Sarita Kwok violin
& Wei-Yi Yang piano
faculty artist series Music of Janácek, ˇ Prokofiev, Ravel, and Stravinsky March 2, 2014 • Morse Recital Hall
Robert Blocker, Dean
Faculty Artist Series
Sarita Kwok & Wei-Yi Yang Sunday, March 2, 2014 • 8:00 pm • Morse Recital Hall
ˇ Leoš Janácek 1854–1928
Sonata for violin and piano I. Con moto II. Balada III. Allegretto IV. Adagio
Igor Stravinsky 1882–1971
Duo Concertant Cantilène Eclogue 1 Eclogue 2 Gigue Dithyrambe
intermission
Sergei Prokofiev 1891–1953
Five Mélodies for violin and piano, Op. 35b I. Andante II. Lento, ma non troppo III. Animato, ma non allegro IV. Andantino, un poco scherzando V. Andante non troppo
Maurice Ravel 1875–1937
Sonata No. 2 for violin and piano I. Allegretto II. Blues: Moderato III. Perpetuum mobile: Allegro
As a courtesy to the performers and audience, please silence all electronic devices. Please do not leave the hall during selections. Photography or recording of any kind is prohibited.
Artist Profiles
Australian violinist Sarita Kwok has been featured on stages in Australia, Asia, Europe, and throughout the United States. She made her debut with the Sydney Symphony at age 15 and went on to win Australia’s most prestigious musical award, the Symphony Australia Young Performer of the Year. She has been awarded prizes at the Kloster Schöntal International Violin Competition (Germany), Gisborne International Music Competition (New Zealand), and the 7th Wieniawski and Lipinski International Competition (Poland). As the first violinist of the Alianza String Quartet from 2004–2010, Ms. Kwok won the grand prize at the Plowman National Chamber Music competition and held residencies at the Pacific Music Festival (Japan), Aldeburgh Festival (UK), Aix-en-Provence Festival (France), and at the French Academy in Rome. The New York Times reported that the quartet had “an unusually elegant sound – they boil over with an edge-of-the-seat eagerness.” Ms. Kwok has been featured on series such as the Rockport Chamber Music Festival, Andover Chamber Music, Kalliroscope Gallery Chamber Music, and Hammond Performing Arts Series in Boston and has collaborated with artists including the Tokyo String Quartet. Passionate about new music, Ms. Kwok has worked closely with Martin Bresnick, Ezra Laderman, Jerome Combier and Michael Jarrell. Under the tutelage of Syoko Aki, Ms. Kwok received her DMA from Yale in 2009. She is sought after as an educator, having given master classes at Wellesley College, CCSU, SUNY New Paltz, the University of Arkansas, Amherst College, and the New Zealand School of Music. Ms. Kwok joined the faculty of the Yale Department of Music in 2006, and has been the Director of the Undergraduate Lessons Program since 2008.
Pianist Wei-Yi Yang has earned worldwide acclaim for his captivating performances and imaginative programming. Most recently, he was praised by the New York Times as the soloist in a “sensational” performance of Messiaen’s Turangalîla-Symphonie at Carnegie Hall. Gold Medal winner of the San Antonio International Piano Competition, Mr. Yang has also performed at Lincoln Center, the Kennedy Center, and across Europe, Australia, and Asia. A dynamic chamber musician with a diverse repertoire, Mr. Yang has collaborated with the Pacifica, Cassatt, and Tokyo String Quartets; as well as Frederica von Stade, Clive Greensmith, and Richard Stoltzman, among numerous others. Mr. Yang has curated inventive interdisciplinary projects, including a collaboration with actress Miriam Margolyes as part of the “Dickens’ Women” world tour; lecture-recitals on the confluence of Czech music and literature; and multimedia performances of Granados’ Goyescas with projections of Goya’s etchings. He has given world premieres of new works by contemporary composers, including Howard Boatwright, Jonathan Cole, Daniel Godfrey, and Ezra Laderman. Mr. Yang studied first in the United Kingdom and then with Arkady Aronov in New York. Under the guidance of Boris Berman, he received his DMA from Yale in 2004. Wei-Yi Yang frequently presents master classes and performances in Hong Kong, Taiwan, China, Korea, and at Princeton University, Ithaca College, and the Hartt School. He has adjudicated the Isidor Bajic Piano Memorial and the San Antonio International piano competitions. Mr. Yang regularly appears at festivals across the United States, from Norfolk to Napa Valley, and abroad, including Germany, Serbia, Montenegro, Mexico, and Scotland. In 2005, he joined the faculty of the Yale School of Music.
Upcoming Events
Vista: A Fresh Look at Chamber Music
Laderman, Marshall & Theofanidis
march 4 Morse Recital Hall | Tuesday | 8 pm Johann Friedrich Fasch: Sonata for oboe, two violins, and basso continuo; Françaix: Quintet No. 1;Pavel Haas: Quintet, Op. 10; Beethoven: Piano Trio No. 6 in E-flat major, Op. 70, No. 2 Free Admission
march 6 New Music New Haven Morse Recital Hall | Thursday | 8 pm Benjamin Verdery, guitar; Sean Chen, piano; and others. Music by Ezra Laderman, Ingram Marshall, and Christopher Theofanidis. With new works by graduate students in the school’s composition program. Free Admission
Lunchtime Chamber Music march 5 Morse Recital Hall | Wednesday | 12:30 pm Music for a colorful variety of ensembles. Wendy Sharp, director Free Admission
Ettore Causa, viola Boris Berman, piano march 5 Faculty Artist Series Morse Recital Hall | Wednesday | 8 pm Schubert: Sonatina in D major, Op. 137, No. 1, D. 384 and Sonatina in G minor, Op. 137, No. 3, D. 408; Stravinsky: Suite Italienne from Pulcinella Free Admission
Miró String Quartet march 25 Oneppo Chamber Music Series Morse Recital Hall | Tuesday | 8 pm Schubert: Quartet in D minor, D. 810, “Death and the Maiden”; Beethoven: String Quartet in B-flat major, Op. 18, No. 6, “La malanconia”; Dutilleux: Ainsi la Nuit Tickets start at $30 • Students $12
Boris Berman, piano march 26 Horowitz Piano Series Morse Recital Hall | Wednesday | 8 pm Brahms late piano pieces: Opp. 116, 117, 118, 119; Schoenberg: Six Little Piano Pieces Tickets start at $12 · Students $6
Concert Programs & Box Office: Krista Johnson, Carol Jackson Communications: Dana Astmann, Monica Ong Reed, Austin Kase Operations: Tara Deming, Chris Melillo Piano Curators: Brian Daley, William Harold Recording Studio: Eugene Kimball P.O. Box 208246, New Haven, CT · 203 432-4158
music.yale.edu
Robert Blocker, Dean