Zhang Zuo, the award-winning young artist the Los Angeles Times says performs with “a powerful, passionate, and compelling representation of pure artistry” is the perfect soloist to illuminate the diverse movements and charm of Beethoven’s delightful Piano Concerto No. 2, composed when he too was in his 20s. A rhapsody of famous popular tunes and spirited Venezuelan rhythms sets the tone for this program which concludes with Mahler’s Symphony No. 1 and its sometimes startling blend of music from his own Songs of a Wayfarer to “Frère Jacques.”
“I played Margariteña with the Youth Orchestra at least 100 times, including once in Panama when we performed it with Mahler’s first symphony. This performance of Margariteña will celebrate the life and work of Inocente Carreño, who died in May 2016.” José Luis Gomez