Melvin Chen, Piano
SUNDAY, January 18, 2009 at 2:30pm
Programme
- Claude Debussy - Suite Bergamasque
- Robert Schumann - Kinderszenen, op. 1
- Joan Tower - Holding a Daisy
- Or Like a an Engine
- Ludwig van Beethoven
- Bagatelles, op. 119
- Sonata in c minor, op. 111
Bio
A native of Tennessee, pianist Melvin Chen is recognized as an
important young artist, having received acclaim for performances
throughout the United States and abroad. As a soloist and chamber
musician Mr. Chen has performed at major venues in the United States,
including Carnegie Hall, Alice Tully Hall, Merkin Concert Hall, Weill
Recital Hall, the Frick Collection, Kennedy Center, and Boston's
Jordan Hall, in addition to other appearances throughout the United
States, Canada, and Asia. In recent seasons Mr. Chen's concerts have
included two solo recitals at Weill Recital Hall, concerto
performances with the American Symphony Orchestra, Marin Symphony,
Springfield Symphony, and the Paducah Symphony, along with numerous
solo and chamber music appearances internationally and in the United
States. He was the pianist in Ricky Ian Gordon's Orpheus and Euridice,
which was presented by Lincoln Center in 2005 and which received a
special citation from the Obie awards.
Mr. Chen's performances have been featured on radio and television
stations around the globe, including KBS television and radio in
Korea, NHK television in Japan, and NPR in the United States. Solo
recordings include Beethoven's Diabelli Variations on the Bridge
label, praised as "a classic" by the American Record Guide, and a
recording of Joan Tower's piano music on the Naxos label. Recordings
of the Shostakovich piano sonatas and Gordon's Orpheus and Euridice
were released in 2007.
An enthusiastic chamber musician, Mr. Chen has collaborated with such
artists as Ida Kavafian, Steven Tenenbom, David Shifrin, Steven
Isserlis, Pamela Frank, and Peter Wiley; with the Shanghai, Tokyo,
Miami, Penderecki, Borromeo, and Miro quartets; and in contemporary
music collaborations with the Da Capo Chamber Players and The St.
Luke's Chamber Ensemble. Mr. Chen is an alumnus of Chamber Music
Society of Lincoln Center: Chamber Music Society Two, where he
appeared with members of the Chamber Music Society in performance and educational programs for two seasons. A performer in numerous music festivals, he has performed at the Bravo! Vail Valley Music Festival, Music Mountain, Chautauqua, Norfolk Chamber Music Festival, Chamber Music Northwest, Bard Music Festival, and Music from Angel Fire, among others.
Mr. Chen completed a doctorate in chemistry from Harvard University,
and also holds a double master's degree from The Juilliard School in
piano and violin, where he studied with Seymour Lipkin and Glenn
Dicterow, respectively. At Juilliard, he was the recipient of the U.S.
Department of Education Jacob Javits Fellowship, as well as the William Petschek Piano Scholarship and the Ruth D. Rosenman Memorial
Scholarship. Previously, he attended Yale University, receiving a
bachelor of science degree in chemistry and physics. Upon graduation
he was awarded the New Prize by the fellows of Jonathan Edwards
College. During his tenure at Yale he studied with Boris Berman, Paul
Kantor, and Ida Kavafian.
Mr. Chen is on the piano faculty of the Bard College Conservatory of
Music, where he is associate director, and has previously served on
the piano faculty at the Yale School of Music. He is also the artistic director of the chamber music program at the Hotchkiss Summer Portals.
