PRESS RELEASE
UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL ARKANSAS
COLLEGE OF FINE ARTS AND COMMUNICATION
October 2, 2012
Contact: Israel Getzov, (501) 450-5761, israelg@uca.edu
PIANIST JUE WANG TO BE IN RESIDENCE, PERFORM WITH CONWAY SYMPHONY
By Carissa Gan
College of Fine Arts and Communication Media Office
CONWAY — Jue Wang, a renowned Shanghai pianist, will visit the University of Central Arkansas as Artist in Residence and perform with the Conway Symphony Orchestra in the Donald. W. Reynolds Performance Hall on Tuesday, Oct. 23.
The CSO concert is set for 7.30 p.m.
Israel Getzov, director of orchestras at UCA, will conduct the CSO, which will play “Symphony No. 5” by Beethoven, a popular classical composition. Wang will perform “Chopin Piano Concert No. 1,” a 35-minute piece colored with grace and vivacity.
Wang, 28, began performing concerts throughout China when he was 10. According to www.independent.co.uk, Wang used to commute 12 miles every day on the back of his mother’s bicycle for piano lessons.
Today, he studies at the Manhattan School of Music under the supervision of Dr. Marc Silverman in the Artist Diploma program.
Wang placed first in the XVth Paloma O’Shea Santander International Piano Competition, which sparked fame and a series of successful debuts. As the winner of the prestigious competition, he was entitled to a generous cash prize, a recording by Naxos and concert and recital tours that led him to Madrid, where he performed at the Auditorio Nacional de Música and to Valencia, where he had his concert debut at the Palau des Arts with the Palau des Arts Orchestra and Maestro Zubin Mehta. He also performed at Carnegie Hall in New York and at London’s Wigmore Hall.
Wang has been praised by critics such as Diario Córdoba and Heraldo de Aragón for his “self-confidence and concentration on the stage… his confidence and maturity are evident during his performances” and his “unusual clarity and brilliance.”
Getzov said Wang’s experience sets him apart from other pianists.
“He’s performed all over the world,” Getzov said. “He has had phenomenal training in Shanghai and studied in New York. He’s on top of his field.”
He said pianists develop their own style through pacing, breathing, energy, their vision of the piece and their personality.
“His style of playing is expressive,” Getzov said. “He is really an expert at intimate-sounding pieces. He’s a very sensitive artist and plays subtly but with very fast fingers.
As part of the UCA residency, Wang will also conduct piano masterclasses in the Snow Fine Arts building on Oct. 22 at 9:30 a.m. and Oct. 23 at 2:40 p.m. There will be an open question-and-answer session at 1:40 on Oct. 23.
“Basically, piano students will perform for him and he will coach them,” Getzov said. “Anyone is welcome to join.”
The Artist in Residence program is funded by UCA’s arts fee and administered by the College of Fine Arts and Communication. For more information, call the Office of the Dean, College of Fine Arts and Communication, at (501) 450-3293 or e-mail jdmiller@uca.edu.
Tickets for the CSO concert range from $20-$38 for adults, $12 for UCA faculty and staff with I.D. and $6 for college students with IDs and children 18 and under.
For more information about the concert or the residency activities, contact Getzov at (501) 450-5761, israelg@uca.edu.
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