Bryan Cheng, cello
Silvie Cheng, piano
In a programme of Debussy: Scherzo, L. 39; Chopin: Cello Sonata in G minor, Op. 65; Wijeratne: Portrait of an Imaginary Sibling; Bruch: Kol Nidrei, Op. 47 and Piazzolla: Le grand tango
Cheng² Duo Rooted by a sibling bond that transcends the familial, the Cheng² Duo (pronounced Cheng Squared Duo) transfixes listeners through its impassioned expressivity and contagious joy—critics have hailed their performances as “brilliant” (The Sunday Times, UK), “truly exhila-rating” (The WholeNote, Canada), and “absolutely captivating…through a tremendous mas-tery of their instruments” (Pizzicato Magazine, Luxembourg).
Cellist Bryan Cheng, prizewinner of the 2022 Queen Elisabeth Competition and Verbier Festival’s coveted Prix Yves Paternot, and pianist Silvie Cheng, 2022-23 Cecilia Concerts Musicianin-Residence and National Arts Club Artist Fellow, have been making music together for nearly their entire lives. Since officially forming the Cheng² Duo at their 2011 Carnegie Weill Recital Hall debut, their artistry has left lasting impressions across the globe, with extensive tours to illustrious concert halls and international festivals throughout North America, Europe, Asia, and South Africa.
In the 2023/24 season, the duo will appear as guest soloists with the Banatul Philharmonic (Romania), embark on multi-week tours in Canada and South Africa, and present recitals in Switzerland and the US. Recent highlights include recitals at the Frauenkirche Dresden, Flagey (Brussels), Munich Künstlerhaus, California Center for the Arts, Dame Myra Hess Series (Chicago), Chamber Music at the Clark (Los Angeles), Harvard University (Cambridge), Isabel Bader Centre for the Performing Arts (Kingston), Orford Musique, Salle Bourgie (Montréal), Palais Montcalm (Québec), as well as Chamberfest Cheboygan, Ottawa Chamberfest, and Toronto Summer Music Festivals. Past performances and interviews have been broadcast on CBC Radio, ICI Musique, Radio-Canada International, Vermont Public Radio, WCRB Classical Music Boston, WCNY Classic FM, Kulturradio RBB and Südwestrundfunk (SWR2) Germany, ORF Austria, and Classical Radio Orpheus (Moscow).
In the vanguard of creative programming, Bryan and Silvie are equally committed to presenting traditional masterworks, rediscovering neglected repertoire, and championing the music of their time. Since 2013, they have commissioned and arranged 15 new works, as well as curated cross-disciplinary concert experiences that meld classical and contemporary music with jazz, poetry, and visual/media arts. World-class collaborative partners have included photographer and cinematographer Edward Burtynsky, Mercury Films, and multimedia studio Normal. Cheng² Duo’s fourth and newest album, Portrait, a collection of world-premiere works written for or arranged by them, was released on Centrediscs in October 2023.
The duo has previously released a trilogy of critically-acclaimed albums on the German label audite: Russian Legends (2019), Violonchelo del fuego (2018), and Violoncelle français (2016). Born in Ot-tawa and Tokyo to Chinese parents, Bryan and Silvie are proud Canadians who are currently based in Berlin and New York City. For more information, visit www.cheng2duo.com or follow @Cheng2Duo on social media.
