Father and daughter perform violin piano recital on Jan. 30

Concert will benefit Orange County Youth Symphony Central Valley - Huadong Lu and his daughter Becky Lu will perform works from Beethoven and Brahms in a violin/piano recital on Sunday, Jan. 30, to benefit the Orange County Youth Symphony. Lu, the Symphonic Orchestra Conductor at Monroe-Woodbury High School, founded the Orange County Youth Symphony two years ago to meet the growing needs of young, talented instrumental music students throughout the area. It provides them with a year-long experience playing major works of symphony orchestra literature. The proceeds from the recital with his daughter on Jan. 30 at Monroe-Woodbury High School go toward the Orange County Youth Symphony fund and its upcoming trip the Czech Republic in February. Last year, the Orange County Youth Symphony traveled to in Beijing where the young musicians played works from Dvorak, Elgar and Berlioz with a local Chinese youth. 'Brilliance and poise’ Becky Lu began piano studies at the age of 3, and has since been invited to perform at such venues as Jordan Hall, the Kennedy Center, Lincoln Center, and the Bard Music Festival to critical acclaim from the New York Times and Wall Street Journal. The latter, in a review following her performance of Béla Bartók’s Mikrokosmos, wrote: “It was both poignant and a revelation to hear selections (from Mikrokosmos) performed with technical brilliance and poise by Becky Lu....” Born in Guangzhou, China, Becky made her debut on Chinese national television at the age of 6, and at the age of 10, had her American debut under the auspices of the Si-Yo Music Society at Kent State University and New York City. Becky earned a B.A. in 2005 from Yale College, where she graduated magna cum laude and received distinctions in the majors of Political Science and Music. As a student of Peter Frankl, she earned a Master of Music degree and an Artist Diploma from the Yale School of Music in 2006 and 2007, respectively. While at Yale, she was an active performer of new music as well as chamber music. Her violin-piano duo and piano trio swept the top prizes at Yale’s Friends of Music Recital Competition, and she founded a chamber music society that gave frequent performances on campus. As a participant of Cultures in Harmony, a nonprofit organization that sends musicians around the world to engage in cultural diplomacy, Becky performed and lectured at St. Scholastica’s College in Manila, Philippines. For the spring semester of 2008, the Peking University-Yale University Joint Undergraduate Program appointed her Teaching Fellow in Beijing, China, where she taught music theory, history, and chamber music at Peking University and Central Conservatory. In addition, Becky has worked on a winning U.S. Senate campaign and served as an intern in a congressional office on Capitol Hill.

Essential information
Huadong Lu and his daughter Becky Lu are joining forces to perform a violin/piano recital on Sunday, Jan. 30, at 4:30 p.m. in at Monroe-Woodbury High School, 155 Dunderberg Road, Central Valley.They will perform Beethoven’s Sonata in F Major, Op. 24 “Spring,” and Brahms’ Sonata in G Major, Op. 78. Admission is $10 for adults and $8 for students. All proceeds go toward the Orange County Youth Symphony fund and its upcoming trip the Czech Republic in February. To order tickets, send a self-addressed and stamped envelope with payment to: Valerie Kowkabany, 28 Helene Circle, Highland Mills, NY 10930. Tickets are also available for sale at the door.