Conversation with Arto Noras (April, 1998)
Interview by Tim Janof Arto Noras appears regularly with major orchestras throughout the world and has recorded extensively. A former student of Paul Tortelier at the Paris Conservatoire, he was a runner-up at the Tchaikovsky Competition in 1966. He is also well-known for his appearances as a distinguished chamber musician and is a founding member of the Sibelius Academy Quartet. He is also the founder and artistic director of the Naantali Music Festival, as well as founder of the International Paulo Cello Competition. Since 1970, he has been Professor of Cello at the Sibelius Academy. TJ: You studied with Paul Tortelier. Were you the student he worked with for six hours on the first note of Schelomo? AN: No, we did that with the opening scale of the Bach's Third [...]
Conversation with Karine Georgian (November, 2004)
Interview by Tim Janof Born into a family of musicians in Moscow, Karine Georgian began her cello studies at the age of five under her father, later studying at the Moscow Conservatoire under Rostropovich. After taking the First Prize and Gold Medal at the Third Tchaikovsky International Competition, she launched an international career that has spanned all the countries of the former Soviet Union, Eastern and Western Europe, the Far East, and the United States, starting with the American premiere of Khachaturian's Cello Rhapsody with the Chicago Symphony conducted by the composer (her recording with the composer and the Moscow Bolshoi Radio Symphony Orchestra has recently been reissued by Melodiya/BMG Classics). Today, Karine Georgian is a seasoned performer with a vast experience on concert platforms across the world, having appeared [...]
Conversation with Jeffrey Solow (May, 1995)
Interview by Tim Janof Jeffrey Solow is currently Associate Professor of Music at the Esther Boyer College of Music at Temple University. He is a renowned performer, cello pedagogue, and author. Two of his articles were recently voted to be in the top 10 of the last ten years in American String Teacher magazine. TJ: How did you get started on the cello? JS: It was from familial influence. There are three kids in my family, of which I am the youngest. When each of us reached about 7 years old, my parents asked us what instrument we wanted to play. My older brother had played cello for awhile and somehow that stuck with me when it was my turn to decide. So I emulated him and picked the cello. [...]
Conversation with Bion Tsang (July, 1997)
Interview by Tim Janof Bion Tsang has appeared as soloist with the New York, Moscow, and Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestras, the National, American, Atlanta, and Pacific Symphony Orchestras, the Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra, and the Taiwan National Orchestra. Mr. Tsang's career as a chamber musician has been equally distinguished, marked by numerous collaborations with violinists Cho-Liang Lin and Pamela Frank, frequent appearances as guest artist of the Boston Chamber Music Society, and performances at festivals such as Marlboro Music, the Portland and Seattle Chamber Music Festivals, and the Laurel Festival of the Arts, where he serves as Artistic Director. TJ: You studied with some illustrious musicians- Leonard Rose, William Pleeth, and Aldo Parisot. What were they like as teachers? BT: I didn't study long enough with Leonard Rose or William Pleeth [...]
Conversation with Steven Doane (August, 1994)
Interview by Tim Janof Mr. Doane is on the faculty of the Eastman School of Music. TJ: At what point did you decide that you would dedicate your life to music? SD: When I was in my second year in high school, I told my parents that I wanted to train to be a professional cellist. They asked my cello teacher if he thought I would be able to make it. He said, "I don't know if he'll be another Piatigorsky, but he should be able to make a living." Of course I was disappointed that he didn't say I was going to be another Piatigorsky, but my parents were reassured. I ended up studying with Richard Kapuscinski at Oberlin. Then I went to Stony Brook for a couple of [...]
Conversation with Sara Sant’Ambrogio (January, 2005)
Interview by Tim Janof Grammy Award-winning Sara Sant'Ambrogio first leapt to international attention when she won the Eighth International Tchaikovsky Violoncello Competition in Moscow, Russia. As a result of her medal, Carnegie Hall invited Ms. Sant'Ambrogio to perform a recital that was filmed by CBS News as part of a profile about her, which aired nationally. Bernard Holland of The New York Times described Ms. Sant'Ambrogio's New York debut as "sheer pleasure." Ms. Sant'Ambrogio has appeared as soloist with such orchestras as Atlanta, Boston Pops, Chicago, Dallas, Moscow State Philharmonic, the Osaka Century Orchestra (Japan), St. Louis, San Francisco and Seattle; she has performed throughout the world at major music centers and festivals including Aspen, Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, Hollywood Bowl, Lincoln Center, Kennedy Center, the Konzert Huset in Stockholm, Marlboro, [...]
Behind the Scenes with Brannon Cho
We are thrilled to introduce you to Brannon Cho, First Prize Winner of the 2018 Paulo International Cello Competition. In this conversation Brannon takes us behind the scenes offering insight into his preparation, mindset, and aspirations. Blogmaster: Can you give us insight as to how the competition felt for you? Did you play as you aspired to? Brannon Cho: The competition was quite exhausting. As opposed to other competitions I’ve done in the past there was almost no time to rest between rounds. In some ways I appreciated it because it was similar to the concert schedule of a touring soloist. As a soloist, every two days you have a big concert. In contrast, in Belgium last year I would sometimes have a week before I played the next [...]
Isang Yun International Cello Competition Announces 2018 Prize Winners
Isang Yun International Cello Competition Winners Announced! Christine Jeong Hyoung Lee of Korea and Sang Eun Lee of Korea share the First Prize in the 2018 Isang Yun International Cello Competition. When the scores of an international jury of nine were tallied, the two received mathematically identical scores. Each received $25,000. Lev Sivkov of Russia received Third Prize and $10,000 for his performance of the Dvorak Concerto. Christine Jeong Hyong Lee performed the following program in the three rounds: First Round Program J. S. Bach: Prelude and Sarabande from Suite for Cello Solo No. 4 BWV 1010 Benjamin Britten: Suite for Cello Solo No. 1 Op. 72 (7th, 8th and 9th movements only) Isang Yun: Glissees for Solo Cello (1970) Second Round Program Isang Yun: EspaceⅠ(1992) L. v. Beethoven: Sonata for Cello [...]
New England Conservatory Cellist Brannon Cho Wins the VI Paulo International Cello Competition
HELSINKI, FINLAND Oct. 25 -- Twenty-three year old cellist Brannon Cho of the United States was awarded First Prize at the 2018 Paulo International Cello Competition. Joint 2nd prize was awarded to 19- year-old Zlatomir Fung of the United States and 23- year-old Minji Kim of South Korea. Joint 4th prize was awarded to 24-year-old Timotheos Petrin from Greece, 19-year-old Leonardo Chiodo from Finland and 21-year-old Bryan Cheng from Canada. Brannon Cho: A graduate of Northwestern University’s Bienen School of Music, where he studied with Hans Jørgen Jensen, and current Artist Diploma student of Laurence Lesser at the New England Conservatory, Brannon is a former major prize winner at the Naumburg, Cassadó and Johansen International Cello Competitions – and in June of last year, was awarded a prize at the inaugural Queen Elisabeth International Cello Competition, in Belgium. Cho [...]
Cellist Jeremy Tai Wins Irving M. Klein International String Competition 2017
Reposted from The Strad. The 18-year-old Bienen School of Music student receives the top prize of $13,000 and concert engagements Cellist Jeremy Tai has won first prize at the 32nd Annual Irving M. Klein International String Competition, held at San Francisco Conservatory of Music. The 18-year-old California native, who is currently studying with Hans Jørgen Jensen at the Bienen School of Music at Northwestern University, received the top prize of $13,000 and concert engagements for his final round performance of Lisa Bielawa’s Insomnia Etude #3, and works of Grieg and Prokofiev. Second prize, worth $5,500, went to 20-year-old violist Zhanbo Zheng, while third prize, worth $2,500, went to 20-year-old violinist Kyumin Park. This year’s winners were whittled down from 99 applicants from 13 countries, aged between 15 and 23, by [...]
French Cellist Victor Julien-Laferrière Wins Queen Elisabeth Competition 2017
Reposted from The Strad. "Victor Julien-Laferrière has this evening been named the winner of the Queen Elisabeth Competition 2017. The 26-year-old French cellist triumphed in finals, held throughout this week in Brussels’ Palais des Beux Arts, performing the compulsory commission by Toshio Hosokawa and Shostakovich’s First Cello Concerto with the Brussels Philharmonic conducted by Stéphane Denève. He receives a grand prize of €25,000 and concert opportunities. Second prize, worth €20,000, was awarded to 22-year-old Japanese cellist Yuya Okamoto, while third prize, worth €17,000 went to 22-year-old Colombian cellist Santiago Cañón-Valencia. 22-year-old Aurélien Pascal from France, 25-year-old Ivan Karizna from Belarus and 22-year-old Brannon Cho from the US received the €12,000 fourth prize, €10,000 fifth prize and €8,000 sixth prize respectively. The remaining six unranked finalists—Sihao He, Seungmin Kang, Maciej Kułakowski, JeongHyoun Christine Lee, Yan Levionnois and Bruno Philippe—each received [...]
Cellist Taeguk Mun wins $25,000 János Starker Foundation Award
Reprinted from The Strad 12/14/2016 South Korean cellist Taeguk Mun has won the János Starker Foundation Award, worth $25,000. Granted to cellists under the age of 30 ‘who have already begun a significant career in music’, the prize was created in memory of legendary Hungarian-American cellist and pedagogue János Starker, who died in April 2013 at the age of 88. Candidates submit an unedited video recording of six works, representing Pre-Classical, Classical, Romantic, 20th Century and Contemporary eras of Western music. A former Juilliard School student, Mun is currently a pupil of Laurence Lesser at the New England Conservatory in Boston. He won the Pablo Casals International Cello Competition in 2014, and the Andre Navarra International Cello Competition in 2011.
Walter W. Naumburg International Cello Competition 2015
The final round of the Naumburg 2015 International Cello Competition was held yesterday afternoon at Manhattan School of Music in New York City. The first-prize winner is Lev Sivkov. Mr. Sivkov, a native of Russia, is 25 years old and currently studies in Germany. Mr. Sivkov receives a cash award of $15,000 and two fully subsidized New York recitals. First-prize winner Lev Sivkov with pianist Evan Solomn Two cellists tied for second place. They are Jay Campbell, age 26, who is doing his post graduate studies at Juilliard, and Brannon Cho, age 21, who currently attends the Bienen School of Music, Northwestern University. Both cellists receive a cash award of $7,500. Honorable mentions were also given to the Korean cellist Jee Hay Bae, 27 years old, who studies [...]
Announcement: Postponement of Cello Competition of Beijing International Music Competition
Beijing International Cello Competition Cancelled Earlier this summer, Beijing cancelled the violin section, but not the cello section, of its international competition. So the thirty wonderful cellists from around the world who had passed the preliminary CD round have been practicing long hours all summer. To their shock and dismay, the cello competition, scheduled to begin September 8, was yesterday “postponed” with the following letter to contestants: Announcement: Postponement of Cello Competition of Beijing International Music Competition With great regret, Beijing E-Chengwen Company Limited, the organizer of Beijing International Music Competition (BJIMC) hereby announces that the Cello Competition 2015 scheduled on September 8, 2015 is postponed due to: 1. Government Policy Change—New Operational License Required BJIMC is required to apply for license of operation each time of competition to comply with government policy. [...]
What if We All Did That? — by Martha Baldwin
OK, not to blog-rant (is that a thing?) but I’m often surprised by basic behaviors I see in music students (and professionals) and it reminds me of a saying we have in our cello section: “What if we all did that?” Here are my top 3: 1. STAY!!!!!! seriously, just stay to the end people. I realize that many student recitals seem endless but leaving as soon as you’re done playing is, simply put, rude. I’ve seen entire rows of extended family get up and leave noisily after the first performer (their kid) is finished and I’m shocked. Really? No one else matters? Your child is so special that this entire recital is there just for his/her 4 minutes of glory? People notice these things. As a side benefit - [...]