Buffalo Rising Online

Oct 7th 2005, 5:59am By queenseyes

Violinist Chee-Yunis combination of flawless technique, beautiful tone and compelling musical temperament has quickly captured the attention of the music world. Her brilliant artistry has been shared with audiences and praised by critics on five continents.

Career highlights include appearances at the Kennedy Centeris iSalute to Slavai gala honoring its departing Music Director, Mstislav Rostropovich, the Mostly Mozart Festival including the orchestrais tour to Japan, the Pacific Music Festival in a premiere of Lou Harrisonis Suite for Violin and String Orchestra, the inaugural concert at the Danny Kaye Playhouse in New York City and a performance with Michael Tilson Thomas in the inaugural season of Carnegie Hallis Zankel Hall and the US premiere of the Penderecki Sonata No. 2 with pianist Barry Douglas at the Kennedy Center. Other recent highlights include her tours of the United States with the San Francisco Symphony (Michael Tilson Thomas conducting) and Japan with the NHK Symphony and the Tokyo Metropolitan Orchestra, performances across three continents of the Penderecki Concerto No. 2 with the composer at the podium, and her performance at the American Ballet Theatreis Fall Gala with Principal Dancers of the Company.

Chee-Yun has performed with many of the worldis foremost orchestras, including the Philadelphia Orchestra, the London Philharmonic, Toronto Symphony, the Houston Symphony and the National Symphony and with such distinguished conductors as Hans Graf, James DePriest, Jesus Lopez-Cobos, Michael Tilson Thomas, Krzysztof Penderecki, Neeme J 0/00rvi, and Pinchas Zukerman. She has appeared with the Atlanta Symphony, the Orchestra of St. Lukeis at Alice Tully Hall, the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, the Dallas Symphony, the Oregon Symphony, the New York Chamber Symphony, the Detroit Symphony, the Rochester Philharmonic, the Utah Symphony and the Cincinnati Symphony. Overseas, she has made numerous tours with such orchestras as the Haifa Symphony, the Hong Kong Philharmonic, Germanyis Braunschweig Orchestra and the MDR Radio Leipzig and has performed with the St. Petersburg Camerata, the Bamberg Philharmonic, the Bilbao Symphony, the London Festival Orchestra, the Nagoya Philharmonic, KBS Symphony Orchestra and the Seoul Philharmonic.

Highlights of her 2005/2006 season include performances with leading orchestras and chamber ensembles throughout North America, Europe and Asia, including the Buffalo Philharmonic, Colorado Symphony, Indianapolis Symphony, Honolulu Symphony, Symphony of Southeast Texas, Modesto Symphony and California Symphony, a concert at the Kennedy Center with the Sejong Soloists and a West Coast tour with the Spoleto Festival. Her international appearances include performances with Orquesta Filharmonica de Buenos Aires Teatro Colon in Argentina and the Gulbenkian Orchestra in Portugal, recitals at the Beethoven Festival in Poland, concerts with Barry Douglas in Manchester, England, and two tours of Korea, including recitals at the Seoul Arts Center. This season will see the release of a new CD with pianist Akira Eguchi featuring works of Brahms and Strauss, and the recording of an all Mozart disc. As a recitalist, Chee-Yun has performed in many major cities including New York, Chicago, Washington, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Atlanta. Committed to chamber music, she has toured with iMusic from Marlboroi, and appears frequently at Spoleto/USA, a project she has been associated with since its inception. Other upcoming and recent chamber music appearances include the Ravinia, Aspen, Bravo! Vail Valley, La Jolla, Great Lakes, Caramoor, Green Music, Santa Fe and Bridgewater Festivals in the United States, the Great Mountains Music Festival in South Korea, the Clandeboye Festival with Camerata Ireland in Northern Ireland, the Opera Theatre and Music Festival in Lucca, Italy, the Colmar Festival in France, theand the Beethoven and Penderecki Festivals in Poland.

Big Smile As a recitalist, Chee-Yun has performed in many major cities including New York, Chicago, Washington, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Atlanta. Committed to chamber music, she has toured with iMusic from Marlboroi, and appears frequently at Spoleto/USA, a project she has been associated with since its inception. Other upcoming and recent chamber music appearances include the Ravinia Festival, the Bravo! Vail Valley Music Festival, the Opera Theatre and Music Festival in Lucca, Italy, the Green Music Festival, the Great Mountains Music Festival in South Korea, Camerata Ireland, the La Jolla Summer Festival, the Colmar Festival in France, the Caramoor International Music Festival, the Aspen Music Festival, and the Beethoven and Penderecki Festivals in Poland.

Chee-Yun has received exceptional acclaim as a recording artist since the release of her debut album of virtuoso encore pieces in 1993. Her most recent recording, of the Penderecki Violin Concerto No. 2, on Naxos, was acclaimed as ian engrossing, masterly performancei by the Strad Magazine and ia performance of staggering virtuosity and musicalityi by American Record Guide. This past season also saw the release of Chee-Yunis Sentimental Memories, a crossover recording of music from the opera, movies and Broadway, was recently released in the Far East and immediately sold over 20,000 copies in Korea alone.

Her releases on the Denon label include Mendelssohnis E Minor Violin Concerto, Vieuxtempsi Violin Concerto No. 5, Lalois Symphonie Espagnole, and Saint-SaInsi Violin Concerto No. 3, with the London Philharmonic under the direction of Maestro Lopez-Cobos, a disc of three French violin sonatas (Debussy, Saint-SaIns and FaurE), and the Violin Sonatas of Szymanowski and Franck. Two compilation discs, Vocalise diamour, and The Very Best of Chee-Yun, feature highlights of Chee-Yunis earlier recordings.

Chee-Yun has been heard frequently on National Public Radiois Performance Today and on WQXR and WNYC radio in New York City. She has also been featured on KTV, a childrenis program on the cable network CNBC, Garrison Keilloris iA Prairie Home Companioni, on Public Radio International and numerous syndicated and local radio programs across the United States and abroad. She has been seen on PBS as a special guest on Victor Borge Then and Now 3, in a live broadcast at Spivey Hall in Atlanta concurrent with the Olympic Games for Performance Today, and on ESPN performing the theme for the X Games. Currently in production, Chee-Yun will be featured in an upcoming documentary for KBS (Korean television).

Playing in Profile (by Steven J. Sherman) Chee-Yunis first public performance, at age 8, took place in her native Seoul after she won the Grand Prize of the Korean Times Competition. At age 13, she came to the United States and was invited to perform the Vieuxtemps Concerto No. 5 in a Young Peopleis Concert with the New York Philharmonic. At age 15, she appeared as soloist with the New York String Orchestra under Alexander Schneider at Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.

In Korea, Chee-Yun studied with Nam Yun Kim. Since coming to this country, she worked with Dorothy DeLay, Hyo Kang and Felix Galimir (for chamber music) at The Juilliard School.

Chee-Yun has been the recipient of numerous awards including the prestigious Avery Fisher Career Grant and winner of the Young Concert Artists International Auditions. Her recording awards include nomination for Best Debut in the first annual Cannes Classical Awards at the MIDEM international music convention.

In 1993, Chee-Yun returned to Korea to receive the iNan Pai award, the countryis highest musical honor. She was honored in a different manner in the United States, when she was invited to perform at the White House for President Bill Clinton and his guests in honor of the recipients of the National Medal of the Arts.

In addition to her active performance and recording schedule, Chee-Yun provides master classes around the world. Her faculty positions include serving as the resident Starling Soloist and Adjunct Professor of Violin at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, and Visiting Professor of Music (Violin) at Indiana University School of Music.

BPO Dates: Saturday, October 15, 2005 at 8:00 PM & Sunday, October 16, 2005 at 2:30 PM. Conductor: JoAnn Falletta. Sponsored by: M&T Bank

Stravinsky-Pulcinella: Suite Saint-SaIns-Concerto No. 3 in B minor for Violin, op.61 Ibert-Hommage . Mozart Tchaikovsky-Suite No. 4 in G Major, op.61 (Mozartana)

Tickets available by visiting the Box Office at Kleinhans Music Hall or calling 716.885.5000.