Tango In Paris

EVENT DESCRIPTION

City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong (CCOHK) and the French May Arts Festival 2023 co-present Tango in Paris, a music journey from Paris to Buenos Aires to be held on 24 May 2023 at the Hong Kong City Hall Concert Hall, 8:00pm. The programme celebrates the evolution of the tango from Argentina to France through a selection of exhilarating music for accordion and chamber orchestra by French and Argentinean composers Piazzolla, Galliano and Ravel.

Ukrainian accordionist Nazar Tabachyshyn is the featured soloist in Richard Galliano’s Opale Concerto for Accordion, a hybrid work very much under the sway of tango master Piazzolla and brimming with the street sounds of Provence and old Paris.

French conductor Philippe Forget will also lead CCOHK in performances of two major orchestral works on the programme: Piazzolla’s Sinfonietta, a brilliant orchestral showcase in tango style which paved the way for Piazzolla’s scholarship year in Paris and Ravel’s exquisitely beautiful String Quartet in F major arranged for string orchestra by Rudolph Barshai.

To conclude the programme, Nazar Tabachyshyn joins CCOHK for a performance of Chau Paris, the most popular composition Piazzolla wrote and recorded during his stay in France that encapsulates Piazzolla’s lifelong affection for Paris and the people who awakened his ground-breaking musical journey.

Ástor Piazzolla Sinfonietta
Richard Galliano Opale Concerto for Accordion
Ástor Piazzolla Soledad, Chau Paris
Ravel (Arr. Rudolph Barshai) Quartet in F major for String Orchestra

Nazar Tabachyshyn accordion
Philippe Forget guest conductor

ABOUT THE ARTIST / ORGANISER

City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong (CCOHK) holds a unique position as one of Asia’s leading chamber orchestras. Established in 1999, CCOHK has performed with many of the world’s most distinguished artists including Sir James Galway, Dame Evelyn Glennie, Dame Emma Kirkby, Sir Thomas Allen, Sir Neville Marriner, Michala Petri, Christian Lindberg, Sarah Chang, Philippe Entremont, Julian Lloyd Webber, Edgar Meyer, Branford Marsalis, Richard Galliano and Sharon Isbin.

The orchestra has also collaborated with celebrities including Hayley Westenra, Richard Clayderman, Robin Gibb, Dame Edna Everage and Canto-pop stars Sandy Lam, Hins Cheung, Hacken Lee and Jacky Cheung. Additional highlights include concerts with the Vienna Boys’ Choir, The American Boychoir, the Warsaw Boys Choir, the Swedish Voices Chamber Choir, the King’s Singers and The Swingle Singers. CCOHK’s progressive programming has been internationally recognized with tour invitations to London, Italy, Taipei, Beijing, Chengdu and the 20th China Shanghai International Arts Festival. Engagements in Hong Kong include Hong Kong Ballet, French May Arts Festival, RTHK’s Christmas Concerts in the Park, the World Harp Congress and The Hong Kong International Piano Competition. A keen supporter of contemporary music, CCOHK has performed for Musicarama and at the Hong Kong Contemporary Music Festival, and has commissioned works by Mao Yuan, Daniel Binelli, Dobrinka Tabakova and Richard Harvey. The orchestra’s CDs include internationally acclaimed world premiere recordings on the NAXOS, Orchid Classics, Forgotten Records and OUR Recordings labels. CCOHK’s passion for building young audiences for music has inspired the evolution of several newly curated and award-winning productions. Credits include Magnificent Mozart, The Star Bach, Vivaldi Unmasked, The Bonn Man, Haydn & The Prince, Bug Symphony and WILD (The Musical), winner of the Public Choice Award at the YAMawards in Belgium 2022.

At the helm of CCOHK’s artistic planning is Leanne Nicholls who was awarded in the HKSAR’s Chief Executive’s 2022 Honours List for her contributions to the development of classical music in Hong Kong. CCOHK’s chief conductors include French conductor Jean Thorel (2008 to 2016) and Armenian conductor and virtuoso pianist Vahan Mardirossian (since 2019).