Jun Qian, clarinet
Christopher Atzinger, piano
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)
Sonata for Clarinet & Piano, Op. 120, No. 1 in F minor
Allegro appassionato
Andante un poco adagio
Allegretto grazioso
Vivace
Aaron Wolff, cello
Judy Kogan, piano
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Suite No. 3 for Unaccompanied Cello, BWV 1009
Bourees 1 and 2
Gigue
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893)
Pezzo Capriccioso, Op. 62
ARTIST BIOS:
Dr. Jun Qian began his appointment as Assistant Professor of Music in Clarinet at St. Olaf College, Northfield, MN fall 2007. Qian has been on the clarinet faculty at Nazareth College, Houghton College, and New York State University at Fredonia. He has also taught music theory at Eastman, chamber music at Shanghai Conservatory of Music in China, and performed as the principal clarinetist of Shanghai Philharmonic Orchestra. In 1997, he won both first prize for the Orchestral Excerpts Competition and third prize in the Solo Competition at the International Clarinet Association Young Artist Competition, second prize in the Texas Young Artist Competition, and first prize in the Baylor Symphony Orchestra 1998 Concerto Competition.
Qian has appeared as concerto soloist with Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, Eastman Chamber Orchestra, Shanghai Philharmonic, Xiamen Philharmonic, Baylor Symphony Orchestra and Shangyang Opera Orchestra. In 2001, he made his Carnegie Hall debut performing Weber’s Clarinet Concerto No. 1 with the Asian American International Orchestra. International appearances as principal clarinetist also include the Eastman Wind Ensemble’s tours of Asia in 2000 and 2004, the North Carolina Festival Orchestra’s European tour, the Kent-Blossom Music Festival, National Orchestra Institute, and the American Wind Symphony. In October 2004, he was the featured soloist at the International Performing Arts Festival in Japan, and he has appeared on National Public Radio’s “Performance Today” with the Grammy-award winning Ying Quartet.
His activities in 2006 as a teacher and performer included a clarinet recital in Paris, France, conducting the Nazareth/Houghton Clarinet Choir as part of the International Clarinet Choir Festival, and giving master classes throughout China and Malaysia. His CD, Premier Rhapsodie, and video, Playing the Clarinet, were released on the Nanjing Shine Horn label in China. In the spring of 2007, Qian was the music producer and soloist for Steven Laitz’s book “The Complete Musician” published by the Oxford University Press. He also teaches at Lutheran Summer Music Academy and Festival.
Qian holds a B.M. from Baylor University where he was a student of Richard Shanley; and the M.M. and D.M.A. from Eastman School of Music where he studied with Kenneth Grant and Stanley Hasty.
Pianist Christopher Atzinger, a native of Jackson, Michigan, has performed in Austria, Italy, France, Spain and Canada in addition to performances throughout the United States highlighted by concerts in New York at Carnegie Hall (Weill), New York University, St. Paul’s Chapel, Liederkranz Hall; in Chicago at the Dame Myra Hess Series; and in Washington, D.C. at the Phillips Collection. His artistry has also been broadcast on Chicago’s Live from WFMT, Live from FM 91 on WGTE – Toledo, Ohio and Minnesota Public Radio. He has performed at the Banff International Keyboard Festival, Brevard Music Festival, and the Chautauqua Institution, in addition to giving lectures and masterclasses across the county.
A medalist of the New Orleans International Piano Competition, the World Piano Competition in Cincinnati, and the Nina Plant Wideman International Piano Competition, Atzinger has been praised by critics for his “personal interpretive vision” and “virtuoso aplomb”. He was also winner of the 2005 National Federation of Music Clubs Artist Competition and the Premio Città di Ispica prize at the IBLA Grand Prize Competition in Ragusa-Ibla, Italy. Additionally, he has received honors from the Frinna Awerbuch International Piano Competition, the National Society of Arts and Letters, and MTNA. He has received grants and fellowships from the Theodore Presser Foundation, the American Composers Forum, Foundation La Gesse, and the Joyce Dutka Arts Foundation.
With interests in American music, Atzinger has given premieres of works by Stephen Rush, Gregory Fritze, Robert Pound, and Kevin McCarter. He has also received an Encore grant from the American Composers Forum for modern music performance. His debut recording on the MSR Classics label includes Samuel Barber’s Piano Sonata, Op. 26. The recorded performance received acclaim at the 8th annual International Web Concert Hall Auditions. A second disc featuring two-piano music of Amy Beach is also scheduled for release on Centaur Records.
Atzinger has performed with the Louisiana Philharmonic, the Shreveport Symphony, Jackson Symphony (MI), World Festival Orchestra, and the St. Olaf Orchestra and has worked with maestros Klauspeter Seibel, Rossen Milanov, Neal Gittleman, Stephen Smith, and Timothy Muffit among others. Also an accomplished collaborative pianist, Atzinger won first prize at the Sydney Wright Memorial Accompaniment Competition. He especially enjoys musical collaborations with his wife, soprano, Brenda Nicole Atzinger.
In addition to degrees from the University of Texas at Austin and the University of Michigan, Atzinger earned the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in piano performance from the Peabody Conservatory of the Johns Hopkins University. He counts among his teachers Julian Martin, Robert McDonald, Anton Nel, David Renner, and Carolyn Lipp, among others. Additional keyboard studies with Timothy Lovelace, Edward Parmentier, and Penelope Crawford. Prior to his faculty appointment at St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota, he taught at Dickinson College (PA).
