A World-Class Ensemble: Quintet ZaRiah & Yale's Melvin Chen, Sunday January 18th
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WSO's Thomas Clark, WSO’s Young Artist Initiative
Sunday, January 18th at 4pm at the Litchfield Community Center - The 2nd of WSO's 3-Concert Litchfield Series this season
One of the Waterbury Symphony Orchestra’s most meaningful artistic partnerships is its long-standing collaboration with the Yale School of Music—a relationship that brings extraordinary young talent to local audiences year after year. Conceived by current Board Chair Thomas Clark, WSO’s Young Artist Initiative was created with a simple but powerful idea: to introduce our community to the next generation of great musicians, just as they are coming into their own.
On Sunday January 18, that vision comes vividly to life with a chamber concert featuring Quintet ZaRiah, a world-class emerging ensemble whose artistry is already making national waves—introduced to WSO through distinguished pianist Melvin Chen, longtime Professor in the Practice of Piano at Yale School of Music and Director of the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival / Yale Summer School of Music.
To hear an artist of Chen’s stature perform one of the pieces planned for the concert, Poulenc’s brilliant Sextet, in tandem with a rising young chamber ensemble is an extraordinary and rare treat.
Quintet ZaRiah is no stranger to our region. This past summer, the ensemble was in residence at the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival, where their electrifying performances quickly became a highlight of the season.
Three of the quintet’s five members are currently completing graduate degrees at the Yale School of Music, while all five are already accomplished orchestral musicians. Collectively, they have performed with some of the world’s most respected ensembles, including the London Symphony Orchestra, Boston Symphony Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, New World Symphony, and leading regional orchestras across the country.
Beyond their technical brilliance, Quintet ZaRiah brings a compelling sense of purpose to their music-making. With three members who are first-generation college students and three who hail from the rural South, the ensemble is deeply committed to expanding access to classical music and engaging underserved communities—an ethos that resonates strongly with WSO’s own mission.
Repertoire
• Samuel Coleridge-Taylor – They Will Not Lend Me A Child (~4’)
• Carl Nielsen – Wind Quintet, Op. 43 (~27’)
• Francis Poulenc – Sextet (~19 – 20’) with Melvin Chen, piano
• Valerie Coleman – Tzigane (~11’)
Calendar Listing
Clark Chamber Concert: Quintet ZaRiah & Pianist Melvin Chen
Sunday, January 18th, 2025 4 p.m.
The Litchfield Community Center
421 Bantam Road, Litchfield, CT 06759
Doors Open: 3:15 p.m.
Parking: Free accessible parking in onsite lot
Tickets: $30 General Admission | $10 Students with ID
For tickets online: visit waterburysymphony.org
For tickets by phone: Call WSO/Palace Box Office, at (203) 346-2000 (Monday-Friday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.).
The chamber concert is the 2nd of WSO’s three concert ‘LITCHFIELD SERIES’ generously supported by Series Sponsor O&G Industries as well as WSO’s 24/25 Season Presenting Sponsor Thermo Conductor Services. The Series is being presented as part of a new partnership with the Litchfield Community Center.
The performances will be followed by a complimentary reception. For more information or to purchase tickets online, visit WaterburySymphony.org. Tickets can also be purchased by telephone at 203-346-2000, via WSO/Palace Box Office.
About the Quintet Zariah
A “world-class emerging ensemble,” ZaRiah is a collaboration of multifaceted artists who are guided by their varying backgrounds and cultures.
Known for their dynamic staging and audience engagement, ZaRiah was the First Prize Winner of the Frances Walton Chamber Music Competition. They recently embarked on a tour of Washington state in which they performed multiple concerts, were featured on Classical KING-FM, and paid visits to numerous public schools for outreach programs. For ZaRiah, their top priority is connecting with people. They will often interact with their audiences in various ways such as implementing choreography, performing from memory, as well as conversing directly with the audience. ZaRiah believes the intimate and interactive environment of chamber music is what makes it special and meaningful.
Members of ZaRiah have participated in renowned summer festivals such as Tanglewood, the Music Academy of the West, the National Repertory Orchestra, and the National Orchestral Institute, and have also toured with Broadway productions.
About Melvin Chen
Professor in the Practice of Piano
Yale School of Music
Director
Norfolk Chamber Music Festival
A native of Tennessee, Dr. Melvin Chen has received acclaim for solo and chamber performances throughout the United States, Canada, and Asia. Chen’s performances have been featured on radio and television stations around the world, including KBS television and radio in Korea, NHK television in Japan, and NPR in the United States.
As a Professor in the Practice of Piano, Chen teaches a studio of graduate and undergraduate piano students. In addition, he serves as Director of the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival/Yale Summer School of Music, where he also performs. Previously, Chen was Associate Director and on the piano faculty at the Bard College Conservatory of Music and served as Artistic Director of the chamber music program at the Hotchkiss School Summer.
Chen earned a doctorate in chemistry from Harvard University and holds a double master’s degree from The Juilliard School in piano and violin. He received his bachelor of science degree in chemistry and physics from Yale University, where he studied with Boris Berman, Paul Kantor, and Ida Kavafian.
Our Litchfield Series Sponsors
As a professional orchestra, bringing national and international professional performing artists and our esteemed Artistic Director to Litchfield, isn't possible without the visionary support of our Season and Litchfield Series Sponsors. When you are able to, please do thank these generous sponsors. Without them, simply, we would not be able to present these incredible performances.
