Acclaimed as a pianist of “consummate artistry” (Washington Post) Yael Weiss has performed across the United States, Europe, Japan, Korea and South America at such venues as the Kennedy Center, Carnegie Hall, Alice Tully Hall and London’s Wigmore Hall. Her New York recital debut, presented by the Metropolitan Museum, was acclaimed by the New York Times as “remarkably powerful and intense… fine technique and musicianship in the service of an arresting array of music.” Gramophone Magazine praises Yael Weiss’ pianism in Beethoven’s op. 1, #3 “as if the composer were at the keyboard”.
Yael Weiss’ tour programs include her major new initiative: 32 Bright Clouds. This project brings thirty-two newly commissioned short piano works to the stage alongside Beethoven’s cycle of 32 Piano Sonatas. Composers from 32 different countries, particularly from those of conflict where creative efforts often face insurmountable challenges, are featured, including composers from Indonesia, Jordan, Iran and Bhutan. Read more in News …
Yael has been interviewed about the 32 Bright Clouds project and the power of music to express our unity and shared humanity on NPR’s All Things Considered. In addition, the distinguished series at Washington DC’s Freer and Sackler Galleries was recorded and is available via this direct link to the concert.
Yael Weiss is a captivating presence on the concert scene. Singled out for her visionary interpretations of surpassing depth, immediacy and communicative power, she is active as concerto soloist, recitalist, chamber musician and recording artist. An award winning artist, she has appeared with the Seattle Symphony Orchestra, Chautauqua Festival Orchestra, Prague Chamber Orchestra, Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra, Israel Chamber Orchestra, Israel Camerata, and the Brazil National Symphony, among others. Her discography encompasses piano works by over a dozen composers, her solo releases include “Robert Schumann: Piano Works” and “88 Keys to Joy”, both on the Koch International Classics label. About her Schumann recording, Audiophile Magazine’s Gary Lemco wrote: “Sensitive, scholarly renditions of alternative Schumann repertory, each a labor of love.” In 2021, Toccata Classics released her premiere recording of Aviv, Concerto for Piano and Chamber Orchestra, which she commissioned from composer Joel Feigin.
Ms. Weiss is also devoted to chamber music, and tours worldwide with her piano trio, the Weiss-Kaplan-Stumpf Trio — with violinist Mark Kaplan and cellist Peter Stumpf. Trio recordings on the Bridge Records Label include works of Brahms, Smetana, Auerbach, Chen Yi, Newman and Schonfeld, with Clancy Newman, cellist. Slated for release on Bridge Records is the Weiss-Kaplan-Stumpf Trio’s new recording of the complete cycle of Beethoven piano trios.
Yael Weiss is a regular favorite at international music festivals including the Marlboro, Ravinia, City of London, Banff, Parry Sound, Caramoor, and the Seattle Chamber Music Festival. From 1999 to 2003 she served as Artistic Director of the Hersher Foundation Chamber Music Series in Connecticut. Yael Weiss is known to radio and television audiences worldwide, having been a frequent guest on National Public Radio, the BBC in London, and New York’s WQXR and WNYC. She has appeared numerous times on Israeli television, and presented a recital filmed live for NHK television in Japan.
Ms. Weiss has been honored with distinguished prizes from the 2002 Naumburg International Piano Competition and the Kosciusko Foundation Chopin Piano Competition, and has been a recipient of the Presser Award as well as grants from the America-Israel Cultural Foundation. She has presented master-classes for universities throughout the United States and Europe, and has served on the faculty of the Indiana University School of Music. She studied with Richard Goode and Edward Aldwell at the Mannes College of Music and with Leon Fleisher at the Peabody Conservatory. Yael Weiss makes her home in New York City.
The Freer and Sackler Galleries will present Yael Weiss in a 32 Bright Clouds Premiere Event on October 17, 2020 at 7:30pm (EST). More information here. View this event on YouTube at this direct link to concert (and enjoy it after Oct. 17th as well)
Yael will talk about the 32 Bright Clouds project and the power of music to express our unity and shared humanity on NPR’s All Things Considered on Saturday, October 17th between 5:00-6:00pm
The Baruch Performing Arts Center presents Yael Weiss in a 32 Bright Clouds Premiere Event October 1-18, 220. More information here.
Yael Weiss announces major commissioning initiative: 32 Bright Clouds
32 Bright Clouds is a global music-commissioning and performing project, born from a need to respond to current social and political environments in the US and worldwide with a personally meaningful and purposeful musical endeavor. Thirty-two newly commissioned short piano works will be brought to the stage in performance alongside Beethoven’s cycle of 32 Piano Sonatas. The new works are commissioned from composers in 32 different countries, focusing primarily on countries of conflict and unrest where creative efforts often face insurmountable challenges. Each commissioned work relates to one of the Sonatas while maintaining elements of the country’s traditional musical language. Already included are composers from Indonesia, Jordan, Iran and Bhutan. The project aims to harness music’s great power for unity and peace, cherishing and enjoying the differences of diverse peoples and cultures and presenting their works on the concert stage. More…
New Works Commissioned for this Project Include:
Sidney Boquiren (Philippines): Unheard Voices (paired with Beethoven: Piano Sonata no. 7 in D Major, Op. 10 No. 3)
Ananda Sukarlan (Indonesia): No More Moonlight Over Jakarta (paired with Beethoven: Piano Sonata no. 14 in C-sharp minor, Op. 27 No. 2 “Moonlight”)
George Mensah Essilfie (Ghana): Title TBD (paired with Beethoven: Piano Sonata no. 16 in G Major, Op. 31 No. 1)
Malek Jandali (Syria): Title TBD (paired with Beethoven: Piano Sonata no. 18 in E-flat Major, Op. 31 No. 3)
Aida Shirazi (Iran): Après… (paired with Beethoven: Piano Sonata no. 26 in E-flat Major, Op. 81a “Les Adieux”)
Saed Haddad (Jordan): Title TBD (paired with Beethoven: Piano Sonata no. 27 in e minor, Op. 90)
Adina Izzara (Venezuela): Arietta for 150 Kids (paired with Beethoven: Piano Sonata no. 32 in c minor, Op. 111)
Asilan Keçebaşoğlu (Turkey): Title TBD (paired with Beethoven: Piano Sonata no. 28 in A Major, Op. 101)
32 Bright Clouds New Works
Sample Composer Page
32 Bright Clouds Flyer
32 Bright Clouds Website
NPR Feature: 32 Bright Clouds on All Things Considered
32 Bright Clouds at the Freer Gallery – National Museum of Asian Art in DC
Yael Weiss’s “32 Bright Clouds” Finds New Harmony in Beethoven – Sarofim School of the Arts
Conversations | Yael Weiss’s Global Commissioning Project NYFA Current
Beethoven sonatas inspire 21st century composers Washington Jewish Week
Composers draw out peace from Beethoven in new works YahooNews
Yael Weiss premieres 32 Bright Clouds at Strathmore DCMetroTheatreArts
Concert asks composers to create works about war, intolerance VOA News (Voice of America)
Interview/Podcast: MikeyPod
BBC Music Magazine Feature [PDF]
Pianist Yael Weiss Performs Beethoven and Premieres by Schoenfield and Chihara at Bargemusic
“remarkably powerful and intense. . . fine technique and musicianship in the service of an arresting array of music.”
The New York Times
“There was substantial, sweeping virtuoso piano playing here which Weiss performed with dazzling determination”
Virginia Gazette
“a pianist who delves deeply and tellingly… Weiss gave Schumann’s “Humoreske,” Op. 20, a fiery impetuosity”
The Washington Post
“Sometimes one tends to take for granted the level of professionalism displayed by established artists. While it was disappointing not to be able to hear André Laplante, one of Canada’s most interesting pianists, his shoes were more than capably filled by Weiss.”
Calgary Herald
“her technical skill was dazzling, and in the softer, more intimate conversations between piano and orchestra, her depth of feeling and delicacy of touch were mesmerizing.”
SouthCoastToday.com
“I was particularly impressed with Weiss’s soft playing in the Adagio and her clean passagework in the finale. A terrific performance, able to stand with the best.”
American Record Guide
“Her fingers were perfectly choreographed for incredible Promethean runs through Beethoven’s Third Concerto. Weiss gave us melody and fireworks at the same time. Each note rang with clarity and sparkled with feeling”
The Connecticut Post
“Yael Weiss’s liquid tone and unfailingly wise phrasing, [displayed] with particular effectiveness in the first movement of the Beethoven”
Washington Post
“a pianist both technically adept and emotionally clued in… no keyboard hurdle seemed too high for her to conquer with aplomb.”
Herald Times
“Pianist Yael Weiss, a 2002 Naumburg International Piano Competition winner… played with a golden touch that could do no wrong.”
Classical Voice North Carolina
“Yael Weiss managed both the lyricism and the subtle percussiveness of her assignment with consummate artistry.”
Washington Post
“a seasoned performer and a versatile, adventurous pianist, who is equally at home with glittering arpeggios and the languid folkloric harmonies and rhythms of the Triple Concerto’s third movement”
South Coast Today
“Sensitive, scholarly renditions of alternative Schumann repertory, each a labor of love”
[CD Review] Audiophile Audition
“her playing has depth, and her technique is impeccable.”
[CD Review] Sequenza21.com
“Weiss, at the piano, produced gorgeous tones…. There was also in her playing what the Germans term “klang,” tones crystal clear and yet emerging from the keyboard with harmonic overtones, a wondrous effect that not too many pianists can realize.”
The Herald Times
“Yael Weiss attracted my attention immediately by her exceptionally strong, fluid left hand, able to generate sparkling arpeggios with a snap, rather than merely keeping time.”
Classical Sonoma
yael_weiss_flyer_2018
Read Yael’s Blog
The Creative Link Between the Written Score and the Listener
Press Photos
Concerto Acclaim
Concerto Repertoire
ConcertoNet “Ms. Weiss played these works with a sympathetic sincerity… in the complete A‑flat Major Sonata, she was at lyrical and bold. Most essential of all, she showed that Beethoven’s impulsive changes, his sudden mood swerving and final fugue–an iconic paean to the piano–were so singular that no other interpolated music possibly rival his Promethean vision.”
Calgary Herald “Sometimes one tends to take for granted the level of professionalism displayed by established artists. Weiss had not performed these particular works — both of them tremendously demanding — in more than a year…. But one could never have guessed it from the authority and freedom of her playing.” [Yael Weiss steps in on 24-hours notice]
Musical America “Weiss Pairs Sonatas by Beethoven with Premieres by Paul Schoenfield and Paul Chihara”
The Daily Courier “Weiss is a consummate musician with an impeccable technique and an effortless approach.” “She exhibits a fine musical craftsmanship, shaping the overall work with ease and clarity”
South Coast Today “her technical skill was dazzling… her depth of feeling and delicacy of touch were mesmerizing.”
The Washington Post “a pianist who delves deeply and tellingly… Weiss gave Schumann’s “Humoreske,” Op. 20, a fiery impetuosity”
The Washington Post, reviewing at the Kennedy Center, commented on Yael’s “liquid tone and unfailingly wise phrasing” (trio concert)
BBC Music Magazine Feature [PDF]
”a pianist both technically adept and emotionally clued in… no keyboard hurdle seemed too high for her to conquer with aplomb.”
The Strad
Herald Times “As one would expect, she excelled.” [Feigin Concerto Premiere]
HeraldTimesonline.com [Mendelssohn Double Concerto]
Schumann CD Review, Audiophile Audition
Joel Feigin: Aviv piano concerto – listen
Grieg Piano Concerto (1st mvmt) – watch
Beethoven: Sonata in B-flat Maj, Op. 106 “Hammerklavier” 1st mvt. (live) – listen
Beethoven: Sonata in f minor, Op. 57 “Appassionata” 3rd mvt. (live performance) – listen
Beethoven: Sonata in C Major, Op. 53 “Waldstein” 1st mvt. (live performance) – listen
Beethoven: Sonata in c minor, Op. 13 “Pathetique” 3rd mvt. (live performance) – listen
Beethoven: Sonata in D Major, Op. 28 “Pastoral” 4th mvt. (live performance) – listen
Beethoven: Sonata in c minor, Op. 111 1st mvt. (live performance) – listen
Sample of 32 Bright Clouds commission – watch
Interview with 32 Bright Clouds composer Malek Jandali – watch
Lera Auerbach: Ludwig’s Nightmare – watch
Mendelssohn Double Concerto (finale) – listen
Mendelssohn Double Concerto (excerpt) – listen
Brahms Op. 79, # 1 – watch
Bach Italian Concerto – Presto – watch
Joel Feigin Piano Concerto – watch
Chopin: Barcarolle – watch
