JENNY CHEN at Tippet Rise
Jenny Chen’s Diary at Tippet Rise Tippet Rise has an eco-friendly environment, and all things blend as a part of nature. I remember from the moment I stepped down from the car, I noticed the solar-powered panels in the parking lot and saw that the touring vans were also solar powered. I thought to myself, “What a wonderful way of green living!” During my stay in the beautiful cabin Tippet Rise built for traveling artists, wildlife frequently passes by. The wild turkey family, deer, and sheep have been frequent visitors. Once I was running on the road and encountered a herd of cows, which I sang to as an experiment, and they actually waved their tails and responded, Mmooooo. My favorite time of the day is morning, having a cup of coffee while watching from afar the shepherd herding the sheep on horseback, whistling and shouting ecstatically. Sometimes this flock of sheep would pass by my cabin making hilarious cries. Some sheep rub their bodies against the elevated wooden decks attached to the house, because of its absorbed warmth under the sun. Unseen in many other performance venues, these pastoral scenes are especially exclusive at Tippet Rise. 2 Jenny Chen at Tippet Rise
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Also through Tippet Rise, I participated in the educational outreach program by giving a family concert, having a luncheon with the university students, and performing a concert in lecture form. At the family concert, the age of the children ranged from babies a few months old to young teenagers. I had the opportunity to interact frequently with the audience in fun activities such as inviting some kids to learn to dance on the stage, having quizzes, and teaching them about instruments such as piano and violin. After the concert, it was such a therapeutic scene when the kids were surrounding me with curious faces and asking many questions. At the luncheon with the local university students, I had meaningful conversations seated at the same table, as I had the previous night, after they attended my concert. Lastly, the concert hall of the Olivier Music Barn was designed from the model of the Esterhรกzy room (the patron whom Haydn served); only at Tippet Rise. It provides an intimate setting like a Schubertiade gathering, where Schubert and his friends of different occupations would act out dramas and sing songs. Before I play every piece, I speak about it in the way of a musical exchange with the audience, rather than as a stiff concert hall presentation. I was glad to learn from audience members who approached me after the concert that the speaking parts were useful in helping them to understand the meaning behind the playing. In the modern world, it could be hard to understand classical music, which is an abstract sound form, without the fundamental knowledge of music history and theory.
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Another fascinating thing about Tippet Rise is that it’s like a museum of sculptures and kinds of architecture. Each artwork demands time to understand and study. The awe that I gained from these massive sculptures gives me the chills, the sense that the sculptures could not possibly be made by humans, particularly at an unreachable level. Alexander Calder’s Two Discs, Mark di Suvero’s Proverb and Beethoven’s Quartet, Patrick Dougherty’s Daydreams, and many others are truly inspiring. A special experience that made a deep impression on me was performing under the Domo, which was constructed by Ensamble Studio. It is beautiful land art as well as an outdoor concert space. As I execute my playing, the sound reverberates back and forth under the Domo, and the surrounding Beartooth Mountains echo the vibrating sounds. This combination of music, art, and nature is overwhelmingly powerful. It seems like everything in my heart and soul is transmitted through sounds in the Domo and Beartooth Mountains, as a vehicle to resonate with all the people present under the Domo umbrella. An unforgettable and magical moment to remember. 6 Jenny Chen at Tippet Rise
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The concert hall at Tippet Rise, the Olivier Music Barn, is a very rare utopian place, where an approach of what John Cage called the “indeterminacy” compositional technique can be made. The view from the large window, right next to the performer, is itself an art of “chance” (a compositional process of random acts that includes “whatever sound comes along”); the changing weather, creatures or people walking by, are elements of random acts that happen while the performer performs. There was a time when I was performing the Chopin 24 preludes, starting from No. 1, when the window scene was still serene. As the numbers went on, the lightning got intense, up until No. 8 when the thunder struck as my fingers were busily swiping across the piano keys in the plunging dark hole of the F-sharp Minor Prelude. It was an absolute coincidence that music and nature combined in a perfect way of expressing emotion. A comprehensive art form combining music and nature creates magic that impresses all the senses. It is not possible for me to use words to thoroughly describe Tippet Rise. I believe your own hands-on experience would affect you more deeply. I hope you can come! 8 Jenny Chen at Tippet Rise
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Jenny Chen showed exceptional promise at a young age. She was accepted
at the Curtis Institute at 10 years old, and then sped through to her master’s degree at Yale at age 18. She is currently a doctoral candidate at the Eastman School of Music and staff pianist at the Curtis Institute of Music. As a winner of the Lowry Award, Chen was honored with a Carnegie debut in 2019. Her mentors include Eleanor Sokoloff, Gary Graffman, Robert Blocker, Melvin Chen, Douglas Humpherys, Anne-Marie McDermott, and André-Michel Schub. While still quite young, she distinguished herself by winning numerous first prizes in Taiwan, including the Kawai Piano Competition, the Baroque Competition, the Steinbach Music Competition, Mandarin Daily Piano Competition, the Vienna National Piano Competition, the Yamaha Piano Competition, the Seidof & Sons Piano Competition, the Victory Cup Competition, the Taipei Music Competition, and the National Music Competition sponsored by the Ministry of Education. In the United States Chen received top prizes at the 2016 MTNA National Competition, the Rodney and Lorna Sawatsky Rising Stars Concerto Competition, the American Protégé International Piano and Strings Competition, the Fifth New York International Piano Competition, the 12th Eastman International Piano Competition, and the Young Concert Artists’ International auditions. Chen has been on full scholarships throughout her education, as well as winning a Teaching Assistant Award at Eastman, the Suzanne Roberts Cultural Development Fund Annual Fellow, the Taiwan Chi-Mei Artist Scholarship, the Stravinsky Awards Scholarship, and the Taiwan Dong-Sung Culture Foundation Scholarship. Chen made her debut with the Philadelphia Orchestra at age 14, and subsequently the orchestra invited her again. She also performed with Taipei 10 Jenny Chen at Tippet Rise
Symphony Orchestra, National Repertory Orchestra, Harrisburg Symphony Orchestra, Rochester Philharmonic, New York Downtown Sinfonietta, and Pacific Symphony, with conductors such as Rossen Milanov, Neil Varon, Carl Topilow, Stuart Malina, and Carl St. Clair. As a passionate chamber musician, she has collaborated with prestigious musicians such as Arnold Steinhardt, Peter Wiley, Anne-Marie McDermott, Andrew Bain, Zach De Pue, and Anton Nel. She has been invited to perform at many festivals, including events at Chamber Music Encounters of Lincoln Center, Tippet Rise, Sejong International Music Festival, Mainly Mozart, and Bravo! Vail. Chen’s performances have been broadcast on live television and radio from WHYY’s On Stage at Curtis, Classical MPR’s Performance Today, and FOX Rochester. Moreover, her performances were selected for inclusion on CDs released by Curtis Institute and Tippet Rise (Opus 2016: Domo). Despite all her successes, the energy and insight of her music have not lost the joy of youth, a contradictory mix where the rigors of virtuosity abet, rather than hinder, the spontaneity, the freshness of her music. Chen has received audience acclaim appearing in solo and chamber music performances across the United States and abroad in venues including Alice Tully Hall of Lincoln Center, Carnegie’s Weill Recital Hall, and Merkin Concert Hall in New York; Kimmel Center’s Verizon Hall in Pennsylvania; Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall in California; Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater in Colorado; National Concert Hall in Taiwan; Vredenburg Leidsche Rijn in the Netherlands; and Solti Hall in Hungary. Jenny Chen at Tippet Rise 11
Chen brings creativity to the concert stage through her collaboration with Bruce Adolphe (Director of Family Programs at Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center), as part of the family program at the Bravo! Vail 2017, to produce the original play “Leave It to Ludwig,� for families to learn the stories and meaning behind selected Beethoven compositions. Chen is always interested in engaging and entertaining people of all ages, including families who attended a recent educational outreach program at Tippet Rise, which fostered community through music and interaction with the live audience. Among other educational activities at Tippet Rise was an in-depth panel discussion featuring environmentalist professors, a scientist, an architect, and composers from all parts of the world.
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Jenny Chen in Recital Friday, July 21, 2017, 6:30 PM Olivier Music Barn
WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART: Sonata in E-flat Major, K. 282 Adagio Menuett I Menuett II Allegro WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART: Variations, K. 455 FRÉDÉRIC CHOPIN: Nocturne Op. 48, No. 1 Étude Op. 10, No. 1 Étude Op. 10, No. 2 Étude Op. 10, No. 3 INTERMISSION WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART: Sonata No. 18 in D major, K. 576 Allegro Adagio Allegretto WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART: Fantasia in D minor K. 397/385g CLAUDE DEBUSSY: Préludes Book 1, No. 5 “Les collines d’Anacapri” Préludes Book 1, No. 8 “La fille aux cheveux de lin” Préludes Book 1, No. 9 “La Sérénade interrompue” Préludes Book 1, No. 11 “La danse de Puck” Préludes Book 1, No. 12 “Minstrels”
GIOACHINO ROSSINI: “La Pastorella delle Alpi” Jenny Chen at Tippet Rise 15
Technical Specifications Recorded live on July 21, 2017 Recording Engineers: Monte Nickles, Monica Boles Sound Editor: Jim Ruberto Mixed and Mastered by Monte Nickles Performer: Jenny Chen Piano: CD-18 Recorded in Auro3D format for immersive playback mixed down to stereo in 32bit 384kHz DXD.
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Microphones used: Main array: Left: DPA 4041a Right: DPA 4041a Center: DPA 4041a Sur L: DPA 4041a Sur R: DPA 4041a Height FL: DPA 4006a Height FR: DPA 4006a Spot microphones: DPA 4006a’s inside piano Microphone preamps: Grace M802’s Converters: Merging Technology’s HAPI and HORUS with premium converter cards DAW: Merging Technology’s Pyramix
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Conversation with Jenny Chen By Alexis M. Adams
AMA: You are an incredibly friendly performer. Some musicians are a little reserved,
but you have a way of embracing the audience and including them in the performance.
JC: To me, performance is a very, very special thing to do. When I’m on the stage, I really
want to give all I have to the audience. And, at Tippet Rise, it’s special, so you want to give even more than usual. When you perform in New York City, it often feels like there’s an expectation. The ticket prices are high, so when the audience arrives, they want something. There’s a little pressure. But, at Tippet Rise, the environment and the people bring out the best in the performers. And at Tippet Rise, you’re immersed in nature. As an artist, I feel most comfortable when I’m close to nature. That’s when I have the most natural, the most intimate, feelings—it’s where I’m most calm. And it’s where I can express everything in my heart and out to the audience. So, I think my best performances will always be at Tippet Rise.
AMA: That’s lovely, Jenny. We love having you there. I was just talking to the pianist
Adam Golka and he said the best performance he gave was after getting lost hiking in the mountains of Colorado. When he found his way to the trailhead, he had just a few minutes to get ready for his performance, which left him no time for his usual preperformance rituals. He said it wound up being the best performance of his life, and he is sure it was because of that immersive experience in nature. 18 Jenny Chen at Tippet Rise
JC: I can imagine that! But those rituals are important. I do exercises every day before I
perform, kind of like meditations. Menahem Pressler talked about meditating before he performs—because he gets nervous about performing and because he feels he must develop the highest concentration possible to perform well. Music is an abstract form, and when you’re performing, it’s very easy to lose concentration. For me, I’m an excitable person. My energy can help me lose concentration, so my rituals help me perform the most beautiful music I can make. And I exercise every morning. If I don’t wake up on time, my father calls me, “Jenny, it’s 5 AM! It’s time to exercise!” He does this all the way from Taiwan, every morning. He really cares about me and wants to make sure I do well.
AMA: Do you have a particular composer that you identify with or love to play most of all? JC: When I was at Curtis, I focused more on piano technique and I didn’t really go in depth
with a particular composer. But when I went to get my Master’s degree, I began to fall in love with each composer, all of them. If I had to name one, I’d tell you that Rachmaninoff is really my thing. I think this relates to my childhood when my family was separated in three different places: my father was in Taiwan, my mother was with me in the States, and my brothers were in Taiwan and New Jersey. Before I was 10 years old, we were together all the time and had fun, making lots of great memories, but after that, we were in different places, and this was because of me. Everyone separated because of me: because I got into Curtis, which is really hard to get into. They only take three to six students out of about 350 applicants. The separation was difficult for me. I couldn’t see my family, I didn’t feel the security you feel when you’re with your family. It’s painful when you miss someone, especially at such a young age. Rachmaninoff gave me a way to put myself into the music and express my sorrow. Jenny Chen at Tippet Rise 19
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Jenny Chen plays Liszt: Sonata in B minor Franz Liszt: Sonata in B minor Performed by Jenny Chen Tippet Rise Art Center, The Olivier Music Barn, July 22, 2017
https://tippetrise.org/films/jenny-chen-plays-liszt-sonata-in-b-minor
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tippetrise.org