Canceled

Han Chen plays Adés 

Since winning the Gold Medal at the 2013 China International Piano Competition, Han Chen has emerged among the new generation of concert pianists as a uniquely fearless performer in a wide variety of musical settings. Praised by Gramophone as “impressively commanding and authoritative” and further cited by The New York Times for his “graceful touch,” “rhythmic precision,” and “hypnotic charm,” Chen’s virtuosity is enriched by a probing commitment to new and lesser-known works, as well as the great cornerstones of the piano repertory. This vision is clearly evident in his four solo Naxos CDs focusing on Franz Liszt, Anton Rubinstein, Thomas Adès, and more recently, György Ligeti’s Complete Piano Études. As soloist with orchestra, Chen’s appearances include the Calgary Philharmonic, Fort Worth Symphony, Lexington Philharmonic, Hong Kong Philharmonic, National Taiwan Symphony, China Symphony and Xiamen Philharmonic. He made his Lincoln Center debut with Riverside Symphony at Alice Tully Hall in December 2022 performing Mozart’s early masterwork, the Piano Concerto No. 9 le Jeunehomme. In addition, he has performed as recitalist throughout Europe, North America, China, and Taiwan.

Alban Berg - Piano Sonata Op. 1 (1907-09)

John Corigliano - Etude-Fantasy (1976)

Thomas Adès - Traced Overhead (1996)

Maurice Ravel - Gaspard de la nuit (1908)

hanchenpiano.com, @hanchenpiano

Notes from the curator: Ethan Iverson

There are two hour-long concerts every night at 7:30 and 9, more like jazz practice than classical convention. We expect to turn the room over (there are only 60 seats) so most of those who are performing formally notated works will probably play the same program twice (a comparatively rare opportunity to enjoy such a liberating sequence)

Sat 17 Han Chen is a major virtuoso and has carved out a vital place in the NYC scene. When Thomas Adès gave a master class at New England Conservatory several years ago, I cancelled my own NEC students in order to go check it out. Chen played Adès’s “Traced Overhead” and the composer told him, “You play it better than me.” The whole Naxos recital of Adès by Chen is marvelous. At Soapbox, Chen will play “Traced Overhead” alongside further masterpieces by Berg, Corigliano, and Ravel.