Regional Spotlight: Jennifer Koh

St. Paul, Minn. — Jennifer Koh was an English major before settling on music as a career. There is something smart, literary, almost narrative about the way she performs. One feels like he's being taken from here to there -- and 'there' is somewhere magical, fresh and new, even if the music is something as familiar as Bartok.

Listen to Jennifer perform with Finnish cellist Anssi Karttunen from their Schubert Club recital at Hamline University last winter, imaginative and illuminating Hungarian Folk Tunes by Bela Bartok arranged by violinist Karl Kraeuter.

Guests

• Jennifer Koh: The New York Times writes "Jennifer Koh's violin recitals are consistently pleasing, not only because she is in command of a strong technique and a rich arsenal of tone, but also because she builds her programs thoughtfully, with a sensible balance of contemporary works and standard repertory." A prolific recitalist, Ms. Koh appears frequently at major music centers and festivals including Carnegie Hall, The Kennedy Center, The Kimmel Center in Philadelphia, Marlboro, Wolf Trap, Spoleto, and The Festival International de Lanaudiere in Canada. Ms. Koh records regularly for the Chicago-based Cedille label including her most recent "Rhapsodic Musings" and the Grammy-nominated "String Poetic." She is a graduate of Oberlin and the Curtis Institute.
• Anssi Karttunen: Finnish cellist Anssi Karttunen is a passionate advocate of contemporary music and his collaboration with composers has led him to give over 90 world premieres as well as 18 concertos written specifically for him. Karttunen plays with many of the best orchestras of the world as well as at major festivals including Edinburgh, Salzburg, Lockenhaus, Spoleto, Berlin, Venice, Montpellier, Strasbourg, and Helsinki. CDs range from the complete Beethoven works for cello and fortepiano (on period instruments) and 20th century works for solo cello to concertos with London Sinfonietta and the Los Angeles Philharmonic with Esa-Pekka Salonen.