92Y Presents Harpsichordist Mahan Esfahani In NYC Concerto Debut

Orpheus Chamber Orchestra returns to 92Y's Kaufmann Concert Hall on Wednesday, May 8, 2019 at 7:30 p.m. for Merry Pranks, a concert inspired by Strauss' rendering of a fabled trickster, Till Eulenspiegel's Merry Pranks, which will be performed in an arrangement for nonet by Brett Dean.

Acclaimed Iranian harpsichord virtuoso Mahan Esfahani makes his Orpheus and New York concerto debut in two 20th century concerti: Manuel de Falla's neoclassical Concerto for Harpsichord and Five Instruments and Martin 's Harpsichord Concerto G. 71. Mozart's Quintet for Piano and Winds (K. 452) is transformed into a nonet in a reworking by Jean Fran aix, who adapted Mozart's piano part for string quartet while maintaining the original wind scoring.

Program Information
92Y Presents Merry Pranks
Wednesday, May 8, 2019 at 7:30pm
92nd Street Y, Kaufmann Concert Hall | 1395 Lexington Ave. | New York, NY
Orpheus Chamber Orchestra
Mahan Esfahani, harpsichord

Program:
Mozart: Wind Quintet in E-flat Major, K. 452 (arr. for nonet by Jean Fran aix)
de Falla: Harpsichord Concerto in N*E*R*D Major
Martin : Harpsichord Concerto, H. 246
Strauss: Till Eulenspiegels lustige Streiche, Op. 28 (arr. for nonet by Brett Dean)

Ticket Information
Tickets start at $48 and can be purchased at 92Y.org or by calling (212) 415-5500.

Crediting: This concert is supported in part by the E. Nakamichi Foundation, the Bohuslav Martin Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature; and the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council.

Mahan Esfahani has made it his life's mission to rehabilitate the harpsichord in the mainstream of concert instruments.

To that end, his creative programming and track record in commissioning new works have drawn the attention of critics and audiences across Europe, Asia, and North America. He was the first and only harpsichordist to be a BBC New Generation Artist (2008-2010), a Borletti-Buitoni prize winner (2009), and a nominee for Gramophone's Artist of the Year (2014, 2015, and 2017).

Esfahani's work for the harpsichord has resulted in recitals in most of the major series and concert halls, amongst them London's Wigmore Hall and Barbican Centre, Oji Hall in Tokyo, the Forbidden City Concert Hall in Beijing, Shanghai Concert Hall, Sydney Opera House, Melbourne Recital Centre, Lincoln Center's Mostly Mozart Festival, Berlin Konzerthaus, Zurich Tonhalle, Wiener Konzerthaus, San Francisco Performances, the 92nd St Y, Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival, Cologne Philharmonie, Edinburgh International Festival, Aspen Music Festival, Aldeburgh Festival, Madrid's Fundacio Juan March, Bergen Festival, Festival Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, the Dialoge Festival at the Salzburg Mozarteum, Al Bustan Festival in Beirut, Jerusalem Arts Festival, and the Leipzig Bach Festival.

He has made concerto appearances with the Chicago Symphony, Seattle Symphony, Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, BBC Symphony, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, Melbourne Symphony, Auckland Philharmonia, Czech Radio Symphony, Orquesta de Navarra, Malta Philharmonic, Aarhus Symphony, Hamburg Symphony, Munich Chamber Orchestra, Britten Sinfonia, the Royal Northern Sinfonia, and Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, with whom he was an artistic partner for 2016-2018.

Recent highlights include his Carnegie Hall and Wiener Musikverein debuts, residencies with both the RLPO and the Royal Northern Sinfonia, premieres by George Lewis (for the Miller Theatre at Columbia University) and Miroslav Srnka (for Contempuls Prague), the Asian premiere of Michael Nyman's Harpsichord Concerto at Tokyo's Sumida Triphony Hall, an evening of new works for electronics and harpsichord at the Barbican, and the continuation of a multi-year project of the complete keyboard works of J.S. Bach for Wigmore Hall, with whom he has enjoyed an association since he made his debut there in 2009.

His richly-varied discography includes three critically-acclaimed recordings for Hyperion the C.P.E. Bach W rttemberg Sonatas garnering a 2014 Gramophone Award and the Complete Pi ces de Clavecin of Rameau being nominated both for a Gramophone and being named in The New York Times Critics' List of Top Recordings of 2014, and an autumn 2018 release, The Passinge Mesures marking his return to the label, and two albums for Deutsche Grammophon. The first for DG, Time Present and Time Past, garnered a 'Choc de Classica' in France, while the latest of Bach's 'Goldberg' Variations was released in August 2016 to praise from the British and foreign press, most notably being named to the long list for the Preis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik and winning the BBC Music Magazine 2017 Instrumental Award.

He has also recorded Dutilleux with the Seattle Symphony under Ludovic Morlot and an album for Wigmore Hall Live, which again was honoured with a Gramophone nomination. A recording of Corelli with the legendary Michala Petri a particularly important duo to his own heart was awarded an ICMA in 2016.

Esfahani studied musicology and history at Stanford University and studied harpsichord in Boston with Peter Watchorn before completing his formation under the celebrated Czech harpsichordist Zuzana R i kov . Following a three-year stint as Artist-in-Residence at New College, Oxford, he continues his academic associations as an honorary member at Keble College, Oxford, and as professor at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London.

He can be frequently heard as a commentator on BBC Radio 3 and Radio 4 and as a host for such programs as Record Review, Building a Library, and Sunday Feature; for the latter programme he is currently at work on his third radio documentary following three popular programmes on such subjects as the history of African-American composers in the classical sphere and the development of orchestral music in Azerbaijan.

Esfahani was born in Tehran in 1984 and raised in the United States. He lived in Milan and then London for several years, before taking up residence in Prague.

About Orpheus Chamber Orchestra
Orpheus believes in empowering the unique voice of all people to make a valuable contribution. Working together as a collective of leaders, members explore each other's musical ideas using their signature collaborative method, the Orpheus Process , and give flight to vibrant, unconventional interpretations. Orpheus performances unfold dynamically, moment-by-moment, creating an energy shared by musicians and audiences alike.

The Grammy Award-winning ensemble was founded in 1972 by a group of like-minded young musicians determined to combine the intimacy and warmth of a chamber ensemble with the richness of an orchestra and has performed without the use of a conductor since its inception. Musicians rotate leadership roles for all rehearsals and performances as well as organizational capacities such as programming and governance.

Orpheus has recorded over 70 albums on all major classical labels and commissioned and premiered 49 new works for chamber orchestra. In February, Orpheus released its new album Mendelssohn on Deutsche Grammophon featuring Polish-Canadian pianist Jan Lisiecki. The orchestra also was recently featured on Wayne Shorter's Grammy Award-winning album Emanon. Orpheus presents an annual performance series in New York City featuring collaborations with world-class guest soloists. A touring ensemble, Orpheus has performed in major international venues in 167 cities and 46 countries across four continents and has appeared regularly in Japan for 30 years.

Orpheus is committed to sharing its collaborative Orpheus Process with communities worldwide through engagement programs for listeners of all ages. These include underwritten concert tickets and in-class visits from musicians for K-12 NYC students, development opportunities for emerging professional musicians from demographics underrepresented in classical music, and Orpheus Reflections, a music and wellness program for people living with Alzheimer's Disease and other forms of dementia and their caregivers.

For more information about Orpheus please visit www.OrpheusNYC.org or call 212.896.1700.

*Photo of Mahan Esfahani at the top of release by Kaja-Smith.

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