Dubbed “rock stars” of the chamber music world in a recent New York Times article, cellist David Finckel and pianist Wu Han are among the most lauded and influential classical musicians performing today. On Friday, Nov. 5 at 8 p.m., this husband-and-wife duo will give their 19th Chamber Concert Series performance at Memorial Chapel.
They will present J.S. Bach’s sonata for Viola da Gamba in G, BWV 1027; Schumann’s Adagio and Allegro, Op. 70; Pierre Jalbert’s (b. 1967) sonata for cello and piano; and Franck’s sonata for piano and cello in A.
Regarded as one of the top 10, if not top five, cellists in the world today, Finckel premiered with the Philadelphia Orchestra at age 15 as winner of the orchestra’s junior competition. Also the inaugural winner of the New England Conservatory Piatigorsky Artist Award, he now performs in recital with Han and as cellist of the Grammy Award-winning Emerson String Quartet.
Han won all of Taiwan’s major piano competitions soon after she began studying music at age nine. She participated in the Marlboro Music Festival for several summers. She and Finckel continue to charm chamber music audiences year after year in venues around the world.
Performance highlights include their debut at Finland’s Kuhmo Festival, their show in Tokyo of the complete Beethoven sonatas for cello and piano, and their all-Russian program at London’s Wigmore Hall.
Artistic directors of The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center since 2004, Finckel and Han have recently agreed to continue in that role for an additional five years. They also founded and serve as artistic directors of Music@Menlo, an internationally renowned Silicon Valley chamber music festival and institute.
Concert tickets are free to the Union College community. For tickets and information, call 388-6080 or visit http://www.union.edu/ConcertSeries.