Music of Wagner, Schoenberg and Debussy this week, featuring pianistic dynamo David Fray in a performance of the Schoenberg Piano Concerto. Daniele Gatti leads the orchestra in Wagner’s Siegfried Idyll, music from Parsifal and Nocturnes by Claude Debussy. It was all recorded in concert at Théâtre des Champs-Elysées by Radio France Musique on May 21,2010.
David Fray was born in Tarbes, near the Pyrenees. Both his parents are teachers, his father’s subject being philosophy and his mother’s German.
Fray entered the professional classical music world after receiving the Second Grand Prize at the Montreal International Music Competition in 2004. After this acclaim he released “Schubert, Liszt”, a CD compilation of works by the two composers, on the ATMA Classique label. More recently, he has done video recordings of piano concertos by J.S. Bach with the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, as well as Schubert’s Wanderer Fantasy during the Festival of La Roque d’Anthérnon. In 2008 he released a second CD, “Bach / Boulez Piano Recital”, which was another compilation of two composers from separate musical periods. He has performed with many established conductors such as John Axelrod, Kurt Masur, Jaap van Zweden and Christoph Eschenbach.
Fray has won a number of awards, including the “Révélation Classique” (Classical Discovery) from ADAMI, the “Jeune Soliste de l’Année” (Young Soloist of the Year) from the French Language Public Radio Coalition, and the Diploma for Outstanding Merit from the Hamamatsu Competition.
Described by the press as the “perfect example of a thinking musician” (Die Welt) and acclaimed for his interpretations of music from Bach to Boulez, David Fray continues to thrill audiences worldwide as a recitalist, soloist and chamber musician. He has collaborated with leading orchestras under distinguished conductors such as Marin Alsop, Semyon Bychkov, Christoph Eschenbach, Daniele Gatti, Paavo Järvi, Kurt Masur, Riccardo Muti, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Michael Sanderling, Yannick Nézet-Séguin and Jaap van Zweden. Orchestral appearances in Europe have included the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Bavarian Radio Orchestra, Budapest Festival Orchestra, Philharmonia Orchestra, Academy of St. Martin in the Fields, London Philharmonic, Dresden Philharmonic, Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, Salzburg Mozarteum, Orchestra del Teatro alla Scala, Orchestre de Paris and Orchestre National de France. David Fray made his US debut in 2009 with the Cleveland Orchestra followed by performances with the Boston Symphony, San Francisco Symphony, New York Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony and the Los Angeles Philharmonic. He has given recitals at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Park Avenue Armory in New York, Chicago’s Symphony Hall and appears regularly at the Vienna Konzerthaus, Mozarteum Salzburg, London’s Wigmore Hall, Théâtre des Champs Elysées and many other major venues worldwide.
Nice concert, love the orchestra – hit the Play button and relax.
