MAC Classical Concert Series

Samuel Walter, Cello
Elizabeth Tsai, Piano

Thursday, May 2, 2024 7:30pm

Samuel Walter

Samuel Walter received a B.A. in music at Haverford College, and a M.M. and M.M.A. degree at the Yale School of Music where he studied with Paul Watkins, Aldo Parisot and Ralph Kirschbaum. Over the years Samuel has also studied with teachers such Clive Greensmith, Ole Akahoshi and Priscilla Lee. He has soloed with several symphony orchestras including the Lansdowne Symphony Orchestra, Warminster Symphony Orchestra, Old York Symphony Orchestra, the Independence Sinfonia. Samuel has also performed alongside international soloists including the late Lynn Harrell and Joseph Silverstein. In addition to performing, Samuel has worked extensively as a teacher. In addition to running a private studio, in 2017 and 2018 he taught at the Meadowmount School of Music, and worked as conductor and cello instructor at Yale’s Morse Academy from 2019-2022.

Samuel has also worked as a portrait and still-life painter. He has been featured in The American Art Collector Magazine, the International Artist Magazine, and the The Art of The Portrait Magazine.

Elizabeth Tsai

Elizabeth Tsai began her musical studies with the cello at the age of four and switched to the piano at age seven. As a teenager, she garnered awards from various local and international competitions and had the opportunity to appear in solo and orchestra performances across the United States. In recent years, she has focused more on expanding her repertoire, with an ongoing project of learning and performing the complete Beethoven piano sonatas. 

She is currently working towards the Master of Musical Arts at the Yale School of Music, where she also completed her Master’s degree with Boris Berman. Additionally, she holds a position as Teaching Artist at the Neighborhood Music School in New Haven. Elisabeth is passionate about chamber music as well as solo performance, and was recently invited to the Smithsonian Chamber Society to perform Beethoven piano trios on period instruments.

PROGRAM

Après un rêve … Gabriel Fauré

Sonata for Cello and Piano No 1 in E Minor … Johannes Brahms

Cello Suite No. 3 … J. S. Bach

Fantasiestücke, Op. 73 … Robert Schumann

Vocalise, Op. 34, No. 14 … S. Rachmaninov

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