Two grands grace the stage
4 October 2005
Two grands grace the stage
“It was,
simply, proof that Houstoun remains our finest
pianist.”
[Peter Shaw, NZ Listener, Sep 2005]
“...a formidable performance... [Chen’s] sympathy for French music was fully revealed with playing of dexterous virtuosity, poetry and a wondrous clarity...” [John Button, Dominion Post, May 2005]
The final concert in the Auckland
Philharmonia’s 2005 Vero Premier Series features something
of a rarity – two New Zealand pianists as dual soloists.
Long-standing virtuoso Michael Houstoun and remarkable young
musician John Chen, each on their own Steinways, join forces
in Poulenc’s Concerto for Two Pianos.
Since his teens,
MICHAEL HOUSTOUN has been a household name in New Zealand.
Throughout the last 30 years he has performed regularly with
orchestras, as a recitalist, and as a chamber music partner.
He draws from a large and ever-expanding repertoire which
includes the most recent compositions by New Zealand
composers alongside the complete Beethoven piano sonatas.
These 32 sonatas Michael played in a series of cycles in the
1990s, and the recording of them led to the establishment of
Trust Records in 1995.
Michael has been a prize winner in
numerous international piano competitions including Van
Cliburn (third, 1973), Leeds (fourth, 1975) and Tchaikovsky
(sixth, 1982), completing an unprecedented record in
international competition by a New Zealand
pianist.
JOHN CHEN won his first piano competition at
the age of nine, and over the subsequent years was
successful in a number of national competitions. In July
2004, the 18 year old pianist became the youngest (and first
competitor from Australia or New Zealand) to win the
prestigious Sydney International Piano Competition.
John
has performed concertos and solo recitals throughout New
Zealand and Australia; future engagements include concerts
in New Zealand, Australia, the United Kingdom, France,
Germany, Singapore, Japan, China, South Korea, the United
States and Canada. He also has been awarded recording
contracts with Naxos and ABC Classics.
Experience
these two pianists as they conquer Poulenc’s exhilarating
Concerto for Two Pianos. Swiss conductor Rodolfo Fischer
conducts the concert which also features Kodály’s Peacock
Variations and Rimsky-Korsakov’s Scheherazade.
AUCKLAND
PHILHARMONIA VERO PREMIER SERIES
Thursday 27 October –
8pm, Auckland Town Hall
Bookings: phone the Ticketek
Orchestra Hotline on (09) 307 5139 or visit
www.ticketek.co.nz
The Auckland Philharmonia receives major funding from Creative New Zealand and a major grant from Auckland City.
ENDS