others.
Previous and continuing collaborations include Antje Weithaas, Thomas Beijer, Leonidas Kavakos and Liza Ferschtman; with invitations from Delft Chamber Music Festival, Rheingau Music Festival, Mondsee Tage, Luzerner Festwochen and the Salzburger Festspiele.
Thomas Beijer (1988) is a young pianist and composer praised for his excellent technique and artistic integrity. A clear and profound musical insight is evident in his performances and compositions.
Born and based in The Netherlands, Thomas Beijer enrolled at the Conservatory of Amsterdam, where he studied with Jan Wijn. He took masterclasses with Jorge Luis Prats, Emanuel Ax, Menahem Pressler, Murray Perahia, Pascal Devoyon, Jacques Rouvier and Elza Kolodin. Thomas Beijer concluded his Master’s study in 2011 by graduating with the Highest Distinction.
By winning the prestigious Young Pianist Foundation National Piano Competition in 2007, Thomas Beijer positioned himself at the top of a new generation of pianists in The Netherlands. The international jury characterized Beijer as a ‘ very interesting musical personality, with distinctive ideas about music. A true artist ‘.
From the age of ten Thomas Beijer performed recitals in Europe and Asia. As a soloist he played piano concertos by among others Mozart, Beethoven, Grieg, Brahms, Franck, Ravel, Gershwin and Adams, with orchestras such as The Hague Philharmonic Orchestra, The Brabants Philharmonic, Amsterdam Sinfonietta and the Netherlands Student Orchestra. He worked with conductors like Neeme Järvi, Nicholas Milton, Ed Spanjaard and Bas Wiegers.
His repertoire ranges from seventeenth-century music to contemporary compositions. Thomas has a special affinity with Spanish music; works by Albéniz, Granados and De Falla are often part of his recital programmes.
Thomas Beijer is a multitalented musician. Besides his performances as a concert pianist he is also a composer and a passionate chamber musician.Thomas is a member of the Amsterdam Chamber Soloists and a regular guest of Camerata Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra.
Thomas Beijer’s debut CD with compositions by Johannes Brahms was released in 2008. In 2012 he presented his second CD with works by Rachmaninoff. Thomas was signed by Lyrone Records in 2013 which resulted in the release of Canción y Danza and the preparations for his fourth CD. His recordings are available in over 40 countries worldwide. Thomas receives support from a trust provided by the Young Pianist Foundation.
Jeremy Williams is currently Music Director at Yew Chung Education Foundation.
Jeremy began his career as a violinist with the London Symphony Orchestra. He was a member of the Delme Quartet and Nash Ensemble, playing regularly with the Academy of St Martin in the Fields and the London Sinfonietta.
As violinist with the York Trio and violist with the Beethoven String Trio of London, he featured regularly on BBC broadcasts and made numerous recordings. Concert tours have taken him to major festivals all over the world including Edinburgh, Salzburg, Prague, Hong Kong and venues ranging from the Wigmore Hall, London, Sydney Opera House to the Forbidden City, Beijing.
In 1998 Jeremy was appointed Principal Viola with the Hong Kong Philharmonic and taught at the HK Academy for Performing Arts.Jeremy became a member of the Australian String Quartet in 2003 and in 2009 was appointed Lecturer in Chamber Music and Director of Strings at the University of Tasmania.
In 2015 Jeremy relocated to Hong Kong and in 2016 formed Hong Kong Camerata Strings, an ensemble for talented young string players.
Jeremy studied violin at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, London with Yfrah Neaman and David Takeno.
String Ensemble
Hong Kong Camerata Strings was formed in 2016 as a string chamber ensemble for talented young musicians. They have appeared on RTHK Radio 4, TVB, and have performed with illustrious stars such as violinist Rachel Barton Pine and pianist Mary Wu to great acclaim. They have worked with cellist Richard Bamping, violinist Pavlo Beznosiuk, violinist Leo Philips and the renowned violin professor David Takeno from London.
The accomplished members of Hong Kong Camerata Strings have been selected from many different Hong Kong schools, showing the depth of flair and musical ability to be found in young people in Hong Kong.
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