Marc-André Hamelin’s unique blend of musicianship and virtuosity brings forth interpretations that are remarkable for their freedom, originality, and prodigious mastery of the piano’s resources. Long known for his bold exploration of unfamiliar pianistic terrain, Mr. Hamelin has increasingly turned his attention to the established masterworks of the piano literature, in performances and recordings of the piano sonatas of Haydn, major works by Mozart, Schumann, Brahms, Chopin and others.
Highlights of 2009/10 include dates with the symphony orchestras of Boston, Montreal, San Francisco, Minnesota, and Indianapolis, and recitals for the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, San Francisco Performances, the Van Cliburn Foundation, La Jolla Music Society, Maine Center for the Arts, the 92nd Street Y in New York City, Club Musical de Quebec, and elsewhere.
In Europe, Mr. Hamelin returns to Wigmore Hall, and plays recitals in Amsterdam, Stuttgart, Glasgow, Berlin and throughout Italy and Spain. Concerto dates include the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Orquesta Sinfonica de Valencia, and the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra, with whom he performs and records the Strauss Burlesque and Max Reger Piano Concerto for Hyperion. He also tours Australia in recital and orchestral performances.
Mr. Hamelin opened the Aspen Music Festival’s 2009 season, appeared at the Ravinia, Salzburg, Aldeburgh, Domaine Forget, and Santa Fe Chamber Music festivals, and joined the New York Philharmonic for Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue” and “I’ve Got Rhythm” Variations.
In March 2009 the Pro Musica Society of Montreal marked its 60th anniversary season celebrating The Art of Marc-André Hamelin with a week of concerts, featuring Mr. Hamelin performing chamber music, a solo recital and Beethoven and Haydn concerti. Additionally, throughout 2008/09, Mr. Hamelin toured with the Takács String Quartet, performing the Schumann Piano Quintet in North America and in Europe, and recording the work for Hyperion Records. In fall 2008 Mr. Hamelin embarked on a tour of Asia and Australia for concerts with the orchestras of Singapore, Malaysia and Melbourne, finishing with a pair of recitals in Hong Kong.
Other recent highlights include a series of dates at New York City’s Lincoln Center – with Louis Langrée and the festival orchestra for Mostly Mozart, in recital for the “Great Performers” series, in chamber concerts with Midori, and playing Haydn and Mozart concerti with Sir Neville Marriner and the Academy of St. Martin the Fields. Mr. Hamelin has performed recitals for Chicago Symphony Presents, Celebrity Series of Boston, WPAS in Washington, D.C., San Francisco Performances, Wigmore Hall’s London Pianoforte Series, the Schubert Club in St. Paul, and the Irving S. Gilmore International Keyboard Festival, et al. Orchestral dates have included the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the Montreal Symphony, the National Arts Center Orchestra, the New Jersey Symphony, the North Carolina Symphony, the Pacific Symphony, the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Saint Louis Symphony, the San Francisco Symphony and the Seattle Symphony. Mr. Hamelin appears regularly in recital and with orchestras throughout Europe, in Australia, and in the Far East.
Under exclusive contract with Hyperion Records, Mr. Hamelin has received 8 Grammy nominations including a 2008 nomination for Marc-André Hamelin in a state of jazz (CDA67656). His latest release (August 2009), Haydn: Piano Sonatas, Vol. 2 (CDA67710), follows up the critically acclaimed first installment. He has recorded over thirty-five CDs for Hyperion, a collection that includes concertos and works for solo piano by composers such as Alkan, Busoni, Godowsky, and Medtner, as well as brilliantly received performances of Brahms, Haydn, Liszt and Schumann.
Mr. Hamelin was recently presented with a lifetime achievement prize by the German Record Critic’s Award (Preis der deutschen Schallplattenkritik) and was made an Officer of the Order of Canada in 2003 and a Chevalier de l’Ordre du Québec in 2004; he is also a member of the Royal Society of Canada. He makes his home in Boston.
(January 2010. Please discard previously dated materials and contact publicity@colbertartists.com before making any alterations or cuts.)
