Esther Yoo x Haochen Zhang Duo Recital

From Classical wit to Romantic grandeur—a meeting of musical equals

Violinist Esther Yoo and pianist Haochen Zhang, two of today’s most distinguished young musicians, explore the evolution of the German-Austrian piano and violin sonata through three masterworks by Beethoven, Brahms and Richard Strauss. Praised by The Strad for her “radiantly golden tone”, and The Guardian as a performer few can match for “sheer technique”, Yoo has established herself as one of the leading violinists of her generation. Zhang, one of the first Asian gold medallists of the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, was hailed by Gramophone as “an artist of rare talent” whose “precision and power merit the highest praise”. One of the foremost Chinese pianists on the world stage, he rarely performs in duo recital—making this new collaboration with Yoo all the more significant.

Beethoven’s Sonata No 8 in G Major opens the evening with exuberance, wit and inventive interplay between violin and piano, reflecting the composer’s revolutionary spirit. Brahms’ beloved Sonata No 2 in A Major, composed during a summer in Switzerland, is steeped in warmth, lyricism and the freshness of spring—its intimate conversations between the instruments unfolding in an atmosphere of poetic serenity. The recital culminates in Richard Strauss’ Sonata in E-flat Major, written when the composer was only in his early 20s: a sweeping and emotionally charged work whose symphonic scale and dazzling technical demands create a thrilling conclusion.

Advance Bookings will start at 10am on 7 October 2026