Music of Mendelssohn

Yale University Collection of Musical Instruments presents

Clive Greensmith violoncello Wei-Yi Yang piano

in

The complete works for violoncello and piano

by Felix Mendelssohn

X 15 Hillhouse Avenue New Haven 18 April 2012 5:30 P.M.

This concert is made possible by the generous support of the Associate Members of the Collection

Final concert on this season’s series at the Collection of Musical Instruments

April 29 Flanders Recorder Quartet

3 p.m. Bart Spanhove Tom Beets Joris Van Goethem Paul Van Loey

This concert is being recorded and streamed live online; please turn off all cell phones and pagers.

Yale University Collection of Musical Instruments 15 Hillhouse Avenue New Haven

19 April 2012 8:00 P.M. presents

Clive Greensmith, violoncello Wei-Yi Yang, piano

Felix Mendelssohn (1809–1847) * Variations concertantes in D major, Op. 17 Sonata No. 1 for Cello & Piano in B-flat major, Op. 45 Allegro vivace Andante Allegro assai INTERVAL

Sonata No. 2 for Cello & Piano in D major, Op. 58 Allegro assai vivace Allegretto scherzando Adagio Molto allegro e vivace

Grand Piano by Erard, Paris, 1881 This concert is being recorded and live streamed online; please turn off all cell phones and pagers.

Clive Greensmith is undoubtedly one of the most successful British cellists of his generation, having achieved extraordinary international acclaim as a soloist, chamber musician, orchestral principal and teacher. Cellist in the renowned Tokyo String Quartet since 1999, he was also principal cellist with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.

While still a student, he was the recipient of numerous prizes and was awarded the coveted Julius Isserlis Scholarship and a generous grant from the Royal Society of Arts, enabling him to continue his studies at the Cologne Musikhochschule with Russian cellist Boris Pergamenschikow. He was also selected to tour Europe with the British Council and to play for maestro Paul Tortelier in the internationally broadcast BBC series. Mr. Greensmith was also chosen to perform on the famous Royal Forster cello owned by HRH Prince of Wales, was lent exclusively to him for five years.

Mr. Greensmith made his concerto debut with the London Symphony Orchestra.

He was the First Prize winner in the Sergio Lorenzi chamber music competition in Trieste, First Prize winner in the Caltanisetta Duo competition and most importantly, second prize in the first ever “Premio Stradivari” held in Cremona, Italy in 1991.

Mr. Greensmith is a frequent guest at international festivals including Aspen, Marlboro, Norfolk Chamber Music festival, Caramoor Festival, Santa Fe, Montpellier, El Paso Pro Musica and the Barrossa Festival in Australia, where he gave a highly acclaimed performance of the complete works for piano and cello by Beethoven. In the U.S., he was invited to tour with “Musicians from Marlboro” performing at the Metropolitan Museum in New York, the Gardner Museum in Boston, the Phildadelphia Chamber Music Society, the Kennedy Center in Washington and at the Ravinia “Rising Stars” series in Chicago. Mr. Greensmith is a member of the music faculty of NYU. Internationally acclaimed pianist Wei-Yi Yang enjoys a flourishing concert career, appearing before audiences in North and Central Americas, Asia, Europe, and Australia, in solo recitals, chamber music concerts and with symphony orchestras. Winner of the Gold Medal and Grand Prize in the San Antonio International Piano Competition, Mr. Yang has performed in such prestigious venues as Lincoln Center, Steinway Hall, Merkin Hall, the Kennedy Center, the Kumho Art Hall in Seoul; the Royal Scottish Academy of Music; the Royal Dublin Society; and the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

An avid chamber musician, Mr. Yang has performed with members of the New York Philharmonic; the Cleveland, Philadelphia, and Minnesota Orchestras; the Chicago, San Francisco, Pittsburgh, Singapore, and London Symphonies; and the Orpheus and Saint Paul Chamber Orchestras.

Born in Taiwan of Chinese and Japanese heritage, Mr. Yang was educated first in the United Kingdom, and then as a scholarship recipient under the tutelage of Arkady Aronov at the Manhattan School of Music. Mr. Yang has worked with such artists as Claude Frank, Peter Frankl, Vera Gornostaeva, Byron Janis, Murray Perahia, and the late Hans Graf. Under the guidance of Boris Berman, Mr. Yang was awarded a doctorate in musical arts by Yale University in 2004. In addition to guest-teaching and performing in Hong Kong, Taipei, Shanghai, and Daejeon, Korea, Mr. Yang has presented master classes and performances in such institutions as Princeton University, University of Missouri, Syracuse University, and Ithaca College.

Mr. Yang can be heard on the Renegade Classics, Albany Records, and HollandAmerica Music Society labels. He was appointed to the faculty of the Yale School of Music in 2005.