WEST PLAINS, Mo. – Two distinguished faculty members of the Department of Music at Missouri State University in Springfield, Dr. Hye-Jung Hong and Dr. Wei-Han Su, will present “One Piano, Four Hands” at 7 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 27, at the West Plains Civic Center theater.

Tickets for the recital, presented by Missouri State-West Plains’ University/Community Programs (U/CP) Department, are $5 and available at the civic center box office.  Children age 13 and under will be admitted free.

“It’s a rare occasion to see two people on one piano, so we are very fortunate this talented husband-and-wife duo will be presenting us with this exciting opportunity,” said Deborah DeWitt, coordinator of U/CP’s theater and events programming.   “I invite all parents to bring their children to this enriching musical adventure.  Although you can hear this type of classical piano music on CDs, radio and even YouTube, there is nothing quite like listening to it live on a baby grand piano!”

The recital will include music written for dual performers on one instrument by Ravel, Rachmaninoff, Mendelssohn, Barber and Robert Helps, DeWitt said.

Since her debut at the Palace of Arts in Seoul, Korea, Dr. Hong has performed numerous recitals in Germany, Holland, Italy, Malaysia and Canada.  In the United States, she has appeared as a concerto soloist with the Virginia Symphony Orchestra and has given many solo and collaborative concerts.  She has performed at the Missouri Music Teachers Association state convention and has appeared on concert series in Los Angeles and Washington, D.C.  In 2004, she appeared as guest artist at the Amadeus Piano Festival in Oklahoma.

She has studied with internationally acclaimed musicians Julian Martin, Leon Fleisher, Daewook Lee, Yong Hi Moon and Dominique Weber.  She received her doctorate in musical arts at the Peabody Conservatory.  Currently, she is assistant professor of piano at Missouri State and serves as co-vice president of auditions for the Missouri Music Teachers Association.

Dr. Su, also an associate professor of piano at Missouri State, previously served on the faculties of the Peabody Conservatory, Peabody Preparatory and the Missouri Fine Arts Academy.  His concert activities have taken him to major cities in the U.S., Great Britain, Russia, Italy, Korea, Malaysia and Taiwan.  He has performed in such prestigious venues as the Purcell Room at the South Bank Centre in England, and in the Grand Hall of the Moscow Conservatory and the Hall of Columns in Russia.  In 1991, he made his orchestral debut at Queen Elizabeth Hall in London performing Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 3 under the baton of internationally acclaimed conductor Sir Simon Rattle.

Dr. Su was a featured recitalist at the Walnut Hill Summer Music Festival in Boston, Mass., in 1999 and 2004.  He has performed at the Missouri Music Teachers Association state convention and recently presented recitals on concert series in Los Angeles and Washington, D.C.  As a concerto soloist, he has appeared with the Orchestra Filarmonica Italiana, Cambridge Chamber Orchestra and Springfield Symphony Orchestra, among others.  He is the recipient of numerous awards and honors, including the Ian Fleming Education Award and the Craxton Memorial Prize.

Dr. Su received his bachelor of arts degree, with honors, from Cambridge University, a master in music degree and the Performer’s Diploma from the Royal College of Music in London, and his doctorate in musical arts degree from the Peabody Conservatory.  His principal teachers include Boris Slutsky, Yu Chun Yee, Joyce Rathbone and Yonty Solomon.

An active adjudicator and clinician, Dr. Su has judged and presented masterclasses in several states in the U.S., as well as abroad.  He currently serves as vice president of auditions for the Missouri Music Teachers Association.

Dr. Julia Combs, head of the Department of Music at Missouri State University, said those who attend the Aug. 27 event are “in for a marvelous treat!  Dr. Hong and Dr. Su are phenomenal musicians.  They are like tigers individually, but when you put them together, they are amazing!  You can just feel the energy in the room.”

For more information about the recital, call the U/CP office at 417-255-7966 or visit the U/CP website, http://wp.missouristate.edu/ucp/.

DR. HYE-JUNG HONG, left, and Dr. Wei-Han Su, faculty members of Missouri State University’s Department of Music in Springfield, will present “One Piano, Four Hands” at 7 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 27, at the West Plains Civic Center theater.  (Photo provided)

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