Last night, I attended the 2023 TMAF Chamberfest II performance at the National Concert Hall in Taiwan. The performance was a collaboration between “master” musicians who are principals, associate principals, or professors in national orchestras from various countries, and emerging young musicians.
The concert was divided into two parts, featuring a total of eight pieces. I particularly enjoyed “A. Dvořák: String Quartet №12 in F major, ‘American’, Op.96” performed by Ben Hong, the current associate principal cellist of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, alongside two young violinists, Chieh-An Yu and Hsin Chien, and a young violist, Lukas Shrout.
Additionally, I admired the performance of “F. Schubert: String Quintet in C major, Op.956”, which was led by Mark Kosower, principal cellist of the Cleveland Orchestra, and featured two young violinists, Risa Hokamura and Chin Chien, a young violist, Bill Ko, and a young cellist, Natalie Lin.
My appreciation for their performances stems from the way the musicians immersed themselves in the melodies, which was evident from their natural bodily rhythms during the performance. In particular, the delicacy of Risa Hokamura’s violin playing left me profoundly moved.
However, the highlight of the evening for me was the final piece, “L. Spohr: Nonet in F Major, Op.31”, performed by Hsin-Yun Huang, currently a faculty member at the Juilliard School and the Curtis Institute of Music, along with young violinist Minami Yoshida, young cellist I-Chang Edison Liu, young double bass player Logan Nelson, young flutist Shuyu Yang, young oboist Yan Yin Lai, young clarinetist Yoshihiro Okuyama, young bassoonist Yu Chung, and young horn player James Picarello.
This was the only piece during the concert that had me smiling from beginning to end. Firstly, the team demonstrated incredible harmony. The musicians weren’t just focused on the music scores in front of them or lost in their own melodies with closed eyes. Instead, I frequently observed them exchanging smiles and looks of affirmation with their partners, seamlessly passing the melody to one another. This high-level performance had me completely absorbed. It gave me the same feeling I had when I saw the very young Japanese violinist Hina Maeda perform in Taiwan at the end of February this year. The exceptional performance by each member of this team made the experience thoroughly enjoyable.
Lastly, I am very much looking forward to your 2023 TMAF All-Star Concert at the National Concert Hall in Taiwan on August 9! 
