Derek Han

Derek Han
Han in 1977
Born
Derek Bing Han

(1957-06-17)June 17, 1957
Columbus, Ohio, US
DiedApril 8, 2021(2021-04-08) (aged 63)
Sarasota, Florida, US
EducationJuilliard School
Occupations
  • Pianist
  • Arts administrator


Children4
Awards

Derek Bing Han[a][1] (June 17, 1957 – April 8, 2021) was an American pianist and arts administrator. A musically precocious child, his pianistic career began at the age of 10 with his public debut at a concert of the Columbus Symphony Orchestra. After his graduation from the Juilliard School in 1975, he embarked on a successful career as soloist and chamber partner. In 1986, he was one of the co-founders of La Musica di Asolo festival in Sarasota, Florida.

Biography

Early life

Han was born in Columbus, Ohio, on June 17, 1957.[1]

Between the ages of 5 and 11, Han studied piano with Rolland Saltz. In a 1988 interview, Saltz said Han, whose talent was immediately discernible, was one of his best students: "When I began teaching Derek, the first thing he said was, 'Mr. Saltz, I'm going to be a concert pianist when I grow up'".[2] At the age of 10, Han made his public debut in a Columbus Symphony Orchestra concert as soloist in the Piano Concerto No. 2 by Ludwig van Beethoven.[3] After studying piano with Saltz, Han earned a full scholarship to continue his studies at the Juilliard School.[2] His teachers there included Guido Agosti, Gina Bachauer, Ilona Kabos, Lili Kraus, and Nadia Reisenberg.[4][5] Han graduated in 1975.[3]

Maturity

In 1975, Han competed in the Atlanta Young Artists Competition, where he placed among the semi-finalists.[6] The following year, he participated in the American Music Scholarship Association Piano Competition held in Cincinnati; he shared third place.[5] Han was among the contestants in the 1977 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition.[7] That same year, he won the first prize at the Athens International Piano Competition and began his professional career.[3]

Throughout the late 1970s and into the 1980s, Han regularly performed in North America and Europe. Among his notable appearances were those at the Marlboro Festival, where he had been invited by Rudolf Serkin,[4] as well as recitals at Alice Tully Hall and Carnegie Hall.[8] For a period of three years he toured together with the violinist Leonid Kogan.[9] He also played with the Sinfonia Varsovia conducted by Yehudi Menuhin. In the course of his performing career, Han played for various dignitaries, including Nelson Mandela, Carlos Menem, and three presidents of the United States.[10][11]

In 1986, Han was among the founding members of La Musica di Asola, later renamed to La Musica, an annual music festival in Sarasota, Florida. It was based on a festival in Asolo, Italy, where Han had previously lived.[12][13][14] He was the festival's associate artistic director, a position he held for life.[15] He also held advisory roles with the Zagreb Philharmonic Orchestra (1988–1990) and Moscow Symphony Orchestra (1990–1992),[10] and was artistic director of the Chamber Music Festival in Trieste.[16]

Han's discography expanded significantly in the 1990s and early 2000s. Among his recordings were complete cycles of the concertos by Beethoven, Franz Joseph Haydn, and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. He also recorded music by Johannes Brahms, Sergei Rachmaninoff, Dmitri Shostakovich, and Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky.[4]

Death

Derek Han died from Covid 19 related complications in Sarasota on April 8, 2021.[15][16]

Reception

In a profile of Han's life and work, Steinway & Sons said that "[his pianism] was original though fairly straightforward in its lucid tones, spirited character, and technical fluidity and accuracy".[4] Appraising a performance of Rachmaninoff's Rhapsody on a Theme by Paganini, the music critic Peter Palmer wrote in the Nottingham Evening Post that he enjoyed Han's precision, and said that "the best things about his playing were its freshness and sense of proportion".[17] Anthony Payne, in a review for The Independent, wrote of Han's performance of Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1 that the pianist "gave full weight to the music's majestic lyrical processes and responded to climactic moments with exhilarating bravura". Payne also noted Han's avoidance of "artificial excitement".[18] In a review for the Birmingham Post of another performance of the same concerto, the music critic Stephen Daw said he was impressed by Han's "very convincing technical exuberance", illustrated by the ease with which the pianist caught his own eyeglasses when they fell off during one of the work's more strenuous moments.[19]

Reviews of Han's recordings in the American Record Guide were mixed. Allen Linkowski said that Han was "not a particularly imaginative player",[20] while Donald Vroon called his playing "quite neutral".[21] Tom Godell, however, described Han as "underrated" and favorably compared his recording of Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 20 to one by Rudolf Serkin.[22]

References

Notes

  1. ^ Chinese: 韩祖平; pinyin: Hán Zǔ Píng

Citations

  1. ^ a b Dignity Memorial.
  2. ^ a b Huba 1988, p. 1.
  3. ^ a b c Huisking 2002, p. 72.
  4. ^ a b c d Steinway.
  5. ^ a b Dayton Daily News.
  6. ^ "Pianists Compete in Atlanta". Opelika-Auburn News. April 11, 1975. p. 5. Retrieved December 2, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ Stewart, Lloyd (September 21, 1977). "Weary contestants mingle for a night". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. p. 21. Retrieved December 1, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "A Week of Good Music". Palm Beach Post. March 14, 1976. p. 114. Retrieved December 2, 2025.
  9. ^ Steiner, Joan (February 24, 1987). "Han delights audience during PS piano recital". The Desert Sun. p. 67. Retrieved December 2, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ a b Moody 2012.
  11. ^ Coleman, Terri (February 26, 1988). "World-class pianist to perform at Bucknell". The Daily Item. p. 24. Retrieved December 2, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ Page, Virginia (March 8, 1989). "Famed artists in Sarasota for La Musica di Asolo". Bradenton Herald. p. 21. Retrieved December 2, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ Huisking, Charlie (November 30, 1986). "Music Festival Has Italian Connection". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. p. 73. Retrieved December 2, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ "History". La Musica Chamber Music. Archived from the original on December 2, 2025. Retrieved December 2, 2025.
  15. ^ a b Handelman 2021.
  16. ^ a b Kipling 2021.
  17. ^ Palmer, Peter (March 2, 1992). "Devilishly Powerful". Nottingham Evening Post. p. 16. Retrieved December 2, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  18. ^ Payne, Anthony (March 27, 1991). "Natural colour". The Independent. p. 14. Retrieved December 2, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  19. ^ Daw, Stephen (February 25, 1992). "Remarkable calibre". Birmingham Post. p. 10. Retrieved December 2, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  20. ^ Linkowski, Allen (May 1996). "Haydn: Piano Concertos Nos. 2, 5, 9, 12". American Record Guide. 59 (3): 162. ProQuest 223419426 – via ProQuest.
  21. ^ Vroon, Donald (January 2006). "Mozart: Piano Concertos, all". American Record Guide. 69 (1): 162. ProQuest 223367681 – via ProQuest.
  22. ^ Godell, Tom (May 2005). "Mozart: Piano Concertos Nos. 12 and 20; German Dances; Prelude and Fugue in C". American Record Guide. 68 (3): 236–237. ProQuest 223373920 – via ProQuest.

Sources

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