NEWS
Impressions, commissioned by the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra was premiered on April 29, 2022
Behind the composition teaser: here
Concert reviews: Edmonton Journal, Classical Voice America
Ways to buy:
1) 'Add to Cart' button below to buy directly from Alissa Cheung.
or 2) On iTunes.
Schubert: Works for Violin and Piano [Virya Duo, CD]
1-3 Sonatina in D, Op, Posth. 137 No. 1, D. 384
4-7 Sonata in A, Op. Posth. 162, D. 574
8 Fantasy in C, Op. Posth. 159, D. 934
Alissa Cheung, violin
Ruby Jin, piano
This album, devoted to Schubert's exquisite violin and piano works, is the culmination of a fruitful collaboration between violinist Alissa Cheung and pianist Ruby Jin that originated in Germany when theh duo performed Schubert's Fantasy for the first time in 2012.
Since then, the duo embraces a broad spectrum of literature, from standard repertoire of Beethoven and Brahms to music by contemporary composers in recital series and festivals across Canada.
For both artists, releasing this album marks a special milestone. As described in one of Schubert's Lieder, it's a place where music never fails to ignite or reignite one's heart for warm love:
"Hast du mein Herz zu warmer Lieb entzunden, Hast mich in eine bessere Welt entrückt!" (An die Musik)
Biography
An adamant interpreter of new music, Alissa was an Artist in Residence at the Bang on a Can Summer Festival (2011) in North Adams, MA, at the Weill Institute 21st-Century American Contemporary Ensemble Workshop at Carnegie Hall (2013), and at the Lucerne Festival Academy (2013).
As a composer, her works have been performed at the C'mon Festival (Edmonton), Conservatoire de musique de Montreal, Centre d'arts Orford, Open Space (Victoria), Jordan Hall (Boston), Morse Recital Hall (New Haven, CT), University of Michigan (Ann Arbor, MI), Tone List Church Series (Perth, Australia), and Kunstkeramik (Lucerne, Switzerland). Ms. Cheung studied composition privately with Antoine Beuger (Germany), Hannah Lash (Yale) and Piotr Grella-Mozejko (Edmonton), and attended Centre d'arts Orford Composition Workshop with Jean Lesage and Ana Sokolovic (2015).
In addition to private teaching, Ms. Cheung has been Part-Time Faculty at Concordia University (Montreal), Sessional Instructor at King’s University College and faculty member of the Alberta College Conservatory of Music. She is also a passionate leader in educational initiatives such as Quatuor Bozzini's Quatuor à l'école Program, the ESO’s Adopt-a-Player Program and the National Arts Centre’s Music Alive Program.
From 2010-14, Ms. Cheung was a tenured member of the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra (ESO, Violin I) as a testament to her educational experiences with the National Youth Orchestra of Canada (2001, 2002), the Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra (2008), and the Pacific Music Festival Orchestra (2010).
Ms. Cheung’s principal violin teachers were Marian Moody, Ranald Shean, Broderyck Olson (Edmonton), Thomas Williams (McGill), and Ani Kavafian (Yale). Other influential coaches include Malcolm Lowe, Mark Fewer, Rafael Rosenfeld, Kyoko Hashimoto, Mark Gothoni and members of the Tokyo, Juilliard, and Concord Quartets. She is also a grateful recipient of financial support from the Canada Council for the Arts, Anne Burrows Music Foundation, the Yale School of Music, the Stuart Walker Fund, the Edmonton Community Foundation Winspear Fund, the Alberta Foundation for the Arts, the Schulich School of Music, and the Williamson Foundation for Music for her professional development and past musical studies.
Media Coverage Links
Göteborg Posten (Nov 2021)
PAN M 360 (Mar 2021)
The Guardian UK (Feb 2018)
Edmonton Classical Music (Mar 2017)
Edmonton Journal (Mar 2017)
The Guardian (Oct 2016)
St. Albert Gazette (Apr 2015)
Edmonton Journal (Dec 2014)
Edmonton Journal (Nov 2014)
VUE Weekly (Dec 2012)
CBC Next! (Apr 2012)
St. Albert Gazette (Mar 2012)
McGill Reporter (May 2009)