The 2017 MTNA National Conference

Legendary pianist and conductor Leon Fleisher and internationally renowned pianist Katherine Jacobson began performing as a duo in 2003. They have played in recital and with orchestras around the world and record for Sony Classical. The husband-and-wife duo have captivated audiences with the musicality and brilliance of works by Mozart, Brahms, Schubert, Dvořák Slavonic Dances and Ravel at revered concert halls across the United States and abroad. They can also be heard in four-hand works on Fleisher’s albums Two Hands and All The Things You Are. Fleisher is the Andrew W. Mellon Chair at the Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University. Making his debut with the New York Philharmonic in 1944, he established himself as one of the world’s premier classical pianists. He is the subject of the 2006 Oscar and Emmy-nominated documentary film Two Hands and recipient of the Kennedy Center Honors in 2007. Jacobson is critically acclaimed as a soloist, duo pianist and chamber musician. She has performed with leading orchestras throughout the world. Katherine Jacobson is on the faculty of the Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University.

Aleksey Igudesman and Hyung-ki Joo are a wickedly inventive classical musical duo who use pop culture, comedy and slapstick to transform concert stages into musical funhouses. The pair’s uproarious sketches have attracted a wide YouTube following, with some 40 million views. The duo, who met as children at the Yehudi Menuhin School in England, has appeared on television, movies, concert halls and stadiums. Individually, Igudesman is best known as a violinist and composer and has established himself as an actor, comedian and filmmaker. His music has earned admiration for capturing the essence of diverse musical languages in a uniquely clever and joyful way. Joo, a pianist and composer, has appeared as a soloist and in chamber ensembles worldwide, with works performed by such renowned orchestras as the New York Philharmonic and London Philharmonic. He made his musical debut at Barbican Hall, with the Warsaw Sinfonia conducted by Sir Yehudi Menuhin, and was the Grand Prize winner of the Stravinsky International Piano Competition.