Program
| Composer | Work | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Johann Sebastian Bach | Violin Sonata in C major, BWV 1005 | 1720 |
| Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart | Violin Sonata No. 21 in E minor, K. 304 | 1778 |
| Intermission | ||
| Robert Schumann | Kinderszenen (Scenes from Childhood), Op. 15 | 1838 |
| Francis Poulenc | Violin Sonata, FP 119 | 1943 |
About the Artists
Mayumi Kanagawa
Mayumi Kanagawa is a Berlin based, Japanese-American violinist praised for her rich, dark sound and focused, engaging musicality. Prizewinner at the 2019 Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow and 2018 Long-Thibaud Crespin competition in Paris as well as First Prize winner of the Princess Astrid, Jascha Heifetz, and Irvin Klein competitions, she is establishing herself as a versatile and refined soloist and chamber musician.
The 2023-24 season brings re-invitations from orchestras such as the NHK, Yomiuri, Tokyo Metropolitan and Sapporo Symphony Orchestras as well as debuts with the Gunma and Macau Symphony Orchestras, with conductors such as Charles Dutoit, Marc Piollet, Sylvain Cambreling, Yoel Levi, Nodoka Okisawa, and Kazuihro Koizumi. Recital and chamber music concerts with colleagues including Giuseppe Guarerra, Yu Kosuge, Ben Goldscheider and the Lazarus String Quartet bring her to Germany, Austria, Italy, Spain, Luxembourg and Japan.
Her debut CD Recital with pianist Giuseppe Guarrera was released in Japan in February 2023 to wide critical acclaim, and in 2024 she received the Fresh Artist award from Nippon Steel.
Mayumi has performed with many orchestras including the Mariinsky Orchestra, Belgian National Symphony, Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra, Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, among others, in repertoire ranging from Bach to Britten and Berg. Her unique talent for communicating the love and joy of music making in varied repertoire and venues has also brought her to many outreach programs and schools around the world, from San Francisco to Novosibirsk. She is currently an ambassador for El Sistema Japan’s new Ribbon project, bringing instruments and music education to children in the foster care system. Since October 2023 she is also teaching at the Hochschule für Künste in Bremen.
Mayumi’s musical education has been shaped by Kolja Blacher, Yoshiko Nakura, Masao Kawasaki, and Robert Lipsett.
She currently performs on the Wilhelmj Antonio Stradivarius violin from 1725, on generous loan from the Nippon Music Foundation.
Sophiko Simsive
Sophiko Simsive is an internationally acclaimed pianist, praised by Jean-Yves Thibaudet as “a rare talent who promises to become one of the leading pianists of her generation.” Known for her expressive yet personal artistry, she has appeared at renowned venues including Carnegie Hall, the Berliner Philharmonie, and the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam.
She has performed with orchestras such as the Residentie Orkest, Yale Philharmonia, Noord Nederlands Orkest, Jeugdorkest Nederland, and the Manhattan School of Music Philharmonia, working with conductors including Lev Markiz, Peter Oundjian, and Jan Willem de Vriend. A passionate chamber musician, she is the pianist of the acclaimed Claremont Trio, described by The Strad as “one of America’s finest young chamber groups,” and has collaborated with artists such as Anthony Marwood, Kian Soltani, Gilbert Kalish, and the Calidore String Quartet. Festival appearances include Yellow Barn, Music Academy of the West, and the Verbier Festival.
Based in New York, Sophiko frequently performs with New Chamber Ballet. A passionate educator, Simsive serves as a Senior Coaching Assistant at Yale University, where she co-teaches alongside violinist Wendy Sharp, while also maintaining a piano studio at the Brooklyn Conservatory of Music.
A native of the Republic of Georgia, and shaped by formative studies with Boris Berman, Jacques Rouvier, Mila Baslawskaja, and Maka Aladashvili, Sophiko holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the Manhattan School of Music, where she studied under the guidance of Solomon Mikowsky. Sophiko is represented by Interartists Amsterdam Management.