Derek Han
piano

Biography

Born in the United States of Chinese parents, pianist Derek Han’s elegant, polished and compelling playing has dazzled audiences across five continents. Having graduated at the age of 18 from the Julliard School in New York where he studied with Ilona Kabos, and after further studies with Gina Bachauer, Lili Kraus and Guido Agosti, Derek Han launched his international career by winning First Prize and the Gold Medal at the Athens International Piano Competition in 1977 with early engagements as soloist with the Sofia Radio Orchestra and numerous performances at the Marlboro Music Festival at the invitation of Rudolf Serkin.

Past seasons have included major tours of the United States and United Kingdom with the Berliner Symphoniker, tours in the U.K. with the Bolshoi Symphony Orchestra and Netherlands Symphony as well as European tours with the Moscow Philharmonic and Buenos Aires Philharmonic. In 1996 Derek Han toured South Africa with the Sinfonia Varsovia under Lord Menuhin in a series of concerts celebrating Lord Menuhin’s 80th birthday. Derek Han has also toured South America with the Residentie Orchestra and made European tours with Philharmonie der Nationen, the London Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Budapest Symphony Orchestra.

Recent engagements include appearances as soloist with the Czech National Symphony, Moscow State Symphony, Budapest Symphony, Sofia Philharmonic, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, and at Royal Festival Hall with the London Philharmonic Orchestra. In the Far East Mr. Han has performed with the Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra and Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra. Derek Han’s recent Americas engagements include a return to the Teatro Colon, Buenos Aires, as soloist with the Orquestra Sinfonica Nacional de Argentina, while in the U.S. he has performed with Philharmonie der Nationen at Avery Fisher Hall in New York, and with the St. Louis, Indianapolis, Kansas City, and Utah Symphonies. Derek Han’s U.S. appearances include returns to the Utah Symphony, Boulder Philharmonic and the Fresno Philharmonic.

Highlights of past seasons included appearances at the Enescu Festival in Bucharest with the Camerata Salzburg, a U.K. tour with the Philharmonie der Nationen, performances in London at Royal Festival Hall with the Royal Philharmonic, and chamber music appearances at the Australian Chamber Music Festival, Music@Menlo in San Francisco, and the Finca Festival in the Canary Islands. This season Derek Han will return as soloist with the Royal Philharmonic, Janacek Philharmonic, Sofia Festival Orchestra on tour in the Netherlands performing the complete Beethoven Concertos at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, Berlin Symphony at the Philharmonie in Berlin, and perform at the opening concert of the Russian Winter Festival with the Moscow State Symphony.

A prolific recording artist, Derek Han’s discography includes the complete piano concerti of Haydn and Mozart with the English Chamber Orchestra and the Philharmonia Orchestra respectively. He has also recorded Beethoven’s complete piano concerti live at the Amsterdam Concertgebouw with the Berliner Symphoniker, both Mendelssohn piano concerti with the Israel Chamber Orchestra, and both Edward MacDowell piano concerti with the Chicago Sinfonietta. In addition, he has recorded piano concerti by Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninov and Shostakovich, together with the complete Mozart Violin Sonatas, with Joseph Silverstein, and other chamber music works. His latest releases are the Chopin concerti and Rachmaninoff Concertos 1 and 2 with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.

Derek Han is currently Associate Artistic Director of the La Musica International Chamber Music Festival at Sarasota, USA.