FRIENDS OF MUSIC Laurel Lake Retirement Community 200 Laurel Lake Drive, Hudson, Ohio Wednesday Evening, March 11th, 2026 at Seven Thirty O’clock
PROGRAM
From Andersen’s Fairy Tales Sergei Bortkiewicz (1877-1952) 1. The princess and the pea 2. The bell 3. The steadfast tin soldier 4. The angel 5. Little Ida’s flowers 6. The nightingale 7. It is quite certain 8. The child in the grave 9. The butterfly 10, The ugly duckling 11. Golden treasure 12. The metal pig
Six Romanian Dances Bela Bartok (1881-1945) 1. Stick dance 2. Sash dance 3. In one spot 4. Dance from Bucsum 5. Romanian polka 6. Fast dance
Allegro Barbaro Bela Bartok
Philip Thomson, piano
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Piano Trio No.2, in A minor, Op.34 Cecile Chaminade Allegro moderato (1857-1944) Scherzo: Allegro Andante con moto
Poiema Trio: Ann Yu, violin, Nathan Francisco, cello, and Anran Qian, piano
PHILIP THOMSON was born in Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada. He began piano studies in his hometown at the age of five with Carol O'Neil, who remained his teacher until he entered the University of Toronto as a student of Swiss pianist Pierre Souvairan. His graduate studies were at The Juilliard School with the renowned pianist Abbey Simon; there, he won the Juilliard School's Liszt concerto competition and performed Liszt's Concerto #1 in Alice Tully Hall. While still a student, he was already concertizing widely in Canada and has played with all of Canada's major orchestras and in every important concert centre in the country. He has also performed in Hungary, Austria, England, Ireland, France, the U.S., the Netherlands, Belgium, France, and China. Since 2010, he has appeared as a soloist numerous times in China and in Korea, including performances in the prestigious Seoul Spring Festival concert series. Mr. Thomson came to world-wide attention when he recorded the world-premiere of Liszt's “De Profundis” with the Hungarian State Orchestra, which was released on the Hungaroton label. Its universal critical praise secured for him the opportunity to perform the Hungarian, Italian, American, and Canadian premieres of the work. Philip Thomson was subsequently invited by Naxos Records to record many of Liszt's solo works. He released three CDs of Liszt, all of which received excellent reviews from the major musical journals throughout the world. He has also recorded, also to wide critical acclaim, the complete Preludes and Impromptus of the Russian composer Felix Blumenfeld on the Ivory Classics label. Philip Thomson was on the piano faculty of The University of Akron since 1994, and from 2003 until his retirement in 2023 he was the Head of Piano Studies.
POIEMA TRIO, Poiema formed in the summer of 2023 at the Kneisel Hall Chamber Music Festival. they have performed and taught workshops across the eastern half of the US and are recipients of the 2024 Gold Medal Prize from the Ninth International Chamber Music Ensemble Competition. Their name, "Poiema," means poetry at the intersection of beauty and brokenness, a poignant reminder of an artist's true calling. ANN YU praised for her “full-bodied, rich and warm tone” (Cleveland.com), is a Cleveland-based violinist and baroque violinist. She is an accomplished soloist, chamber musician, orchestral player, session musician, and educator whose versatility, excellence in artistry, and collaborative spirit has secured her as one of the most coveted musicians throughout Northeast Ohio's artistic communities. She received her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the Cleveland Institute of Music studying with Jaime Laredo, Jan Sloman, and William Preucil, where she was the winner of the 26th Annual Darius Milhaud Competition and Concerto Competition and the recipient of the Fortnightly Musical Award. Yu finds great joy in exploring other genres and styles of playing the violin through jamming with local bluegrass, old time, blues, and jazz musicians. Currently she studies baroque violin with Alan Choo and Julie Andrijeski, and is currently a Young Artist Fellow with Apollo's Fire. Outside of music, she enjoys dancing lindy hop and blues, hiking, and exploring the local parks. NATHAN FRANCISCO, originally hailing from Chattanooga Tennessee, is a versatile musician with a diverse range of musical interests. Active both as a soloist and ensemble musician, Francisco has a deep commitment to sharing his love of music with the world. He is passionate about historical performance and folk music and has extensively studied baroque cello and viola da gamba as well as organ and other historical keyboards. Currently studying at The Juilliard School under the tutelage of Zvi Plesser, Zlatomir Fung, and Sarah Cunningham, Francisco’s past teachers have included Richard Aaron, Peter Wiley, Wesley Baldwin, Martha Bishop, and Judy Glass. He has studied at several acclaimed festivals, including Taos, Kneisel, and Bowdoin, and serves as assistant director of two chamber music festivals in Collegedale, TN. In his recreational time, Francisco enjoys hiking, playing disc golf, and sight-reading chamber music with friends. ANRAN QIAN, pianist, praised by Sing Tao Daily for “…bringing the audience into a different sound world with her vibrant tones,” is a versatile and compelling musician whose performances have taken her across Asia, Europe, and North America. She has earned international recognition as a prizewinner and laureate of competitions including the Valsesia Musica International Piano Competition, Chicago International Music Competition, Pro Musicis International Award, and the Beijing International Music Festival and Academy Concerto Competition. Beyond the stage, Anran finds joy in improvisation, composition, and teaching, continually exploring new ways to connect with people through music. Believing in music’s power to foster understanding and build community, she founded ArsNova, a free concert series in Newton, Massachusetts, dedicated to showcasing underrepresented voices and making classical music more accessible. A passionate performer and educator, she earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from The Juilliard School and is currently pursuing a Doctor of Musical Arts degree at Boston University while serving on the piano faculty at Brookline Music School.
