Silk Road Ensemble Artists

Joel Fan
piano (b. 1969, United States)

Acclaimed as a "superb" (The Boston Globe), "extraordinary" (The Village Voice), and "versatile and sensitive pianist" (The Washington Post), Joel Fan combines virtuosity with a gift for lyricism. Mr. Fan began his performing career with the New York Philharmonic at the age 11, and has since appeared in recital and with orchestras throughout the world. Fan's eclectic repertoire includes the traditional piano classics, piano concertos, his own piano transcriptions and cadenzas, and newly commissioned works.

In the past two years, Fan has performed with orchestras such as the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic, New Symphony Orchestra of Bulgaria, London Sinfonietta, Santa Fe Pro Musica, Bridgeport Symphony, Pueblo Symphony, Marion Philharmonic and Singapore Symphony. Fan has collaborated with conductors such as Gustav Meier, Alan Gilbert, David Robertson, and Zubin Mehta. Highlights of the past seasons include Fan's BBC Proms Debut at Royal Albert Hall with fellow Silk Road Ensemble members Wu Tong, Wu Man with Yo-Yo Ma, and the London Sinfonietta in Bright Sheng's Song and Dance of Tears. This season, Fan performs concerti of Rachmaninoff, Chopin, Mozart and Prokofiev.

Fan's debut solo recording to be released Spring 2006 by Reference Recordings, includes works of Prokofiev, Schumann, Liszt, and recent works by Dia Succari, Peter Sculthorpe and Peteris Vasks. Called a "technical wonder" by The Los Angeles Times, he was a prizewinner of several international competitions, such as the D'Angelo Young Artists International Competition in the United States and Busoni International Piano Competition in Italy. In addition he was named a Presidential Scholar by the National Foundation for the Arts.

In recent seasons, Fan has been performing as a member of Yo-Yo Ma's Silk Road Ensemble and has appeared with the Ensemble at venues such as Carnegie Hall, the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C., the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, as well as on the television shows Good Morning America and David Letterman.

Fan received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Harvard University, where his teachers included the composer Leon Kirchner. He also holds a Master of Music degree in Piano Performance from Peabody Conservatory as a student of Leon Fleisher.

In addition to his performing schedule, Fan's activities extend to philanthropy through the Joel Fan Foundation (www.joelfan.org), which commissions "significant artworks" from established creators and provides loans and career grants to developing artists. Recent commissions include a major piano work by Leon Kirchner to be premiered in the 06-07 season. As a media presence, Fan has appeared in publications ranging from the Asian Wall Street Journal and CNET News to the Dagens Nyheter of Sweden.