WU HAN

2007/ 08 Full Biography (556 Words)

Pianist Wu Han has garnered an enviable reputation as a performer whose impassioned music making and thrilling style are bringing new life to the concert stage. “Splendid technical and interpretive finesse,” “fiery,” “exhilarating,” and “electrifying” are among the many superlatives awarded her by the press.

Wu Han’s career has taken her to many of the world’s most prestigious venues, including Wigmore Hall in London; Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Morgan Library, and The 92nd Street Y in New York; the Kennedy Center and Library of Congress in Washington, DC; Boston’s Symphony Hall; Cleveland’s Severance Hall; and major concert series in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia and Seattle. Wu Han’s international tours have led her to England, Germany, Austria, Spain, Denmark, Japan, and to her native Taiwan, and she appears regularly at the summer festivals of Aspen, Santa Fe, Chamber Music Northwest, Caramoor, and Music@Menlo. Last season, with cellist David Finckel, and the ProMusica Chamber Orchestra (Columbus, OH), Wu Han appeared in the world premiere of Compadrazgo, a new double concerto by Gabriela Lena Frank composed for David Finckel and Wu Han. Wu Han is a frequent collaborator with many of today’s finest musicians and ensembles, including the Borromeo, St. Lawrence, and Emerson String Quartets.

As duo pianist with cellist David Finckel, Wu Han recently made her third Wigmore Hall appearance, and this season performs across the United States and Europe. Other recent concerts include duo performances of the complete Beethoven cycle in Tokyo and New York, and at the summer festivals of Aspen, Santa Fe and Chamber Music Northwest, as well as debuts in Germany and at Finland’s Kuhmo Festival. Wu Han has been a regular faculty member of the Aspen Music Festival and the Isaac Stern International Chamber Music Workshop at Carnegie Hall and the Jerusalem Music Center.

Wu Han’s wide-ranging musical activities also include the founding of ArtistLed, classical music’s first musician-directed and Internet-based recording company, which is celebrating its tenth year (www.ArtistLed.com). The label's "Russian Classics" recording received BBC Music magazine's coveted Editor's Choice Award. ArtistLed’s Brahms disc features Wu Han’s second solo recording for the label, coupling the composer’s Opus 118 Six Pieces for Solo Piano with the two Cello Sonatas. The recently released "Russian Recital" album features works by Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninov, and Scriabin and marks Wu Han’s first full-length solo recording for the label.

In August 2003, with cellist David Finckel, Wu Han launched Music@Menlo (www.musicatmenlo.org), a chamber music festival in Silicon Valley that has attracted widespread attention and international acclaim for its innovative programming, roster of world-class artists, workshop program for top young chamber ensembles, Encounters series featuring the nation’s top musicologists, and a strong visual arts component. Prior to launching Music@Menlo, Wu Han and David Finckel served for three seasons as Artistic Directors of SummerFest La Jolla. In June 2004, having firmly established a reputation as great musical innovators both on and off stage, Wu Han and Finckel were named Artistic Directors of The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center.

Wu Han began her musical studies at the age of nine, and within a few years took first prizes in all the major competitions in Taiwan. She was a participant for two summers at the Marlboro Music Festival, and her teachers include Raymond Hanson, Rudolf Serkin, Herbert Stessin, Lilian Kallir, and Menahem Pressler.