| Our 37th season Where Coast Meets Cadence will be held July 23-August 3 in Edwards Hall at the University of Rhode Island. Tickets are now on sale! Meet Hai-Ye Ni A musician renowned for her fluid technique; gorgeous tone; and brilliant, expressive performances, cellist Hai-Ye Ni enjoys a distinguished, multi-faceted career as principal cellist of the acclaimed Philadelphia Orchestra and as a sought-after soloist and chamber musician. A versatile artist whose performances have been praised as “soulfully expressive” (Washington Post) and possessing a “superbly focused sound” (San Francisco Chronicle), she has performed on classical stages around the world, appearing as a soloist with many orchestras. In Kingston this summer, she will perform in Concert 1: A Celebration of Latinx Music and Concert 3: “Trout”. “I am very excited to play Astor Piazzolla’s ‘Four Seasons’ and Beethoven’s Sonata No.4 in C Major,” she says. “I’m excited for the Piazzolla because I love tango music and it has a big cello solo. I love Beethoven’s sonata and I’m looking forward to playing with Natalie Zhu.” “I love chamber music because I get to make music with other people,” she adds. “It’s like having a conversation in music.” Meet Che-Hung Chen Che-Hung Chen, violist with the Philadelphia Orchestra, will be busy in Kingston this summer. He’ll perform in Concert 1: A Celebration of Latinx Music, Concert 3: “Trout”, Concert 4: A Night of Stark Contrast, Concert 5: Natalie’s Playlist, and Concert 6: Celebrating 37 Years of Musical Excellence. “I’ve been a fan of the Alexandrov-Skliar duo for years, but I’ve never had the chance to share the stage with them,” Chen says. “So to kickoff the summer joining Alexey and Ekaterina in the Piazzolla arrangement by Alexey himself is exciting. We are going to bring the house down!” Chen says he’s also excited to bring back Martinu’s String Trio No. 2 for the KCMF audience. “It was one of the most difficult chamber works I’ve ever encountered when I first learned it in my early 20’s,” he says. “Knowing that I will be joining violin virtuoso Jasmine Lin in that work this summer, I might have to beg her for mercy!” “Did I say Martinu was hard? Well, the ‘Evocations of Slovakia’ by Karel Husa is apparently 10 times more difficult. Not sure who put me up to this, but I know I will have to practice my butt off to keep up with the masters on the clarinet and the cello, Ricardo Morales and Clancy Newman. Lastly, reuniting with my dear friends of the Dover Quartet to close out the festival in Mendelssohn’s iconic String Octet, there simply isn’t a better way to finish with a bang! I’d try to snatch up those tickets before they are all gone!” |
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Meet the artists: Hai-Ye Ni and Che-Hung Chen
May 21, 2025
