The National Taiwan Symphony Orchestra (NTSO) will collaborate with Latvian conductor Ainārs Rubiķis and Taiwanese violinist Tseng Yu-chien (曾宇謙) for “Listening to Taiwan – 2023 National Taiwan Symphony Orchestra” Japan Tour this October. The concert repertoire includes Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto, Glinka’s “Ruslan and Lyudmila” Overture, Rachmaninoff’s Symphonic Dances, along with a suite titled “A Century of Taiwan Music”, arranged by composer Chang Ching-shan (張菁珊).
Born in Latvia, Ainārs Rubiķis gained international recognition by winning The Gustav Mahler Conducting Competition in 2010. The following year, he received the second Nestle and Salzburg Festival Young Conductors Award. From 2012 to 2014, he held the position of Music Director and Chief Conductor of the Novosibirsk State Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre. Subsequently, he served as Music Director of Komische Oper Berlin from 2018 to 2022, gaining critical acclaim for his consistent high-quality performances.
Tseng Yu-chien is currently one of the most exciting and talented young soloists. He studied at the Curtis Institute of Music and was mentored by established violinists Aaron Rosand and Ida Kavafian. In 2015, he won the International Tchaikovsky competition and then performed with the London Philharmonic, Munich Philharmonic, Mariinsky Orchestra, and Czech Philharmonic. In 2016, he signed a contract with a German classical music record label, Deutsche Grammophon, and created his second album with Russian pianist Mikhail Pletnev and the Russian National Orchestra.
The director of NTSO Liu Suan-yung (劉玄詠) thanked the Ministry of Culture’s support for taking the 80-strong orchestra to Japan. In contrast with Tseng, whom the NTSO has a close relationship with, this is the first time they have worked with Rubiķis, Liu said, adding that the orchestra is looking forward to performing with the two young, talented musicians.
“Listening to Taiwan – 2023 National Taiwan Symphony Orchestra” Japan Tour will stage at the Tokyo Opera City Concert Hall and Osaka Symphony Hall, on Oct. 16 and Oct. 19 respectively.