Ein Moment mit … Pianistin Sarah Chan. Gewinnen Sie zum Abschluss der Konzertreihe „The Berlin Debuts“ Tickets für das Konzert in der Berliner Philharmonie

Nach zwei grandiosen Konzerten mit Junghee Ryu und Sunhwa Park in der Berliner Philharmonie folgt zum Abschluss Sarah Chan im Rahmen der Berlin Debuts Reihe. Chan ist unter anderem Preisträgerin des American Prize in Piano Performance und New Yorks Carnegie Emerging Artist Award. Neben ihrer Lehrtätigkeit an der California State University, tourt sie für ihre Konzerte durch Amerika und Europa.

Gewinnen Sie 3×2 Tickets für das Konzert am Montag, dem 27. April 2015, in der Berliner Philharmonie! Sagen Sie uns über die Kommentarfunktion bis Samstag, den 25. April, 16 Uhr, warum Sie gern beim Konzert dabei sein möchten.
Es entscheidet das Los*. *Der Rechtsweg ist ausgeschlossen

Ein Moment mit … Sarah Chan

Vor ihrem Konzert hatte Feuilletonscout Gelegenheit zu einem Interview mit der Künstlerin, in dem sie über die einmalige Ausdruckskraft von Musik spricht.

Feuilletonscout: You have won The American Prize in Piano Performance as well as New York’s Carnegie Emerging Artist Award. Of what importance are awards to you?
Sarah Chan: The premier priority in the realm of our art is to make music—that is, first to know music and then to express and communicate it—and this takes preeminence any time there is occasion to perform, be it in concert setting, in a private setting, in a competition, or in the process of working out music in a practice room or studio. Therefore, an honorable award should but simply be indicative, serving as a reflection of the quality of a musical performance that authentically informs the musical process at the highest level possible. To know music, or, more specifically, to love a piece of music, one must spend time together with it; to sense it, to study it, to draw out the essence of its compositional beauty in all its nuance, character, spirit, complexities, and simplicity. The highest respect of this art is to cherish at every turn the musical moment being shown by the composer’s wishes, reinterpreting a piece of music in real time with personal engagement that accurately understands and dynamically captivates the spirit and message of the piece, delivering it with honor to those who are there to listen. When one is thus engaged in music, one sees its beauty and the engagement of its beauty as the highest of performance honors. Indeed, I am extraordinarily humbled that others of great artistic caliber would bestow on my work artistic recognition, and as appreciative as I am of such honors, I am always mindful that external recognition is not the reason I engage in making music; it can, however, be a reflection that I do engage in music to a level that has great effect. Any honor associated with my musical performance and capacity therefore has always carried secondary importance next to a personal devotion to making the music happen. At the highest level, the value of the music making experience carries an intrinsic value, for making music is an experience and engagement wholly set apart, honored, and self-validated, needing no external recognition for its being.
Therefore, I have always considered the honor of awards and prizes to be simply external reflections of the dedication to the process of honoring the music rather than being tied to any meaning of seeking the “winning” itself. More than anything, I hope that any recognition bestowed on me would speak more as an indication that the music I was making was genuine and authentic to others.

Feuilletonscout: You teach and have taught at numerous universities. Is there any advice in particular you pass on to your students?
Sarah Chan: Dedication, passion, love for your work, commitment of focus, personal discipline, and relentless pursuit of excellence in what you do are some of the practical keys to success. The direction of your vision is very important. If you are committed to the process of growth, you will work hard to be there—there, meaning the objectives of your love to develop and flourish, even when it doesn’t look like you are exactly there at the given moment, and even if you encounter setbacks along the way. When you spend your life dedicated to growth, you are simply loving the music of life. You are preparing in such a way where you find yourself being neither idle nor aimlessly busy; you simply act on an inner desire to go for your best and to place at the forefront of priorities the dedication keep aligning your talents, abilities, passions, strengths, and goals as you work out all things (including strengthening your areas of weaknesses). Most of life is spent working out or working at things until there is a natural or resultant breakthrough—and, in the process, it’s important to not give up when things get hard or when they plateau. Preparation in the present is key to allowing yourself to be ready when future opportunities present themselves. You must also give yourself space to breathe along the way—time to enjoy life, relationships, and activities that feed your soul and spirit in most meaningful ways. Work hard, play hard, and go see the world so that you are always enlarging your capacity to give and to receive.

Feuilletonscout: On April 27 you will be playing pieces of music by two Spanish composers, Albeniz and Turina, who are not usually to be found in the popular concert repertoire in Germany. What fascinates you so much about them?
Sarah Chan: History is fascinating, and the musical heritage of mankind is rich and interesting. My exploration of Spanish Romantic Nationalist music, if one can call it that, derived originally from a personal curiosity and interest in the resonant cultural interchange resident among French-Spanish visual, architectural, and musical arts during the period of 1880s through the turn of the 20th c. During the years when I lived in France, I had much opportunity to absorb the vast richness of cultural and historic legacy which European history holds. It was after a particular visit to the Galeries Nationales du Grand Palais de France, at an exhibition on French and Spanish art and architecture of the said time period, that I became interested about the kind of musical interchange that must also have resonated among the French and Spanish at the end of the 19th-century. I thus began a journey of musical and historic research, discovering the rich artistic exchange and compositional output that resulted in this great artistic activity occurring among French and Spanish composers during the 19th century through the beginning of the 20th century. Engaging in an extended period of research and time, I embarked on a study of repertoire from Spanish and French music with piano professors of Le Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris and Le Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Lyon;I also engaged much research at institutions such as La Bibliothèque Nationale de France and L’Institut de Cervantes, additionally frequenting concert halls, flamenco halls, museums, and numerous historical sites in France and Spain to engage in a vital experience of the music, culture, and history undergirding this enormous output of musical genius. Needless to say, I discovered a treasure trove in studying the archives, music, and historical documents of Spanish and French composers. I discovered what the composers themselves had to say about their art, their artistic collaborations, their artistic ideas and exchanges, the time period in which they lived, their residencies in France and Spain, their musical friendships with their contemporaries, and the affected of such powerful encounters, musical conversation, absorption, and exchange. My research eventually culminated in a lecture-recital entitled, “Between Paris, Barcelona, and Madrid: Flourishing Musical Liaisons in French and Spanish Piano Music at the Dawn of the Twentieth Century”.

With specific regard to Spanish piano music, I became especially interested as to how the complexities of cultural idioms tied to Spanish sounds, scales and melodies, harmony, rhythms, timbres, textures, and narrative found their interpretive power through the medium of the piano, and with respect to the musical languages of both Spanish and French piano music by the turn of the 20th century. How did the parlance of such a rich cultural legacy as Spain possessed find itself integrally expressed and communicated with regard to the depth of regard for its land, cultures, peoples, heritage, and dramatic passion? As Spanish composers developed their work in France, how was their music affected by the language of their French counterparts and vice versa? How did the Spanish composers also begin developing a distinct voice within the trajectory of their own work? How did their music find distinct expression in the Romantic era, during a time when Spain had not yet developed a major musical voice within the realm of keyboard music? In what ways might the musical arts and culture of such Spanish composers have gained influence in France, as much as French music had gained a place in the soul of their Spanish counterparts? To what extent did the exploration of new sounds and musical landscapes contribute to both Spanish and French artistic culture, as had been previously unexplored?

In particular, I was very impressed by the artistic, cultural, and historic expression of Andalusian Spain: the atmospheric mystery and allure of Andalusian landscape and atmosphere, the dramatic and lamenting sorrow of cante jondo, the timbres of flamenco guitar (rasgueado, picar techniques and resultant sounds, for example), the rhythmic life of flamenco dance (seguidilla, habanera, palmas and pitos technique, etc.) and the various modes and timbres of musical operation (scalar implications in medieval, modal, and Moorish music of Spain, diverse instrumental techniques and sounds, etc.), and the wonder of historical narrative and folklore. I wanted to discover how these elements translated in sound, form, and process to work effectively as music written for the piano, an instrument not normally associated with Spanish music nor necessarily for it. How did Spanish composers such as Albeniz, Turina, de Falla, and Granados turn music of their personal and cultural heritage into a high language of art effective at the piano and for the piano? How did this music reach the world with both attraction and effect, causing other composers and musicians to follow suit in new explorations of soundscape? In the process of their productivity and success, these Romantic Spanish composers set a hallmark of musical resplendency, giving Spanish keyboard music a place of renown and distinction in world music history such as Spain had not experienced since the Baroque period.

Feuilletonscout: What are you planning on doing next Monday when you play in the Berliner Philharmonie for the first time and – completely in line with the NYCA – explore new artistic avenues?
Sarah Chan: I am deeply honored by this occasion to perform in the Berlin Philharmonic Hall. To play in a place that carries such weight of beauty and significance in world musical history is incredibly humbling as much as it is invigorating. It is a great honor to share the love of music with others who appreciate the value of art and life, and to engage together in the process of exploration, innovation, creativity, and marvel. I look forward to next Monday’s concert with great delight and thank the audience in advance for this opportunity for shared conversation spoken from the heart, soul, and spirit.

I am also excited to be exploring new artistic avenues with NYCA, an association that remains creative and forward-looking. NYCA is dynamic and visionary about cultivating vital relationships with great music and artistic culture, supporting musicians in visionary artistic endeavors, and bringing a vitality of musical experience to a global audience in an ever-changing world. I am honored to partner with NYCA in bringing music of timeless virtue and value to audiences worldwide, in diverse settings, and with creative purpose.

Thank you very much, Sarah Chan!

Sarah Chan, Klavierkonzert
27. April 2015, 20 Uhr, Kammermusiksaal der Berliner Philharmonie
Herbert-von-Karajan-Str. 1
10785 Berlin

Programm

Claude Debussy
Bruyères aus Préludes, Buch II
La Soirée dans Grenade aus Estampes

Isaac Albéniz
Asturias aus der Suite Espagnole Nr. 1 op. 47

Joaquín Turina
Seguiriya aus Danzas Gitanas op. 84

Isaac Albéniz
El Albaicín aus Iberia, Buch III

Frédéric Chopin
Barcarolle Fis-Dur op. 60
Sechs Etüden aus op. 25 und op. 10
Ballade Nr. 3 As-Dur op. 47

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