Tony Yike Yang & Charles Richard-Hamelin Added to Royal Conservatory Concert Season

Mervon Mehta, Executive Director of Performing Arts at The Royal Conservatory of Music, today announced the addition of a joint recital of pianists Tony Yike Yang and Charles Richard-Hamelin, both winners at the recent International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition. This was not only the first time that two Canadians became laureates of the prestigious competition but also the first time any Canadian has been in the finals. Mr. Richard-Hamelin placed second and also won the Krystian Zimerman Prize for best performance of a sonata, and Mr. Yang, the youngest laureate in the history of the competition, placed fifth. This is a unique opportunity to hear the two Canadian rising starts before they embark on a tour of Japan and South Korea.

The concert takes place on January 15 at 7:30pm in Mazzoleni Concert Hall, located in historic Ihnatowycz Hall. Both artists will perform works by Chopin.

Tony Yike Yang

Barcarolle in F-sharp Major, Op. 60

Waltz in E-flat Major, Op. 18, "Grande valse brillante"

Impromptu No. 2 in F-sharp Major, Op. 36

Scherzo No. 3 in C-sharp Minor, Op. 39

Ballade No. 4 in F Minor, Op. 52

Intermission

Charles-Richard Hamelin

Nocturne No. 1 in B Major, Op. 62

Ballade No. 3 in A-flat Major, Op. 47

Piano Sonata No. 3 in B Minor, Op. 58.

In addition to the recent win at the Chopin competition, Charles Richard-Hamelin has also won the second prize at the Montreal International Musical Competition, the third prize and special award for the best performance of a Beethoven sonata at the Seoul International Music Competition in South Korea, as well as Prix d'Europe in 2011 and Radio-Canada 2015 Classical Revelation. In April 2015, he was awarded the prestigious Career Development Award offered by the Women's Musical Club of Toronto. As a soloist he performed with various ensembles, including the Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra, Montreal and Toronto Symphony Orchestras, Poznan Philharmonic Orchestra, Amadeus Chamber Orchestra of Polish Radio, Orchestre Métropolitain de Montréal, Korean Symphony Orchestra, and I Musici de Montréal. Mr. Richard-Hamelin is a student of André Laplante at the Conservatoire de Musique de Montréal and also works on a regular basis with Jean Saulnier. His first solo CD, which features late works by Chopin, was released on the Analekta label in September 2015.

17-year-old Tony Yike Yang has won the first prize at the Thomas and Evon Cooper International Piano Competition and the Bösendorfer and Yamaha USASU International Junior Piano Competition, and second prize at the Canadian Chopin Piano Competition in 2014, prior to the recent Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition win. Over the past few years, he had the privilege of performing extensively in Canada and the USA, as well as Europe and Asia, and one of his career highlights includes a performance for

Her Royal Highness Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall. Some of his important upcoming activities include a recording for CBC's "In Concert" as their Young Artist of 2016; performing in the Chopin Competition prize-winners' tour in Japan and Korea; recitals at the Bravo Niagara Music Festival, Lanaudière Festival, and Chopin and his Europe Festival; and collaborations with the Toronto Festival Orchestra and the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra. Mr. Yang is an alumnus of The Phil and Eli Taylor Academy of the Royal Conservatory of Music, where he studied for 6 years, primarily with James Anagnoson.

Tony Yike Yang and Charles Richard-Hamelin

Friday, January 15, 2016 at 7:30pm | Mazzoleni Concert Hall; $50

Tickets go on sale on Friday, December 18, 2015 at 10:00am

Tickets and subscriptions to Royal Conservatory of Music concerts

are available online at www.performance.rcmusic.ca,

by calling 416.408.0208, or in person at the Weston Family Box Office

A limited number of $10 BMO Rush Tickets are available starting 90 minutes before all performances presented by The Royal Conservatory.

All concerts take place at The Royal Conservatory of Music

TELUS Centre for Performance and Learning, 273 Bloor Street West, Toronto

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