Carnegie Hall

(New York, NY, October 1, 2018)—An artist with breathtaking talent and charismatic stage presence, Grammy Award–nominated pianist Yuja Wang curates a six-concert Perspectivesseries during Carnegie Hall’s 2018–2019 season, demonstrating the singular blend of technical prowess, keen musical insight, and quicksilver versatility that has established her as one of the world’s finest performers. Ms. Wang’s series offers creative collaborations, reunions with recital partners and artists who have influenced her career, and a night of classical music comedy—all displaying the pianist’s eclectic interests and versatility.

When asked about the curation of this Perspectives series, Ms. Wang said “When [Carnegie Hall] called me about this I was in New York, and then the idea of doing whatever I want for a whole year in my hometown, especially in Carnegie, just totally excited me. I didn't want to do anything that I always do, like a recital, or a concerto, or an orchestra. So I decided to perform with the friends and mentors that meant a lot in my life that has been the source of my inspiration, the source of encouragement, those who have motivated me to do what I do now … I'm thrilled to have all the people that are close to my heart to participate in this series in my home city.”

Ms. Wang kicks off her Perspectives series on Friday, October 26 at 8:00 p.m. in Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage, performing with a quartet of percussionists headlined by Austrian star Martin Grubinger for a program to include the New York premieres of arrangements of Bartók’s Sonata for Two Pianos and Percussion and Stravinsky’s Le sacre du printemps by Mr. Grubinger’s father, Martin Grubinger Sr. (who is also performing on the program, alongside Alexander Georgiev and Leonhard Schmidinger). Also on the program is John Psathas’s One Study and Arturo Márquez’s Danzón No. 2 (arr. Leticia Gómez-Tagle).

She returns to Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage on Wednesday, February 6, at 8:00 p.m. reuniting with violinist and frequent recital partner Leonidas Kavakos following widespread acclaim for the duo’s exceptional musical chemistry. Ms. Wang plays Zankel Hall the following week on Monday, February 11 at 7:30 p.m. for a night of lighthearted musical comedy with virtuoso instrumentalists and jokesters Igudesman & Joo.

On Wednesday, April 10 at 8:00 p.m. in Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage, Ms. Wang joins another esteemed colleague, cellist Gautier Capuçon, for a duo recital featuring Franck’s Violin Sonata in A Major (transc. for cello) and Rachmaninoff’s Cello Sonata in G Minor, Op. 19.

Yuja Wang’s Perspectives series concludes in May with two concerts with fellow Perspectives artist and mentor Michael Tilson Thomas and the New World Symphony, America’s Orchestral Academy. On Wednesday, May 1 at 8:00 p.m. she plays Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto No. 5. in Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage with Maestro Tilson Thomas leading the orchestra on a program that also includes the New York premiere of a new work by Julia Wolfe as well as Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique. The following evening, Thursday, May 2 at 7:30 p.m., Ms. Wang plays the New York premiere of a work by Michael Tilson Thomas for solo piano. Also on the program is the New York premiere of Tilson Thomas’s Four Preludes on Playthings of the Wind written for and featuring soprano Measha Brueggergosman as well as Schubert’s String Quartet in D Minor, D. 810, "Death and the Maiden" (arr. for string orchestra by Mahler).

For more information on Yuja Wang’s Perspectives series visit: carnegiehall.org/wang.

About Yuja Wang 

Born in Beijing, Yuja Wang was encouraged to pursue music at an early age, starting piano lessons at the age of six and studying at Beijing’s Central Conservatory of Music. She moved to Canada in 1999 and became the youngest student ever enrolled at Mount Royal Conservatory. Ms. Wang was appointed as a Steinway Artist in 2001 and accepted a place at the Curtis Institute of Music to begin studying piano with Gary Graffman the following year. After graduating from Curtis in 2008, she went on to be an exclusive Deutsche Grammophon recording artist, prompting Gramophone to name her as its 2009 Young Artist of the Year after the debut of her first album. The following year, Ms. Wang was awarded the prestigious Avery Fisher Career Grant. She earned a Grammy nomination for Best Classical Instrumental Solo for her 2011 recording of Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2 and Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini with the Mahler Chamber Orchestra and Claudio Abbado.

Carnegie Hall’s Perspectives

Now in its 20th season, Carnegie Hall’s Perspectives series is an artistic initiative in which select musicians are invited to explore their own musical individuality and create their own personal concert series through collaborations with other musicians and ensembles.

Previous Perspectives artists have included Senegalese vocalist Youssou NDOUR; Brazilian singer-songwriter Caetano Veloso; Indian classical tabla player Zakir Hussain; experimental rocker David Byrne; singer-songwriters Rosanne Cash and James Taylor; as well as conductor and pianist Daniel Barenboim; conductors Pierre Boulez, James Levine, Sir Simon Rattle, and David Robertson; violinists Janine Jansen, Gidon Kremer, Anne-Sophie Mutter, and Christian Tetzlaff; cellist Yo-Yo Ma; pianists Pierre-Laurent Aimard, Leif Ove Andsnes, Martha Argerich, Emanuel Ax, Evgeny Kissin, Maurizio Pollini, Sir András Schiff, Peter Serkin, Daniil Trifonov, and Mitsuko Uchida; sopranos Renée Fleming and Dawn Upshaw; mezzo-soprano Joyce DiDonato; bass-baritone Thomas Quasthoff; the Emerson String Quartet; the Kronos Quartet; and early music ensemble L’Arpeggiata.

In the 2018–2019 season, conductor, composer, and educator Michael Tilson Thomas also offers a seven-concert Perspectives series including two concerts with Ms. Wang and the New World Symphony. For more information visit: carnegiehall.org/mtt.

Program Information 

Friday, October 26, 2018 at 8:00 p.m.
Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage
YUJA WANG, Piano
MARTIN GRUBINGER, Percussion
Alexander Georgiev, Percussion
Leonhard Schmidinger, Percussion
Martin Grubinger Sr., Percussion

IGOR STRAVINSKY Le sacre du printemps (arr. Martin Grubinger Sr., NY Premiere)
BÉLA BARTÓK Sonata for Two Pianos and Percussion (arr. for one piano and percussion by Martin Grubinger Sr., NY Premiere)
JOHN PSATHAS One Study
ARTURO MÁRQUEZ Danzón No. 2 (arr. Leticia Gómez-Tagle)

This performance is proudly supported by ICBC U.S. Region.

Perspectives: Yuja Wang

Tickets: $45–$125.
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Wednesday, February 6, 2019 at 8:00 p.m.
Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage
LEONIDAS KAVAKOS, Violin
YUJA WANG, Piano

A pair of superstars share the stage in their eagerly awaited return to Carnegie Hall. Violinist Leonidas Kavakos’s playing has been praised by The New York Times for its “balance of pyrotechnics and lyricism.” Yuja Wang has been called “quite simply the most dazzlingly, uncannily gifted pianist in the concert world today” (San Francisco Chronicle). Each outstanding soloists, together “they sound like a single organism” (Financial Times), and are certain to leave you breathless with the beauty and intensity of their performance.

Perspectives: Yuja Wang

Tickets: $36–$120.
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Monday, February 11, 2019 at 7:30 p.m.
Zankel Hall
YUJA WANG, Piano
IGUDESMAN & JOO

Yuja Wang’s artistry knows no bounds. So does her sense of fun. In what promises to be an evening of laughter and dizzying virtuosity, she joins the irrepressible classical music comedy duo Igudesman & Joo. The duo has been bringing laughter to concert halls around the world, often with orchestras such as the New York Philharmonic and Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and their videos on YouTube have gathered more than 45 million views. The last time the duo played at Carnegie Hall, Billy Joel and Joshua Bell jumped on stage for surprise encores. Be prepared for an anything-goes concert.

Perspectives: Yuja Wang

Tickets: $63, $75.
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Wednesday, April 10, 2019 at 8:00 p.m.
Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage 
GAUTIER CAPUÇON, Cello
YUJA WANG, Piano

CÉSAR FRANCK Violin Sonata in A Major (transc. for cello)
SERGEI RACHMANINOFF Cello Sonata in G Minor, Op. 19

Perspectives: Yuja Wang

Tickets: $35–$115.
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Wednesday, May 1, 2019 at 8:00 p.m.
Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage 
NEW WORLD SYMPHONY
America’s Orchestral Academy
Michael Tilson Thomas, Artistic Director and Conductor
Yuja Wang, Piano

JULIA WOLFE New Work (NY Premiere, co-commissioned by Carnegie Hall)
SERGEI PROKOFIEV Piano Concerto No. 5 in G Major, Op. 55
HECTOR BERLIOZ Symphonie fantastique, Op. 14

Sponsored by KPMG LLP

Support for the 125 Commissions Project is provided by members of Carnegie Hall’s Composer Club.

Perspectives: Michael Tilson Thomas

Perspectives: Yuja Wang

Tickets: $24–$80.
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Thursday, May 2, 2019 at 7:30 p.m.
Zankel Hall
NEW WORLD SYMPHONY
America’s Orchestral Academy
Michael Tilson Thomas, Artistic Director and Conductor
Measha Brueggergosman, Soprano
Yuja Wang, Piano

with
Mikaela Bennett, Vocals
Kara Dugan, Vocals

MICHAEL TILSON THOMAS Work for Solo Piano (NY Premiere)
MICHAEL TILSON THOMAS Four Preludes on Playthings of the Wind (NY Premiere)
FRANZ SCHUBERT String Quartet in D Minor, D. 810, "Death and the Maiden" (arr. for string orchestra by Mahler)

Perspectives: Michael Tilson Thomas

Perspectives: Yuja Wang

Tickets: $63, $75.

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

Ticket Information

Tickets are available 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 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. Artists, programs, and prices are subject to change.