About Yuja Wang, piano
Pianist Yuja Wang is celebrated for her charismatic artistry, emotional honesty and captivating stage presence. She has performed with the world’s most venerated conductors, musicians and ensembles and is renowned not only for her virtuosity, but her spontaneous and lively performances, famously telling the New York Times, “I firmly believe every program should have its own life, and be a representation of how I feel at the moment.”
Her skill and charisma were recently demonstrated in a marathon Rachmaninoff performance at Carnegie Hall alongside conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin and Philadelphia Orchestra. This historic event celebrating 150 years since the birth of Rachmaninoff, included performances of all four of his concertos plus the Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini in one afternoon and saw queues around the block for tickets on the day. Wang also performed the world premiere of Magnus Lindberg’s Piano Concerto No. 3 with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra and further performances of the work throughout North America and Europe.
Wang was born into a musical family in Beijing. After childhood piano studies in China, she received advanced training in Canada and at the Curtis Institute of Music under Gary Graffman. Her international breakthrough came in 2007, when she replaced Martha Argerich as soloist with the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Two years later, she signed an exclusive contract with Deutsche Grammophon, and has since established her place among the world’s leading artists, with a succession of critically acclaimed performances and recordings. She was named Musical America’s Artist of the Year in 2017, and in 2021 received an Opus Klassik Award for her world-premiere recording of John Adams’ Must the Devil Have All the Good Tunes? with the Los Angeles Philharmonic under the baton of Gustavo Dudamel.
As a chamber musician, Wang has developed long-lasting partnerships with several leading artists. This season, she embarks on a highly-anticipated international duo recital tour with pianist Víkingur Ólafsson with performances in world-class venues across North America and Europe, which will once again showcase her flair, technical ability and exceptional artistry in a wide-ranging program.
About Víkingur Ólafsson, piano
Icelandic pianist Víkingur Ólafsson has captured the public and critical imagination with profound musicianship and visionary programs. One of the most sought-after artists of today, Ólafsson’s recordings for Deutsche Grammophon have led to almost one billion streams and garnered numerous awards, including BBC Music Magazine Album of the Year and Opus Klassik Solo Recording of the Year (twice). Other notable honors include Rolf Schock Music Prize, Gramophone’s Artist of the Year and Order of the Falcon (Iceland’s order of chivalry) as well as the Icelandic Export Award given by the president of Iceland.
In a landmark move, Ólafsson devoted his entire last season to a world tour of a single work, J.S. Bach’s Goldberg Variations, performing it 88 times to great critical acclaim. The 2024-25 season will see Ólafsson as Artist-in-Residence with Tonhalle Zürich and Royal Stockholm Philharmonic as well as Artist-in-Focus at the Musikverein in Vienna. He will tour in Europe with the Cleveland Orchestra, London Philharmonic Orchestra and Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich, perform with the Berliner Philharmoniker at the BBC Proms and return to the New York Philharmonic. He joins forces with Yuja Wang for a highly anticipated two piano recital tour across Europe and North America and, in January 2025, will give the world premiere of John Adams’ After the Fall with San Francisco Symphony Orchestra, a piano concerto written especially for him. In spring 2025, Ólafsson will perform his new piano recital, the last three sonatas of Beethoven, on multiple dates across the US and Europe.