Conductor James DePreist leads the Juilliard Orchestra in works by Chen Yi, Prokofiev, and Berlioz on Saturday, February 23 at 8 PM in Carnegie Hall

Juilliard pianist Stephen Beus is soloist in Prokofiev Piano Concerto No. 3

Conductor James DePreist leads the Juilliard Orchestra on Saturday, February 23, 2008 at 8 PM in Carnegie Hall (57th Street and Seventh Avenue). The program features Chen Yi’s Ge Xu (Antiphony) for orchestra (1994); Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto No. 3 in C Major, Op. 26 with Juilliard pianist Stephen Beus; and Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique, Op. 14. 
      
Tickets are $25 (parquet, first and second tiers) and $10 (dress circle and balcony). Half-price discounts are available for students and seniors. Tickets are available at the Carnegie Hall Box Office or through CarnegieCharge at (212) 247-7800 or www.carnegiehall.org.

Chen Yi’s Ge Xu (Antiphony) (1994) was written for chamber orchestra and had its world premiere on January 28, 1995 in Berkeley, California with The Women’s Philharmonic, conducted by JoAnn Falletta. Of the work, Chen Yi remarked: “To celebrate the Chinese lunar New York or Mid-Autumn Festival, Zhuang minority people in Southern China often gather in the fields and sing mountain songs in solo, choral, or antiphonal forms. In the antiphonal singing, distinct groups or individuals make up the texts in the style of antithetical couplets, almost like competition between the two. Witnessing this vivid scene inspired me to write music for keeping high spirits and ideal hopes alive.”

Recipient of the prestigious Charles Ives Living Award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters (2001-04), Chen Yi has served as the Lorena Searcey Cravens/Millsap/Missouri Distinguished Professor in Music Composition from the Conservatory of the University of Missouri-Kansas City since 1998. Prior to her current appointment, she served on the composition faculty of the Peabody Conservatory at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore (1996-98). Born in Guangzhou, China, Chen Yi received music degrees from the Beijing Central Conservatory (BA and MA) and Columbia University in NYC (DMA). Dr. Chen’s major composition teachers included Professors Chou Wen-chung, Mario Davidovsky, Wu Zu-qiang and Alexander Goehr. She was the first woman to receive a master’s degree in composition in China in June, 1986 when she presented a full evening concert of her orchestral works in Beijing. By combining Chinese and Western traditions, Chen Yi transcends cultural and musical boundaries and serves as an ambassador for the arts, creating music that reaches a wide range of audiences and inspires people of different cultural backgrounds.

Described by the Fort Worth Star Telegram as a pianist of “artistic instinct and natural charisma,” Stephen Beus is recognized as one of the most promising pianists of his generation. He won first prize in the 2006 Gina Bachauer International Piano Competition, first place in the Vendome Prize International Competition (Lisbon), and he was awarded the Max I. Allen Fellowship of the American Pianists Association (Indianapolis). 

Mr. Beus’ 2007-08 season includes appearances with the Indianapolis, Salt Lake, Walla Walla, Yakima (WA), and Muncie (IN) Symphonies, and he will perform in Casablanca and Marrakech with the Philharmonic Orchestra of Morocco. He will also be appearing in solo performances in the Salle Gaveau, Salle Cortot (Paris), San Carlo (Naples), Merkin Hall, as well as in Miami, Nevada City (CA), Phoenix, and St. George. He is scheduled to perform for the Chamber Music Society of Fort Worth and with the Jupiter Players in New York City. The fourth of eight children, Mr. Beus was born and raised in Othello, Washington and started piano lessons at age five. Four years later, he made his orchestral debut playing Mozart’s Piano Concerto, K. 488. He holds degrees from Whitman College and Juilliard, where his teachers have included Leonard Richter and Robert McDonald.

James DePreist is Director of Conducting and Orchestral Studies at Juilliard. Appointed in 2004, he selects via audition and trains an expected class of three to five young conductors annually in addition to leading up to five of the fourteen to sixteen New York concerts by the School’s orchestra during each season. Named permanent conductor of the Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra in 2005, Mr. DePreist has served as music director of L’Orchestre Symphonique de Québec, Sweden’s Malmo Symphony, L’Orchestre Philharmonique de Monte Carlo, and the Oregon Symphony; he has toured and recorded extensively during his tenure with each orchestra. He currently is laureate music director of the Oregon Symphony. As a guest conductor, Mr. DePreist has appeared with every major orchestra in North America, as well as leading orchestras throughout Europe, Australia, Israel, and Asia. He appears regularly at the Aspen Music Festival, with the Boston Symphony at Tanglewood, and with The Philadelphia Orchestra at the Mann Music Center. Mr. DePreist’s more than 50 recordings reflect a broad range of repertoire including a celebrated Shostakovich series with the Helsinski Philharmonic. He also has released 15 recordings with the Oregon Symphony, which have helped establish that orchestra as one of America’s finest. A champion of new music, he also has recorded works by composers including Zwilich, Schuller, Gubaidulina, Kancheli, Menotti, Sallinen, Schnittke, Schwantner, and Tsontakis. His latest CD features Mahler’s Symphony No. 5 with the London Symphony Orchestra on the Naxos label. 
      
Mr. DePreist has been awarded 13 honorary doctorates and is the author of two published books of poetry. He is an elected fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the Royal Swedish Academy of Music; is a recipient of the Insignia of Commander of the Order of the Lion of Finland and the Medal of the City of Québec; and is an Officer of the Order of Cultural Merit of Monaco. In 2005, Mr. DePreist was awarded the National Medal of Arts, the highest award given to artists and arts patrons by the United States government.

The next concert in the Juilliard Orchestra series features conductor Roberto Abbado leading the Juilliard Orchestra on Monday, March 31 at 8 PM in Avery Fisher Hall. The program features Busoni’s Berceuse élégiaque, Op. 42; Bartók’s Piano Concerto No. 3 in E Major (soloist to be announced); and Mahler’s Symphony No. 1 in D Major. Tickets are $20 and $10 and available at the Avery Fisher Hall Box Office or through CenterCharge at (212) 721-6500. Free tickets for students and seniors are available only at the Box Office.

Juilliard presents more than 700 dance, drama, and music events annually. During ongoing renovations, a full calendar of performances is scheduled. For a complete listing of events, as well as construction updates, go to www.juilliard.edu.