August 9, 2005
Tuesday, 8 PM
Lecture by Nai Yuan Hu
Nai-Yuan Hu, violin
J.S. Bach: D minor Partita for unaccompanied violin, BWV 1004
Lecture-Concert
Nai-Yuan Hu, Violin
Since winning the First Prize in the prestigious Queen
Elisabeth International Competition of Belgium in 1985, violinist Nai-Yuan Hu has appeared
on many of the worlds stages, including the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, Avery Fisher
Hall in New York and major venues in London, Paris, Munich, Tokyo and other cities in
Europe, North and South Americas and Asia. In praise of his playing, BBC Music Magazine
wrote, Taiwanese violinist Nai-Yuan Hu is an awesomely capable performer whose
technical facility, musical intelligence and unfaltering verve place him among the higher
echelons of todays string virtuosi.
Mr. Hus solo engagements include appearances with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
of London, Toronto Symphony, Seattle Symphony, Netherland and Rotterdam Philharmonic
orchestras, Liège Philharmonic, Orchestre National de Lille in France, Haifa Symphony,
Austro-Hungarian Haydn Chamber Orchestra, Tokyo Philharmonic and Tokyo Metropolitan
Symphony, the National Symphony Orchestra of Taiwan, Taipei City Symphony, Hong Kong
Philharmonic and others. With the Belgian National Orchestra, he toured throughout Germany
in such cities as Munich, Hannover and Dortmund. He has collaborated with such conductors
as George Cleve, Adam Fischer, Leon Fleisher, Gunther Herbig, Emmanuel Krivine, Jahja
Ling, Jean-Bernard Pommier, Gerard Schwarz, and Maxim Shostakovich, among others.
Mr. Hu has given recitals in such venues as Alice Tully Hall and Weill Recital Hall in New
York, Cité de la Musique in Paris, Purcell Room in London, Casals Hall in Tokyo, and
Jordan Hall in Boston where he premiered Bright Shengs The Stream Flows
in 1990. Other engagements include appearances in Los Angeles, Washington D.C., Dallas,
Montreal, Toronto, Brussels, Antwerp, Rotterdam, The Hague, Toledo (Spain), Bergen
(Norway), Seoul, Hong Kong, Beijing and Shanghai. In Taiwan, he was the featured soloist
in the 1987 Inaugural Concert of the National Concert Hall and played for two successive
presidents Lee Teng-hui and Chen Shui-bien in the Presidential Palace concerts.
In summer seasons, Mr. Hu has appeared either as a guest soloist or chamber music artist
in such festivals as Mostly Mozart, Marlboro, Grand Teton, Waterloo, Seattle, and Newport.
A chamber music enthusiast, he has collaborated with such musicians as Fou Tsong,
Martha Argerich, and Misha Maisky in the 1999 Beijing Music Festival and participated in
the Lincoln Center Chamber Music Society concerts and Brooklyns Bargemusic series.
Mr. Hu is the music director of Taiwan Connection, a music festival he started in his
homeland in 2004, dedicated to promoting chamber music.
Released by Delos International, Mr. Hus recording of Goldmarks Concerto and
Bruchs Concerto No. 2 with Gerard Schwarz and the Seattle Symphony garnered
Critics Choice from Gramophone as well as praises from many publications
including BBC Music Magazine, The Times of London, and The Washington Post. His solo
violin album Unaccompanied
on EMI label (with cover and art work by the popular
Taiwanese cartoonist Jimmy) received two Golden Melody Awards in Taiwan for best classical
album and best instrumentalist. His Vienna Revisted, containing much beloved music from
that fin-de siècle city, was released late in 2003. Mr. Hu has made recordings for Koch
and Sunrise.
In 2001, Mr. Hu appeared in a cameo role as the rooftop violinist serenading Meg Ryan and
Hugh Jackman in the Miramax romantic comedy, Kate & Leopold. In that same year, he
collaborated with Lin Hwai-min and his Cloud Gate Dance Theater, performing Taiwanese
composer Hsu Tsang-Houeis Five Preludes for Solo Violin in an outdoor presentation
that was attended by over ten thousand people.
Born in Taiwan, Mr. Hu began studying the violin at age five and was soloist with the
National Youth Orchestra of Taiwan three years later. He came to the United States in 1972
to continue his studies, first with Broadus Erle and later with Joseph Silverstein. At
Indiana University, he studied with Josef Gingold and also served as Gingolds
assistant after graduation. Mr. Hu and his wife June Huang currently live in New York
City.
Summer Music Festival