Andrew J. Yang
Andrew J. Yang (October 29, 1992) is an American pianist and composer who has been described by The San Francisco Examiner as “a prodigy, [running] the emotional gamut from brooding introspection to manic exuberance”.[1][2]
Contents
Early Life
Andrew J. Yang was born and raised in California, Yang began piano lessons at the age of five with Sumi Nagasawa. After taking a break from piano, he rediscovered a passion for playing the piano at the age of 13 when he began studying with William Wellborn at the San Francisco Conservatory Preparatory Division. Yang then received a B.A. in Economics and B.M. in Piano Performance in the five-year dual-degree program at Northwestern University as a student of James Giles. Upon graduation with a M.M. in Piano Performance from Mannes School of Music, while studying with Pavlina Dokovska, he received the 2017 Steinway & Sons Award, a top distinction given to an outstanding pianist which came with a monetary award sponsored by Steinway. In 2019, Yang began studies with Antoinette Perry at USC Thornton School of Music, pursuing a D.M.A. doctoral degree on full tuition scholarship and stipend as a graduate teaching assistant, where as one of the two Studio T.A.´s, he taught both undergraduate and graduate piano major students. Other teachers and mentors include Ruth Slenczynska, Dang Thai Son, Audrey Axinn, Julian Dawson, and Adam Wibrowski. He has also received numerous scholarships to study and perform at many summer festivals, including the Berkshire High Peaks Festival, Austrian International Piano Festival and Seminar, Krakow Piano Summer, Academy of Fortepiano Performance, Rebecca Penneys Piano Festival, Gijon International Piano Festival, Centre d’Arts Orford, and Banff Centre.[3]
Career
In 2019, Yang was awarded the top prize at the 30th FLAME International Piano Competition in Paris, France. In 2018, he was awarded the "White Rose" Medal of Honor from the President of Finland, Sauli Niinistö, for musical excellence. Yang was a finalist in the 2018 Serge & Olga Koussevitzky Piano Competition in New York City and has also been awarded various prizes and awards at the Metropolitan International Piano Competition, Euregio Piano International Competition in Germany, Five Towns Piano Competition, International Heida Hermanns Piano Competition, Thaviu-Issac Piano Competition, Los Angeles International Liszt Competition, Evanston Music Club Competition, and the San Francisco Chopin Competition for Young Pianists. His performances have been heard over radio broadcast on Rás 1 RÚV,WUSF 89.7 and WIOX 93.1, and television broadcast on N1 Neiderosterreich (Austria). Lauded as "inspiring, drawing the audience into a spell" by Geilenkirchener Zeitung (Germany) and regarded by Meinbezirk (Austria) as "a young American pianist of special class", Yang creates a deep connection with audiences through his personally involved and philosophical approach to music. Julian Dawson, Former Associate Conductor of the Royal Scottish National Orchestra and the Glyndebourne Festival Opera said of Yang: "He has a remarkable talent, [with an] innate musical understanding combined with a fine technical facility." Audrey Axinn, faculty at Mannes and Juilliard, remarks: “[Yang is] a special musician [and] an extremely talented and accomplished pianist. His playing is consistently soulful and poetic; he plays with power and polish”.[4]
Specializing in the music of R. Schumann, Brahms, Rachmaninoff, Chopin, Prokofiev, and Schubert, Yang in recent years has also forayed deeply into the music of Liszt, Scriabin, Albéniz, Mompou, Scarlatti, and Gubaidulina. In addition, he works extensively with two of the most luminary and important composers of today: Myung Hwang Park, currently studying at Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique de Paris with Thierry Escaich, and South African Braam van Eeden, a student of Lowell Liebermann. Park’s Echoes from no man's lake (2018) and Grandioso (2017), and van Eeden’s Ten Miniatures (2016) were dedicated to Yang. In 2015, Yang gave the world premiere of solo piano works by Stephen Kleiman at Ruggles Hall (Chicago), commissioned by the Newberry Library. In 2017, Yang performed John Cage's Atlas Eclipticalis at the MoMA (Museum of Modern Art in NYC) with Bang on a Can. He has also worked on improvisation with Grammy-award winning classical/jazz pianist, Uri Caine. In 2021, Yang commissioned Myung Hwang Park to write a new solo piano work. Please visit Park and Eeden's respective websites here: www.myunghwangpark.com; www.braamvaneeden.com.[5]
Yang is appreciative of the integrity and kindness of his parents. A former competitive athlete, Yang pursued an amateur boxing career, training out of John's Boxing Gym in the Bronx, NY, with "Shabazz" Lorenzo Sidberry, coached of multiple IBF world champions. Yang also trains M.M.A., most recently at Modern Martial Arts and Fitness in Pasadena, C.A., with Justen Hamilton and Savannah Em. He was on the Northwestern Boxing Team (2010-2011) and his high school basketball and badminton teams as an all-county athlete. In addition, Yang is a classically trained violinist and an amateur singer, guitarist, and producer. He played violin in Peninsula Youth Orchestra for almost ten years and sang in the Northwestern University Chapel Choir. Yang was the coordinator of the inaugural 2019 SFZP International Fortepiano Project and Competition in New York City. When not practicing piano or composing, he enjoys watching (almost) every UFC fight card, cooking, and reading.[6]
External Links
References
- ↑ https://www.codalario.com/andrew-yang/noticias-2016/andrew-yang--el-joven-pianista-californiano-de-23-anos-que-esta-de-gira-de-por-europa_4376_88_12634_0_1_in.html
- ↑ https://www.crunchbase.com/person/andrew-j-yang
- ↑ https://www.frettabladid.is/lifid/stofnadi-althjodlega-pianohatid-a-patreksfirdi/
- ↑ https://skessuhorn.is/2021/07/23/spilar-verk-eftir-brahms-og-liszt-i-hallgrimskirkju-a-sunnudaginn/
- ↑ https://noontimeconcerts.org/concerts/andrew-j-yang-piano/
- ↑ https://www.icelandpianofestival.com/andrewjyang
