MWA Quarterly: Notes on a 21st Century Virtuoso, Yuga Cohler
From music to tech, Yuga Cohler evades classification, using his brilliant mind to create innovative, one-of-a-kind experiences.
The Strad: Yo-Yo Ma on making artistic connections and raising balanced musicians
This month Yo-Yo Ma returns as artistic director of his Chinese education initiative Youth Music Culture Guangdong, a programme that aims to create balanced, astute and connected musicians. Charlotte Smith explores the ideas behind the cellist’s approach
Bachtrack: Variations of tension, energy and contrast with Long Yu and the Hong Kong Phil
First, a disclaimer: I have been an admirer of Long Yu’s conducting skills – not that he can do no wrong, but that he can usually make up for it by delivering tension, energy and contrast in whatever is at hand. Friday evening’s collection of variations with the Hong Kong Philharmonic was a case in point.
Time: How a Live Orchestra Is Mashing Up Kanye West and Beethoven
Rap icon Kanye West and classical legend Ludwig van Beethoven are, at first glance, polar musical opposites. But one project, dubbed Yeethoven, is bringing their music together in a bi-coastal mash-up concert that cuts through the distance of centuries and styles.
KUSC: What Happens When You Mix Beethoven and Kanye West?
The worlds of classical music and hip-hop may seem too far apart to ever come together in any meaningful way. However, two artists (and a youth orchestra) are looking to remix the way we think about these two different art forms: composer/arranger Johan and conductor Yuga Cohler, the music director of the Young Musicians Debut Chamber Orchestra.
Miroirs CA: Interview with Yekwon Sunwoo
Soon after 28-year-old Yekwon Sunwoo won the 15th Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, Decca Gold released a recording of his performances at the competition called Cliburn Gold, which became number one on Billboard’s Traditional Classical Album charts.
Yekwon Sunwoo talks about his career with Editor Leonne Lewis.
Musical America: Top 30 Movers & Shapers - Neeta Helms
Neeta Helms is named one of the top 30 professionals of 2017 by Musical America.
The Strad: Fantasia Album Reviewed
Julian Haylock reviews Anne Akiko Meyers's latest album, Fantasia.
"Yet the star item here is Rautavaara's Fantasia (2015), one of his last works and composed especially for Meyers, who soars aloft with its tender cantabile, shaping its shimmering melodic lines with a profound sensitivity that exerts irresistible pressure on the tear ducts."
Limelight Magazine: Huntington Estate Music Festival, Opening Weekend (Musica Viva)
The star of the concerts was the Russian-American pianist Olga Kern, outstandingly glamorous in dazzling multi-coloured dresses – a different one for each performance. On the first day she played a selection of Rachmaninov Preludes and Scriabin Études with sensational aplomb, accuracy and virtuosity. And her large hands made mincemeat of the notorious difficulties in Balakirev’s Islamey. It is a long time since I have heard – or seen – anything like this.