Get To Know: Chamber Music Society, David Finckel, Wu Han, and Chad Hoopes

First conceived by American composer William Schuman in 1965, Charles Wadsworth founded the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center in 1969 with the help and leadership of beloved patron for the arts Alice Tully. An integral member of the Lincoln Center community, CMS produces over eighty concerts a year in New York City, as well as numerous regional performances across the country. Additionally, CMS has commissioned over 160 new works of chamber music since its founding, including works by Bruce Adolphe, Zhou Long, and Leonard Bernstein.  

Originally from New Jersey, David Finckel first gained notoriety in his professional career as the cellist for the Emerson String Quartet, which he performed with from 1979-2013. The group won nine Grammy Awards during his tenure, including two for Best Classical Album. Alongside his other responsibilities, Finckel is a professor of cello at Julliard.

Wu Han started her musical studies in Taipei, Taiwan at the age of nine. While piano swiftly became her preferred instrument, Han also became proficient in viola and percussion. By age 12, Han began competing in music competitions, outperforming older performers, and soon capturing first prize in every major competition in her country. She moved to the US to studying at The Hartt School and beginning an illustrious career as a classical pianist.

Starting as frequent collaborators, Finckel and Han have been married since 1985. As a duo, Finckel and Han began to tour regularly while retaining residencies in New York. In 2003, they founded the acclaimed classical music festival Music@Menlo in California, which offers highly coveted performance opportunities to young performers (ages 9-29). In 2004, Finckel and Han were named co-artistic directors of the Chamber Music Society. In 2012, the duo shared Musical America’s Musicians of the Year Award, one of the highest honors in American classical music.

Minneapolis-based Chad Hoopes is a violinist with credits that take many performers decades to achieve. First earning international attention for winning First Prize at the Young Artists Division of the Yehudi Menuhin International Violin Competition, Hoopes won Lincoln Center’s Avery Fischer Career Grant in 2017. He has played internationally with numerous orchestras, including Orchestre de Paris, Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, National Arts Centre Orchestra, and the Munich Symphony Orchestra, where he was an artist-in-residence. When not touring, Hoopes works as a Professor of Practice in violin at Southern Methodist University in Dallas.

Want to know more about the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, David Finckel, Wu Han and Chad Hoopes? You can visit their websites, www.chambermusicsociety.org,  www.davidfinckelandwuhan.com and www.chadhoopes.com, for upcoming concerts and more!

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