Guest Artist Series to feature L.A. Phil concertmaster Chalifour

  Arts+Culture   College of Arts & Sciences  

RIVERSIDE, Calif. – A concert series at La Sierra University will feature the talents of violin virtuoso Martin Chalifour, principal concertmaster for the Los Angeles Philharmonic, in a return performance.

Martin Chalifour, concertmaster for the L.A. Philharmonic will give a recital and masterclass at La Sierra University on March 10.
Martin Chalifour, concertmaster for the L.A. Philharmonic will give a recital and masterclass at La Sierra University on March 10.
Noted pianist Jiayi Shi will perform with Martin Chalifour and violinist Jason Uyeyama in the Guest Artist Recital Series concert on March 10.
Noted pianist Jiayi Shi will perform with Martin Chalifour and violinist Jason Uyeyama in the Guest Artist Recital Series concert on March 10.
Violinist Jason Uyeyama, La Sierra's director of string studies and frequent performer with the L.A. Phil. (Photo: Natan Vigna)
Violinist Jason Uyeyama, La Sierra's director of string studies and frequent performer with the L.A. Phil. (Photo: Natan Vigna)

Chalifour will perform for the university’s Guest Artist Recital Series in a 7 p.m. concert on Thurs., March 10 at La Sierra’s Hole Memorial Auditorium. Joining him will be noted pianist Jiayi Shi, violinist Jason Uyeyama, director of La Sierra’s string studies program, and university chamber musicians. Chalifour will also give a master class the same day from 1-2:30 p.m. in the auditorium. The class is free and open to the public.

The performance will include Antonin Dvorak’s “Mazurek Op. 49,” and Johann Sebastian Bach’s “Sinfonia in D Major” and “Double Violin Concerto in D minor.” 

Chalifour began his tenure as L.A. Phil concertmaster in 1995. He is a native of Canada and the recipient of numerous grants and awards including a Certificate of Honor from the Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow and an honoree of the Montreal International Competition. With a wide-ranging repertoire of more than 60 concertos, Chalifour maintains an active solo career. He has appeared with such renowned conductors as Pierre Boulez, Gustavo Dudamel, Sir Neville Marriner, and Esa-Pekka Salonen and soloed internationally with the Auckland Philharmonia, the Montreal Symphony, and the Hong Kong Philharmonic among others.

Chalifour is a frequent guest at summer music festivals. In December 2014 he was featured at the Reno Chamber Music Festival with friend and colleague Noah Bendix-Balgley, first concertmaster with the Berlin Philharmoniker. The duo performed a special program entitled “The Concertmasters of the Berlin Phil and the LA Phil.” Chalifour has recorded solo and chamber music for the Telarc, Northstar and Yarlung labels. He teaches at the University of Southern California and the California Institute of Technology. He last appeared at La Sierra in October 2013 in a master class and recital.

Chalifour graduated with honors from the Montreal Conservatory at the age of 18 and pursued studies at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia.

Shi is known for her collaboration as a pianist with renowned violinist Midori with whom she gave a recital debut performance at the Mostly Mozart Festival in New York. The pianist has given chamber recitals in such notable venues as Davies Symphony Hall in San Francisco and St. Lukes Hall in London, and performs regularly with many distinguished musicians including Chalifour, violin soloist Ryu Goto and Bavarian Radio Orchestra Principal Korbinian Altenberger.

Her concert appearances include a recital at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington D.C., and live television performances with Midori in the Korean Broadcasting System series “Classical Odyssey” in Korea, as well as recital appearances in Munich and Regensburg Germany.

Shi earned a Doctorate in Musical Arts from the Manhattan School of Music in New York.

Uyeyama oversees La Sierra’s chamber music and guest artist series. He has performed regularly with the Los Angeles Philharmonic since 2005 and has also appeared with the Pacific Symphony, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, and the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra. Festival appearances include Festival Mozaic in San Luis Obispo, Festicamara in Medellin, Colombia, as well as the renowned festivals of Aspen, Tanglewood, and Taos.

An advocate of community outreach, Uyeyama has been music director of Community Kids Connection in San Bernardino since 2008.  Through this program, he has given free violin lessons to underserved children and performances for local hospitals and charity events.

Uyeyama received his master’s degree from the Juilliard School of Music in New York. His primary teachers have included Itzhak Perlman, Masao Kawasaki, and Yao-Ji Lin.

Tickets for the Guest Artist Recital Series are $15 for general admission, $10 seniors, $5 students, children age 12 and under are free. For further information call 951-785-2036, email music@lasierra.edu, or visit https://lasierra.edu/music/. La Sierra University is located at 4500 Riverwalk Parkway, Riverside. 

La Sierra University is located at 4500 Riverwalk Parkway, Riverside. A campus map is available at https://lasierra.edu/campus-map/.

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