Tony Yan Tong Chen CD Launch Piano Recital with TrioZeus

Lewis Eady Charitable Trust proudly presents a piano recital of Russian, Spanish, and Hungarian classical music, celebrating the launch of Tony Yan Tong Chen’s debut album with Rattle records, “Homecoming” - joined by Ben van Leuven (clarinet) and Diane Huh (violin).

TrioZeus is a collaboration conceived through the Young Artist Program of the Wakatipu Music Festival. These artists have experienced significant disruption to continuing their educational pursuits overseas due to the pandemic.

Programme
John Psathas Jettatura 5

Sergei Prokofiev Piano Sonata No. 3 in A minor, Op. 23 8

Sergei Prokofiev Piano Sonata No. 7 in B flat major, Op. 83 17

I. Allegro Inquieto

II. Andante Caloroso

III. Precipitato

Interval

Enrique Granados Allegro de Concierto 8

Isaac Albéniz El Corpus en Sevilla 8

Zoltán Kodály Dances of Marosszek 10

- Tony Yan Tong Chen, Piano

Béla Bartók Contrasts 15

I. Verbunkos (Recruiting Dance)

II. Pihenő (Relaxation)

III. Sebes (Fast Dance)

Bios
Tony Yan Tong Chen - Piano
Born in Auckland, Tony began piano studies at the age of 5, and commenced lessons on violin, trumpet, and french horn shortly after. At the age of 21, his debut solo piano album “Homecoming” has recently been conceived and released with Rattle Records. As a Young Artist, he has concertised at the Wakatipu and Akaroa Music Festivals in New Zealand, as well as at prominent venues in Switzerland, Spain, and Canada where he also studied at summer programs with distinguished musical artists.

Tony has been pursuing an undergraduate degree at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester New York with Prof. Alan Chow, and is a recipient of the Martha Stone Scholarship, the Dame Malvina Major Foundation Alice Cole piano award, and Waikanae Music Scholarship. He was the winner of the 2019 Wallace National Piano Competition, and has since appeared as a concerto soloist with the Bach Musica Orchestra and Nelson Symphony. His academic accomplishments include CIE Top Achiever Award for the highest mark in New Zealand for AS and A Level Music, NZQA Scholarships in Music and English Literature, and the 2019 fall Dean’s list at Eastman. He is a graduate of Macleans College and the University of Auckland Young Scholars Program.

Diane Huh - Violin
Diane grew up in a musical family and began learning the violin at the age of seven. Among her many successes in 2019, Diane won; the Michael Hill International Violin Competition NZ Emerging Artist Award, the National Concerto Competition, the University of Auckland Graduate Gala competition, Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra’s Young Soloist of the Year prize and Chiron’s Young Artist scholarship. Her chamber group, the Korimako Piano trio, won the Royal Overseas League Chamber Competition and participated in a five-week cultural experience in the United Kingdom. After being selected as Concertmaster for the University of Auckland Symphony Orchestra, Diane crowned 2019 by graduating from the University of Auckland with a First Class Honours degree in Music.

Ben Van Leuven - Clarinet
Ben began playing Clarinet in 2012, and studies with Patrick Barry at the New Zealand School of Music in Wellington. Ben plans to commence study at the Norwegian Academy of Music in August 2021, to study with Clarinettist Björn Nyman. In 2020, he was a semi-finalist in both the National Concerto Competition, and the Gisborne International Music Competition where he was also awarded the Prof. Jack Richards Woodwind/Brass prize.

Ben is currently Principal Clarinet in both the NZSO New Zealand National Youth Orchestra and Wellington Youth Orchestra, and has also served as Principal Clarinet in the New Zealand Secondary Schools Symphony Orchestra. As a chamber musician, Ben recently performed as a Young Artist at the Wakatipu Music Festival, was a National finalist and multiple prizewinner in the NZCT National Chamber music contest in both 2018 and 2019.