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Her singular blend of technical prowess, keen musical insight,
and emotional depth have established Yuja Wang as one of the
world's finest performers.
The power of her interpretations emerges from a distinct
combination of her exceptional presence on stage and a natural
affinity and inquisitive approach to the repertoire, which ranges
from Mozart to Gershwin and beyond. 'Charismatic', 'breathtaking',
'flawless' and 'heartfelt' are just a selection of the superlatives
used frequently by critics worldwide.
Yuja's 2017-18 season features recitals, concert series, and
extensive tours with some of the world's most venerated ensembles
and conductors. She begins the summer of 2017 on tour with the
London Symphony Orchestra and Michael Tilson Thomas and a programme
featuring Brahms' Piano Concerto No.2, followed by a performance of
the first concerto at the Ravinia Festival with the Chicago
Symphony Orchestra, under the baton of Lionel Bringuier. Later
engagements include concerts with the Munich Philharmonic and
Valery Gergiev, a series of performances at the Verbier Festival,
and a three-city German tour with the St. Petersburg
Philharmonic.
She also embarks on play-conduct tours with two of the best
chamber orchestras in the world, Mahler Chamber Orchestra and
Chamber Orchestra of Europe, as well as joining the inaugural tour
of Jaap van Zweden with the New York Philharmonic and the final
tour of Yannick Nézet-Séguin's directorship with the Rotterdam
Philharmonic. Other notable appearances include concerts in Hong
Kong, Miami, Washington D.C., Prague, Tel Aviv, and Berlin.
Winter of 2017 sees Yuja reunite with violinist and frequent
collaborator Leonidas Kavakos for a European chamber tour, whilst
in the spring of 2018, Ms. Wang will embark on a vast-reaching
recital tour at premiere venues in the US and Europe; New York
City, San Francisco, Rome, Vienna, Berlin, Paris, and beyond.
As part of its commitment to the arts, Rolex selected Yuja Wang
as one of its cultural ambassadors in 2009, a distinction she holds
to this day. She has been described by the New York Times as "one
of the best young pianists around" and hailed by the Sydney Morning
Herald for her "blistering technique." In July 2015 the Los Angeles
Times declared: "Hers is a nonchalant, brilliant keyboard
virtuosity that would have made both Prokofiev (who was a great
pianist) and even the fabled Horowitz jealous." This combination of
critical acclaim, audience ovations, return engagements at leading
international venues, and an exclusive recording relationship with
Deutsche Grammophon confirm Yuja Wang's status as one of this
century's most compelling and engaging artists.
Yuja's way of making music connects with a strikingly broad
demographic. It appeals to everyone, from classical music newcomers
to devoted pianophiles, and has attracted an exceptionally youthful
following. Her love for fashion, recognized by her induction into
Giorgio Armani's Sì Women's Circle, has also contributed to the
popular appeal of an artist who is armed with the ability to
challenge the status quo and to welcome fresh converts to the
concert hall.
Yuja Wang was born in Beijing and encouraged to make music at a
young age by her dancer mother and percussionist father, which
served as the catalyst for the never-ending thirst for
knowledge that has sustained her continued musical development.
She began piano lessons at the age of six, and her progress was
accelerated by studies at Beijing's Central Conservatory of Music.
In 1999 she moved to Canada to participate in the Morningside Music
summer programme at Calgary's Mount Royal College, and thereafter
enrolled as the youngest ever student at Mount Royal Conservatory.
Wang's exceptional gifts were widely recognised in 2001 with her
appointment as a Steinway Artist, and again the following year when
she was offered a place at Philadelphia's prestigious Curtis
Institute of Music, where she studied with Gary Graffman.
By the time Yuja graduated from Curtis in 2008, she had already
gained momentum following the spectacular success of her debut
three years earlier with the National Arts Center Orchestra in
Ottawa. Wang attracted widespread international attention in March
2007 when she replaced Martha Argerich on short notice in
performances of Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No.1 with the Boston
Symphony Orchestra, and within the span of just a few seasons she
was working with conductors of the highest calibre.
Over the past decade of her career, she has worked with such
pre-eminent Maestros as Claudio Abbado, Daniel Barenboim,
Gustavo Dudamel, Valery Gergiev, Michael Tilson
Thomas, Antonio Pappano, Charles Dutoit, and Zubin Mehta.
In January 2009, Yuja Wang became an exclusive Deutsche
Grammophon recording artist. Her debut album, Sonatas &
Etudes, prompted Gramophone to name her as its 2009 Young Artist of
the Year. Her 2011 release of Rachmaninov's Second
Piano Concerto and Paganini's Rhapsody with the Mahler Chamber
Orchestra and Claudio Abbado was nominated for a Grammy® Award
in the Best Classical Instrumental Solo category. Subsequent
releases for the label include Fantasia, an album of encore pieces
by Albéniz, Bach, Chopin, Rachmaninov, Saint-Saëns, Scriabin, and
others; a live recording of Prokofiev's Concertos Nos. 2 and 3
with Gustavo Dudamel and the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra,
and an acclaimed coupling of Ravel's two piano concerti with
Fauré's Ballade, recorded with the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich and
Lionel Bringuier.
Reviewers around the world have documented the full range of
Wang's work, capturing the essence of her musicianship and
observing the development of an artist blessed with consummate
technical abilities, an inexhaustible creative imagination, and an
unmatched artistry.
