Kwan Yi to Appear in Concert at UAM

           MONTICELLO, Ark. — Kwan Yi, the National Federation of Music Clubs 2011 Young Artist Winner for Piano, will appear in concert at the University of Arkansas at Monticello September 20 at 7:30 p.m. in the UAM Fine Arts Center. Admission is free and open to the public.
            Yi’s performance is being sponsored by the UAM Division of Music, the Monticello Music Club, and the Southeast Arkansas Concert Association.

            Kwan Yi has performed throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia in such venues as Carnegie's Isaac Stern Auditorium, Alice Tully Hall, Chicago Symphony Hall, the Kennedy Center's Opera House, the Metropolitan and Isabella Stewart Gardner Museums, Jordan Hall, Jones Hall, Auditorium du Louvre, and Kumho Arts Center.
            In 2007, he made his debut with the Houston Symphony and was subsequently invited back to perform with the orchestra under the baton of Hans Graf. He has recently performed with the Sendai Philharmonic, Pottstown Symphony, and Eastern Connecticut Symphony Orchestra. Kwan is an avid chamber musician and has frequently collaborated with Itzhak Perlman and Roberto Diaz on tours.  As a recitalist, he has performed in series at the Levitas Center for the Arts, Lefrak Concert Hall, Carnegie Weill Hall, American Music Festival, Houston Channing Recital Series, Cole Concert Hall at Stephen F. Austin State University, and Nichols Hall at the Music Institute of Chicago.  His performances have been broadcast by WHYY, KUHF, WQXR, and Radio France.

            In the 2011-2012 season, Kwan made his debut with the Russian National Orchestra at the Mann Performing Arts Center and toured with Roberto Diaz, performing all-Brahms recitals at the Library of Congress in Washington D.C. and major cities across the United States, as well as in Japan and Italy.
            A recipient of many honors and prizes, Kwan’s recent awards include the Mieczysław Munz Prize, National Federation of Music Clubs Young Artist Award, and top prizes in the Sendai International Music Competition in Japan and the Trio di Trieste International Chamber Music Competition in Italy.
             Yi received a bachelor of music degree from the Curtis Institute of Music under the tutelage of Ignat Solzhenitsyn and master of music degree from the Juilliard School, where he studied with Robert McDonald. In addition, he has worked with Gary Graffman, Claude Frank and Fou T'song. He has attended the Steans Music Institute at Ravinia Festival. He is currently studying with Leon Fleisher at the Peabody Institute in the Artist Diploma Program.
            For information, contact the UAM Division of Music at (870) 460-1060.