Piano Extravaganza Performance

The Vancouver Symphony Orchestra USA begins the 2025/26 Nien-Wei Hsiao Chamber Music Series with the Piano Extravaganza program on October 19, 2025 at 3 p.m at First Presbyterian Church in Vancouver, WA. Sponsored by Oregon Public Broadcasting, this celebration of the piano will feature long-time Vancouver pianist and community music teacher, Kathy Charles, the 2010 VSO Young Artist Competition piano category winner, Fred Lu, and the Nien-Wei Hsiao Chamber Music Series co-founder, Dr. Michael C. Liu.

The first half of the program includes Rachmaninoff’s Suite No. 1 or Fantaisie-Tableaux for two pianos. The masterwork has four movements, each of which represents a musical depiction of four poems that were written in 1893, the same year the piece premiered. Also, on the program is Gershwin-Grainger's audience-favorite Porgy and Bess Fantasy. Following intermission, the audience will hear another beloved Gershwin piece, American in Paris, arranged for two pianos and the triumphant Suite No. 2 by Rachmaninoff.

The 2025/26 Nien-Wei Hsiao Chamber Music Series season is presented by Oregon Public Broadcasting.

Program

Rachmaninoff Suite No. 1

Gershwin Porgy and Bess

Intermission

Gershwin American in Paris

Rachmaninoff Suite No. 2

About the VSO Nien-Wei Hsiao Chamber Music Series

The VSO Nien-Wei Hsiao Chamber Music Series is presented by Oregon Public Broadcasting. The series was co-created by Dr. Michael C. Liu, VSO pianist and board member, and Dr. Igor Shakhman, VSO CEO and Principal Clarinet. The VSO Nien-Wei Hsiao Chamber Music Series is proud to provide enchanting chamber music in an intimate setting. Originally intended to be played in a small chamber, hall, or house, chamber music showcases musician virtuosity in melodies that are quite exposed in a typical ensemble of three to six musicians. Listeners enjoy an entirely new concert experience meant to speak to every individual in a comfortable space. The content of each VSO concert is unique, ranging from musical accompaniment for silent films and operatic soloists, to traditional string quartets and trios. Now in its fourteenth season, the VSO Nien-Wei Hsiao Chamber Music Series continues to provide this matchless art form to the Vancouver community.