Back to Press Release List > 09/23/2009 - Lang Lang Performs Three Concerts During Carnegie Hall's Ancient Paths, Modern Voices Festival

From October 21 to November 10, 2009, Carnegie Hall presents Ancient Paths, Modern Voices: A Festival Celebrating Chinese Culture, paying tribute to China’s diverse and vibrant culture and its influence around the world with 21 days of events at Carnegie Hall and New York partner institutions.

Twenty-seven-year-old pianist Lang Lang is a featured artist in the festival, performing three times at Carnegie Hall in Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage: in a program of chamber music with close friends and collaborators on Tuesday, October 27 at 8:00 p.m.; performing Chinese works for solo piano and the world premiere of a new piano concerto by composer Chen Qigang on Wednesday, October 28 at 8:00 p.m.; and in the closing concert of Ancient Paths, Modern Voices, performing Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2 on Tuesday, November 10 at 8:00 p.m.

In the past ten years, Lang Lang has become an international phenomenon, playing sold out recitals and concerts in cities around the world. He is the first Chinese pianist to perform with the Berlin and Vienna philharmonic orchestras as well as many top American orchestras. In 2008, Lang Lang performed in the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics. His influence and status in China has helped to inspire over 35 million Chinese children to learn to play piano—a phenomenon dubbed by NBC’s The Today Show as "the Lang Lang effect." Earlier this year, Time magazine included Lang Lang in its 2009 list of the "100 Most Influential People in the World."

Tickets for all events at Carnegie Hall are on sale now at the Carnegie Hall Box Office, CarnegieCharge at 212-247-7800, or online at carnegiehall.org. In conjunction with Ancient Paths, Modern Voices, Carnegie Hall has launched a special web site: carnegiehall.org/chinafestival. This online companion features the most up-to-date information on festival events, video interviews and performance excerpts from featured artists, as well as insights into Chinese culture and festival programs.

Ancient Paths, Modern Voices: A Festival Celebrating Chinese Culture is made possible by a leadership gift from Henry R. Kravis in honor of his wife, Marie-Josée.

“Lang Lang and Friends”: October 27
Lang Lang’s first festival performance is “Lang Lang and Friends” on Tuesday, October 27 at 8:00 p.m. On this program, he performs chamber music with young emerging and established Chinese and Chinese-American musicians. Chamber music has been a recent focus of the pianist’s, with a debut chamber recording—of Tchaikovsky and Rachmaninoff trios with Vadim Repin and Mischa Maisky—released by Deutsche Gramophone on October 20. Joining Lang Lang on this festival concert will be David Chan, the violinist and concertmaster of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra; Hai-Ye Ni, principal cellist of The Philadelphia Orchestra; as well as erhu player Guo Gan; tenor GeQun Wang; and 10-year-old piano prodigy Marc Yu. The program includes Tchaikovsky’s Piano Trio in A Minor, Op. 50; Schubert’s Rondo in A Major, D.951; an arrangement on themes from Bizet’s Carmen; and other works to be announced. Also featured in the performance will be young musicians from the Lang Lang International Music Foundation: pianists Anna Larsen, Charlie Liu, and Derek Wang. Lang Lang launched his foundation in 2008 to enrich the lives of children through a deeper understanding and enjoyment of classical music and to inspire and financially support the next generation of musicians.

World Premiere of Chen Qigang’s Er Huang and Chinese Works for Solo Piano: October 28
The next evening, Wednesday, October 28 at 8:00 p.m., Lang Lang is soloist for the world premiere of a new piano concerto, Er Huang, by Chinese composer Chen Qigang, performed by the Juilliard Orchestra and conductor Michael Tilson Thomas. Er Huang, written for Lang Lang and commissioned by Carnegie Hall, was inspired by Chen Qigang’s childhood memories of Peking opera, and its title is taken from the well known opera melody Er Huang yuan ban. Er Huang is one of the principal aria types originating in Anhui province in eastern China, characterized by a strong and stable melody associated with thoughtful moods, whereas Yuan Ban indicates a medium tempo for active storytelling. Er Huang was commissioned by Carnegie Hall through the generosity of Henry R. Kravis in honor of his wife Marie-Josée. That same evening, Lang Lang will also perform Chinese works for solo piano, to be announced.

Also on the program, Mr. Tilson Thomas and the orchestra will perform “The Family of the Court” from Lou Harrison’s Pacifika Rondo, a work by an eclectic American composer which utilizes Chinese, Korean, and Mexican instruments. Closing the performance is Mahler’s vocal masterpiece Das Lied von der Erde, with texts based on the German translations of ancient Chinese poetry. Soloists in the Mahler work are mezzo-soprano Anne Sofie von Otter and tenor Gregory Kunde.

Ancient Paths, Modern Voices Closing Concert: November 10
Lang Lang returns to Carnegie Hall for the closing performance of the Ancient Paths, Modern Voices festival on Tuesday, November 10 at 8:00 p.m., performing Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2 with the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra and Music Director Long Yu. The program also includes Chen Qigang’s Iris dévoilée, an orchestral suite featuring three traditional Chinese instruments—the erhu, pipa, and zheng—as well as three female voices.

Founded in 1879, the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra is the oldest symphonic ensemble in China. Though it initially had no Chinese members or audiences, the orchestra brought in a new music director following World War I, Italian conductor Mario Paci, who expanded the ensemble, brought it before Chinese audiences, and, more significantly, brought Chinese musicians to perform in its ranks. By 1958, the ensemble was comprised entirely of Chinese citizens. The orchestra has long upheld its mission of promoting cultural exchange through international tours, with repertoire encompassing both Eastern and Western composers. Earlier this year, the accomplished Chinese conductor Long Yu—who also serves as Music Director of the China Philharmonic and Artistic Director of the Beijing Music Festival—was appointed Music Director of the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra. The 2009–10 season will be their inaugural year together.

Ancient Paths, Modern Voices
This fall, Carnegie Hall presents Ancient Paths, Modern Voices: A Festival Celebrating Chinese Culture, paying tribute to China’s diverse and vibrant culture and its influence around the world with 21 days of events at Carnegie Hall and New York partner institutions, presented from October 21 to November 10, 2009. An exciting new alliance between Carnegie Hall and Segerstrom Center for the Arts will also bring select Ancient Paths, Modern Voices programming to Costa Mesa, California, resulting in a festival presented simultaneously by the Philharmonic Society of Orange County and partner institutions on the West Coast from October 11 to November 24, 2009.

Ancient Paths, Modern Voices features performances by leading international musicians, including some artists traveling outside China for the first time. Festival performances will feature many genres of music—from Western symphonic and chamber music influenced by Chinese culture to Chinese traditional folk music and contemporary music, including premieres by internationally recognized Chinese composers Chen Qigang, Tan Dun, and Angel Lam. The festival exploration also includes a wide variety of other offerings on each coast, including traditional marionette theater, dance, film screenings, calligraphy, panel discussions, and art exhibitions, offering insights into a world that mixes the ancient and the modern, the traditional and the cutting-edge.

With over 30 events, the reach of Ancient Paths, Modern Voices in New York will be extended throughout the city through partnerships between Carnegie Hall and other prestigious cultural institutions: Asia Society, China Institute, Works & Process at the Guggenheim, The Joyce Theater, The Juilliard School, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum of Chinese in America, and The Paley Center for Media, as well as through a series of free Neighborhood Concerts presented by Carnegie Hall’s Weill Music Institute in the community venues of Flushing Town Hall in Queens as well as Abrons Arts Center at Henry Street Settlement and The Performance Project @ University Settlement on Manhattan’s Lower East Side.

Ancient Paths, Modern Voices Program Information

Tuesday, October 27 at 8:00 p.m.
Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage
LANG LANG AND FRIENDS
Lang Lang, Piano
David Chan, Violin
Guo Gan, Erhu
Hai-Ye Ni, Cello
GeQun Wang, Tenor
Marc Yu, Piano
Scholars from the Lang Lang International Music Foundation
   Anna Larsen, Piano
   Charlie Liu, Piano
   Derek Wang, Piano
Additional artists to be announced

Program to include:
FRANZ SCHUBERT Rondo in A Major, D. 951
MACK WILBERG Fantasy On Themes From Bizet's Carmen
PYOTR ILYICH TCHAIKOVSKY Piano Trio in A Minor, Op. 50

This performance is sponsored by China Merchants Bank.

The Trustees of Carnegie Hall gratefully acknowledge the generosity of Linda and Stuart Nelson in support of the 2009–2010 season.

Tickets: $39, $46, $59, $80, $108, $119
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Wednesday, October 28 at 8:00 p.m.
Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage
JUILLIARD ORCHESTRA
Michael Tilson Thomas, Conductor
Lang Lang, Piano
Anne Sofie von Otter, Mezzo-Soprano
Gregory Kunde, Tenor

LOU HARRISON “The Family of the Court” Pacifika Rondo
Chinese works for solo piano
CHEN QIGANG Er Huang for Piano and Orchestra (World Premiere, commissioned by Carnegie Hall through the generosity of Henry R. Kravis in honor of his wife Marie-Josée)
GUSTAV MAHLER Das Lied von der Erde

This evening's performance is made possible by a leadership gift from Henry R. Kravis in honor of his wife, Marie-Josée.

This performance is sponsored by Deloitte LLP.

Tickets: $22, $25, $31, $41, $54, $59
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Tuesday, November 10 at 8:00 p.m.
Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage
SHANGHAI SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
Long Yu, Music Director and Conductor
Lang Lang, Piano

SERGEI RACHMANINOFF Piano Concerto No. 2 in C Minor, Op. 18
CHEN QIGANG Iris dévoilée

This evening's performance is made possible by a leadership gift from Henry R. Kravis in honor of his wife, Marie-Josée.

Tickets: $36, $43, $55, $74, $99, $109
____________________________________

Ancient Paths, Modern Voices: A Festival Celebrating Chinese Culture is made possible by a leadership gift from Henry R. Kravis in honor of his wife, Marie-Josée.

Sponsored, in part, by Deloitte LLP
Additional funding from Roche, China Merchants Bank, and the Hong Kong Economic & Trade Office, New York

Bank of America is the Proud Season Sponsor of Carnegie Hall.

Ticket Information
For events taking place at Carnegie Hall, tickets are on sale now at the Carnegie Hall Box Office, 154 West 57th Street, or can be charged to major credit cards by calling CarnegieCharge at 212-247-7800, or by visiting the Carnegie Hall website, carnegiehall.org. For festival partner events, please contact the partner for ticket information.

Ancient Paths, Modern Voices Festival Passports, priced at $10, are now on sale and provide discounts of 15% or more on tickets to nearly every event in this festival. For more information and programming updates, please visit carnegiehall.org/chinafestival.

For Carnegie Hall Corporation presentations taking place in Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage, a limited number of seats, priced at $10, will be available day-of-concert beginning at 11:00 a.m. Monday through Saturday and 12:00 noon on Sunday until one hour before the performance or until supply lasts. The exceptions are Carnegie Hall Family Concerts and gala events. These $10 tickets are available to the general public on a first-come, first-served basis at the Carnegie Hall Box Office only. There is a two-ticket limit per customer.

In addition, for all Carnegie Hall presentations in Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage a limited number of partial view (seats with obstructed or limited sight lines or restricted leg room) will be sold for 50% of the full price. For more information on this and other discount ticket programs, including those for students, Notables members, and Bank of America customers, visit carnegiehall.org/discounts.

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Image from top of release: Lang Lang at Carnegie Hall; Photo by Steve J. Sherman