WU HAN

2008/ 09 Full Biography (549 Words)


Pianist Wu Han ranks among the most esteemed and influential classical musicians in the world today. Wu Han’s career has taken her to many of the world’s most prestigious venues, including Wigmore Hall in London; New York’s Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Morgan Library, and 92nd Street Y; Washinton’s Kennedy Center and Library of Congress; Boston’s Symphony Hall; Cleveland’s Severance Hall; and major concert series in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia and Seattle. Wu Han’s international tours have led her to England, Germany, Austria, Spain, Denmark, Japan, and to her native Taiwan, and she appears regularly at the summer festivals of Aspen, Santa Fe, Chamber Music Northwest, Caramoor, and Music@Menlo. Wu Han is a frequent collaborator with many of today’s finest musicians and ensembles, including the Borromeo, St. Lawrence, and Emerson String Quartets.

As duo pianist with cellist David Finckel, Wu Han has performed around the world to unanimous critical acclaim. Last season, the duo gave the world premiere of Pierre Jalbert’s Cello Sonata at the Aspen Music Festival. A new work for cello and piano by award-winning composer George Tsontakis is scheduled to be performed by Wu Han and David Finckel during the 2008-2009 season. Past performance highlights include three Wigmore Hall appearances, duo performances of the complete Beethoven cycle in Tokyo and New York, and at the summer festivals of Aspen, Santa Fe and Chamber Music Northwest, as well as recitals in Germany and at Finland’s Kuhmo Festival. Wu Han has been a regular faculty member of the Aspen Music Festival and the Isaac Stern International Chamber Music Workshop at Carnegie Hall and the Jerusalem Music Center.

Wu Han’s wide-ranging musical activities also include the founding of ArtistLed, classical music’s first musician-directed and Internet-based recording company, which, in 2007, celebrated its tenth year (www.ArtistLed.com). The label's “Russian Classics” recording received BBC Music Magazine's coveted “Editor's Choice” Award. ArtistLed’s recent release, “Russian Recital” features works by Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninov, and Scriabin, and marks Wu Han’s first full-length solo recording for the label. This season, ArtistLed releases its eleventh album, a recording of the Schubert piano trios, featuring David Finckel, Wu Han, and violinist Philip Setzer.

David Finckel and Wu Han have served as Artistic Directors of The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center since 2004. In recent years, they have become widely recognized for their initiatives in expanding audiences for classical music, and for guiding the careers of countless young musicians. They are also the founders and Artistic Directors of Music@Menlo, a chamber music festival in Silicon Valley that has garnered international acclaim since its inception in 2003. Prior to launching Music@Menlo, Wu Han and David Finckel served for three seasons as Artistic Directors of SummerFest La Jolla.

Wu Han began her musical studies at the age of nine, and within a few years took first prizes in all the major competitions in Taiwan. She was a participant for two summers at the Marlboro Music Festival, and her teachers include Raymond Hanson, Rudolf Serkin, Herbert Stessin, Lilian Kallir, and Menahem Pressler. Wu Han lives in New York with her husband, David Finckel, and their fourteen-year-old daughter, Lilian.