Chamber Music Today Festival Opens in Seoul Tonight, Dec 8

Cellist David Finckel and pianist Wu Han are pleased to announce the second annual CHAMBER MUSIC TODAY festival in Seoul, Korea. This winter the chamber music festival runs today, December 8-10, 2012, at the IBK Chamber Hall of the new Seoul Arts Center. One of the first festivals of its kind established in the Far East, Chamber Music Today plays a vital role in Korea's burgeoning chamber music scene, presenting the world's most esteemed artists.

Chamber Music Today opens with the St. Lawrence String Quartet, one of the all time great chamber ensembles performing today. The group offers two concerts featuring a wide range of repertoire from Haydn, Brahms, Beethoven, and Mendelssohn to Osvaldo Golijov, a composer they have championed throughout their career. The renowned American clarinetist David Shifrin performs Beethoven, Brahms and Bruch with Chamber Music Today Artistic Directors David Finckel and Wu Han; the program mirrors their recent critically acclaimed ArtistLed recording. The final concert of the festival showcases a distinguished line up of Artists of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center: Gilbert Kalish, Paul Neubauer, Erin Keefe, Kristin Lee, and Nicholas Canellakis.

David Finckel and Wu Han commented: "As Chamber Music Today approaches its second spectacular season, we continue to dedicate our efforts to expand the scope of chamber music in the Far East. The festival presents us with a far-too-rare opportunity to mount chamber music on Korean stages, and we are continually inspired by the appreciation and excitement that welcomes us there. During this installment, we are joined by the highest caliber of artists as we unveil landmark works by chamber music’s most treasured composers. We firmly believe that the festival will leave classical music lovers of all ages entranced with the art of chamber music, and excitedly look forward to many seasons to come."

DATES & PROGRAMS:

Dec. 8 - Benefit Concert: St. Lawrence String Quartet with David Finckel and Wu Han
Venue: Namsan Hall at Hyatt Hotel, Seoul, Korea
Time: 6 p.m. By invitation only.
Program: Works by Haydn and Brahms

Dec. 9 - David Finckel, Wu Han, and David Shifrin
Venue: IBK Chamber Hall at Seoul Arts Center
Time: 3 p.m.
Program:
Beethoven: Clarinet Trio in B-flat Major, op. 11
Bruch: Selections from Eight Pieces, op. 83
Brahms: Clarinet Trio in a minor, op. 114

Dec. 9 - St. Lawrence String Quartet
Venue: IBK Chamber Hall at Seoul Arts Center
Time: 8 p.m.
Program:
Beethoven: String Quartet in B-flat Major, op. 18, no. 6
Golijov: Qohelet
Mendelssohn: String Quartet in e minor, op. 44, no. 2

Dec. 10 - CMS on Tour
Venue: Sejong Chamber Hall
Time: 8 p.m.
Program:
Dohnányi: Serenade in C Major, op. 10
Debussy: Premiere Rhapsody
Bartók: Contrasts
Brahms: Piano Quintet in f minor, op. 34
Artists of The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center:
Gilbert Kalish, Paul Neubauer, Erin Keefe, Kristin Lee, Nicholas Canellakis

For tickets, visit: http://www.sac.or.kr/eng/

Named Musical America's 2012 Musicians of the Year, the Festival's Artistic Directors David Finckel and Wu Han are two of today's most esteemed and influential classical musicians. Their appearances currently take them to the world's leading concert series and festivals as soloists, as a duo, and, in David Finckel's case, as a member of the Grammy Award-winning Emerson String Quartet.

In addition, they are the creators of classical music's first musician-directed and Internet-based recording label, ArtistLed, a trendsetting industry innovation that will soon release its 15th recording, the Piano Trios of Antonín Dvo?ák with violinist Philip Setzer.

Together, David Finckel and Wu Han have a unique ability to envision and realize innovative projects, be it in the recording arena with ArtistLed, on the world's great concert stages, or as directors of esteemed arts institutions. In recent years, David Finckel and Wu Han have become widely recognized for their initiatives in expanding audiences for classical music and for guiding the careers of countless young musicians. They serve as Artistic Directors of both the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center and Music@Menlo, a Silicon Valley chamber music festival founded in 2003. They assumed the Artistic Directorship of Chamber Music Today in Seoul, Korea, in 2011.

Recent international initiatives have included the establishment of residencies in Mecklenburg, Germany; Taipei, Taiwan; Wigmore Hall in London; and an innovative teaching and performing residency with the LG-Lincoln Center Chamber Music School in Seoul, South Korea.

For more information, visit www.davidfinckelandwuhan.com.

Chamber Music Today is held at the new Seoul Arts Center, the largest multi-purpose performing arts center in South Korea. In late 2011, Chamber Music Today officially opened the Center's IBK Chamber Hall, a new venue ideally suited for chamber music performances. The seating capacity is 632. The hall is sponsored by IBK.