David Finckel & Wu Han
Cello and Piano
David Finckel and Wu Han will make their Phillips Music debut with works by J.S. Bach, Bruce Adolphe, Felix Mendelssohn, and Edvard Grieg.
Program
David Finckel was the first American pupil of Mstislav Rostropovich, and for more than 30 years had a distinguished career as cellist of the Emerson Quartet, from 1979 until 2013. Wu Han began her studies in Taiwan, but after moving to the US her teachers included Rudolf Serkin and Menahem Pressler. Married in 1985, Finckel and Han have given numerous recitals together. Since 2004 they have been joint Artistic Directors of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. At the heart of their Phillips recital is Bruce Adolphe’s four-movement work Couple, written in 1998 for the duo. This is framed by Mendelssohn’s vibrant Cello Sonata No. 2 (1842) and Grieg’s Cello Sonata (1883).
PROGRAM:
JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH (1685-1750)
Adagio from Organ Toccata in C Major, BWV. 564 (1712)
BRUCE ADOLPHE (b. 1955)
Couple for Cello and Piano (1998)
FELIX MENDELSSOHN (1805-1847)
Sonata for Cello and Piano No. 2 in D Major, Op. 58 (1843)
Allegro assai vivace
Allegretto scherzando
Adagio
Molto allegro e vivace
INTERMISSION
FELIX MENDELSSOHN (1805-1847)
Lied ohne Worte, for Cello and Piano, Op. 109 (1845)
EDVARD GRIEG (1843-1907)
Sonata for Cello and Piano in A Minor, Op. 36 (1883)
Allegro agitato
Andante tranquillo
Allegro - Allegro molto e marcato
About the Artists
David Finckel and Wu Han are among the most esteemed and influential classical musicians in the world today. They are recipients of Musical America’s Musicians of the Year award, one of the highest honors granted by the music industry. The talent, energy, imagination, and dedication they bring to their multifaceted endeavors as concert performers, recording artists, educators, artistic administrators, and cultural entrepreneurs go unmatched. Their duo performances have garnered superlatives from the press, public, and presenters alike.
In high demand year after year among chamber music audiences worldwide, the duo has appeared each season at the most prestigious venues and concert series across the US, Mexico, Canada, the Far East, and Europe to unanimous critical acclaim. In addition to his duo activities, Finckel served as cellist of the Grammy Award-winning Emerson String Quartet for thirty-four years.
Highlights of their 2016/2017 season included international and domestic tours and collaborations with a stellar lineup of artists and ensembles. Last season they celebrated a ground-breaking Live from Lincoln Center broadcast; reunited with violinist Daniel Hope and violist Paul Neubauer for a series of nine concerts in Europe; made long-awaited recital debuts in St. Petersburg and Hong Kong; returned to Seoul, South Korea for the sixth annual Chamber Music Today festival; led a special patrons’ tour to St. Petersburg, Russia; continued the important work of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center (CMS), and launched Music@Menlo’s Winter Series.
Aside from their distinction as world-class performers, David Finckel and Wu Han have established a reputation for their dynamic and innovative approach to the recording studio. In 1997, David Finckel and Wu Han launched ArtistLed, classical music’s first musician-directed and Internet-based recording company, which has served as a model for numerous independent labels. All nineteen ArtistLed recordings, including Wu Han LIVE II, Wu Han’s most recent release in collaboration with the Music@Menlo LIVE label, have met with critical acclaim and are available via the company’s website at www.artistled.com. David Finckel and Wu Han have also overseen the establishment and design of The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center’s CMS Studio Recordings label, as well as the Society’s recording partnership with Deutsche Grammophon; and Music@Menlo LIVE, which has been praised as a “the most ambitious recording project of any classical music festival in the world” (San Jose Mercury News).
Now in their third term as Artistic Directors of The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, David Finckel and Wu Han hold the longest tenure as directors since Charles Wadsworth, the founding Artistic Director. They are also the founders and Artistic Directors of Music@Menlo, a chamber music festival and institute in Silicon Valley that has garnered international acclaim, soon to celebrate its 15th season. Additionally, David and Wu Han are Artistic Directors of Chamber Music Today, an annual festival held in Seoul, Korea.
David and Wu Han have achieved universal renown for their passionate commitment to nurturing the careers of countless young artists through a wide array of education initiatives. For many years, the duo taught alongside the late Isaac Stern at Carnegie Hall and the Jerusalem Music Center. Under the auspices of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, David Finckel and Wu Han launched the Chamber Music Encounters program in New York and direct the LG Chamber Music School, which serves dozens of young musicians in Korea annually. In 2013, David and Wu Han established a chamber music studio at the Aspen Music Festival and School. David Finckel serves as Professor of Cello at The Juilliard School, as well as Artist-in-Residence at Stony Brook University. David Finckel and Wu Han reside in New York.