Sat February 28, 2026
Lunar New Year: Year of the Horse with the San Francisco Symphony
SEE EVENT DETAILS
Welcome the Year of the Horse with the San Francisco Symphony! Our annual Lunar New Year event draws upon Asian traditions, past and present, in a celebration of music and community.
Mei-Ann Chen conductor
George Gao erhu
Yuhsin Galaxy Su clarinet
San Francisco Symphony
Program
HUAN-ZHI LI Spring Festival Overture
TRADITIONAL (arr. Y.T. Phoon) Wishing You Prosperity
LIU CHIA-CHANG (arr. Che-Yi Lee) Alone Ascending the West Chamber
CHE-YI LEE Music from Dancing Strings
TYZEN HSIAO The Angel from Formosa
HUANG RUO "Flower Drum Song from Feng Yang" from Folk Songs for Orchestra
GEORGE GAO Capriccio No. 6 "Shaoyin"
AN-LUN HUANG Saibei Dance, from Saibei Suite No. 2
GE XIN CHEN (arr. Che-Yi Lee) Gong Xi Gong Xi
~~~
San Francisco Symphony celebrates the Year of the Horse with the Lunar New Year concert and banquet on Saturday, February 28 at Davies Symphony Hall.
Lunar New Year, or Spring Festival, is the most important holiday for many cultures in East, South, and Southeast Asia, and is celebrated by people of Asian descent worldwide. This year's celebration is an elegant commemoration of the Lunar New Year, drawing upon vibrant Asian traditions, past and present.
Conductor Mei-Ann Chen and the Orchestra perform works by Asian composers including Chen Ge Xin, Tyzen Hsiao, An-Lun Huang, Che-Yi Lee, and Huan-Zhi Li with guest appearances by SF Symphony Second Clarinet Yuhsin Galaxy Su, who performs Che-Yi Lee's arrangement of Liu Chia-Chang's Alone Ascending the West Chamber, and erhu player George Gao who plays his original work Capriccio No. 6, "Shaoyin."
The Lunar New Year presenting sponsor is Zenni Optical.
The celebration begins at 4pm with preconcert lobby festivities open to all ticketholders, featuring an array of entertainment and activities, such as lion dancers, fortune readers, art making, and cultural performances.
Chen and the Orchestra open the 5pm Lunar New Year concert with Huan-Zhi Li's energetic and popular Chinese orchestral work Spring Festival Overture and "Wishing You Prosperity," an uplifting traditional song arranged by Y.T. Phoon. Making her solo debut with the Orchestra, SF Symphony Second Clarinet Yuhsin Galaxy Su performs Che-Yi Lee's arrangement of Liu Chia-Chang's Alone Ascending the West Chamber, popularized by iconic Taiwanese singer Teresa Teng in the 1980s. The program continues with music from Che-Yi Lee's virtuosic Dancing Strings and Tyzen Hsiao's The Angel from Formosa, a piece that evokes the rural beauty of Hsiao's home country of Taiwan. Chen also conducts Huang Ruo's Flower Drum Song from Feng Yang from Folk Songs for Orchestra, originally commissioned and premiered by the SF Symphony at the 2012 Chinese New Year concert.
Erhu player George Gao joins Chen and the Orchestra to perform his original work Capriccio No. 6, "Shaoyin," which premiered with the Singapore Chinese Orchestra in 2023. The erhu is a traditional two-stringed bowed instrument that is also known as the "Chinese violin." The program concludes with An-Lun Huang's Saibei Dance from Saibei Suite No. 2, which features styles of wind and percussion from Northwest China, and Chen Ge Xin's Gong Xi Gong Xi, a popular Chinese Lunar New Year song that translates to "Congratulations" or "Wishing You Happiness and Prosperity."
The postconcert Lunar New Year Banquet begins at 6:30pm in Zellerbach Rehearsal Hall at Davies Symphony Hall, and features a lucky draw and live music, including a special performance. VIP dinner packages include access to the preconcert receptions, premium concert seating, and seating at the banquet. The banquet is catered by McCalls Catering & Events, with lighting design by Got Light and projection design by Yuki Izumihara.
In-kind support for Lunar New Year is generously provided by Asian Wine Association of America, The Caviar Co., Hine Cognac, Iron Horse Vineyards, and Nikka Whisky.
Proceeds from the Lunar New Year celebration support the Symphony's artistic, education, and community programs, benefiting tens of thousands of people each year. This concert is presented in partnership with the San Francisco Arts Commission.
~~~
About the artists
Taiwanese American conductor Mei-Ann Chen is renowned as one of the most versatile, compelling, and dynamic international conductors today. Music director of the MacArthur Award-winning Chicago Sinfonietta since 2011, her contract has been unanimously extended through the end of the 2028-29 season. Chief conductor of Austria's Recreation - Grosses Orchester Graz at Styriarte (the first female Asian conductor to hold such a position with an Austrian orchestra) since fall 2021, she also serves as artistic advisor of the Springfield Symphony Orchestra (MA) since 2024, the first-ever artistic partner of Houston's ROCO since 2019 and artistic partner with Northwest Sinfonietta (WA) since 2022. Former posts include artistic director of the National Taiwan Symphony Orchestra Summer Festival (2016-21) and music director of the Portland Youth Philharmonic (Oregon, 2002-07). Chen was named conductor laureate of the Memphis Symphony after serving as music director (2010-16). She has made recordings for Cedille Records, Innova Records, and Naxos, and releases her third album for Cedille with Chicago Sinfonietta and Flutronix later this season. A passionate advocate for music education, Chen is a visiting scholar at the National Taiwan Normal University. She dedicates significant time in mentoring young conductors through various programs, including the Chicago Sinfonietta Freeman Conducting Fellowship program (helping to launch professional careers for more than a dozen young conductors) and the Taki Alsop Fellowship, and conducts ensembles at important educational institutions, both nationally and abroad. An acclaimed communicator praised for her energy and enthusiasm, Chen is a sought-after guest conductor and has appeared with distinguished orchestras throughout the Americas, Europe, the United Kingdom, Scandinavia, and her native Taiwan (over 160 to date), and continues to expand her relationships with orchestras worldwide.
Hailed as one of the most exciting, innovative and respected erhu masters today, the Gemini Award nominated erhu master George Gao began studying the erhu at the age of six. After winning the first prize in the Beijing National Erhu Competition, he launched an international performing career. He has toured the United States, Canada, France, Germany, Denmark, Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong and China extensively and has featured as a soloist with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Bamberg Symphony Orchestra, Aalborg Symphony Orchestra, Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra, Taiwan National Chinese Orchestra, National Arts Center Symphony Orchestra, Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, and Edmonton Symphony Orchestra. He has also performed recitals at venues like the Glenn Gould Studio, the Royal Conservatory of Music (Toronto), City Hall Concert Hall (Hong Kong), and the National Concert Hall (Taipei). Billions of people around the world have watched him on CCTV, China's most watched TV station.
Yuhsin Galaxy Su joined the San Francisco Symphony as Second Clarinet at the beginning of the 2024-25 season. She completed a master's degree at the Colburn School, where she studied with Yehuda Gilad, and before that studied at the Curtis Institute of Music with Anthony McGill. During her time at Curtis, Su was selected for the Curtis 20/21 Ensemble and performed Arnold Schoenberg's Pierrot lunaire in fully choreographed productions at the Kimmel Center, Columbia University, Kennedy Center, and Curtis Field Recital Hall. She has also been a soloist at the Musique et Vin Music Festival and Marlboro Music Festival. She won top prizes in the 2013 and '14 HSNU Concerto Competition, third prize and audience prize at the International Morningside Music Bridge in Canada, first prize at the Young Classical Virtuoso of Tomorrow Music Competition, and two Chimei Arts Awards.
show less
Mei-Ann Chen conductor
George Gao erhu
Yuhsin Galaxy Su clarinet
San Francisco Symphony
Program
HUAN-ZHI LI Spring Festival Overture
TRADITIONAL (arr. Y.T. Phoon) Wishing You Prosperity
LIU CHIA-CHANG (arr. Che-Yi Lee) Alone Ascending the West Chamber
CHE-YI LEE Music from Dancing Strings
TYZEN HSIAO The Angel from Formosa
HUANG RUO "Flower Drum Song from Feng Yang" from Folk Songs for Orchestra
GEORGE GAO Capriccio No. 6 "Shaoyin"
AN-LUN HUANG Saibei Dance, from Saibei Suite No. 2
GE XIN CHEN (arr. Che-Yi Lee) Gong Xi Gong Xi
~~~
San Francisco Symphony celebrates the Year of the Horse with the Lunar New Year concert and banquet on Saturday, February 28 at Davies Symphony Hall.
Lunar New Year, or Spring Festival, is the most important holiday for many cultures in East, South, and Southeast Asia, and is celebrated by people of Asian descent worldwide. This year's celebration is an elegant commemoration of the Lunar New Year, drawing upon vibrant Asian traditions, past and present.
Conductor Mei-Ann Chen and the Orchestra perform works by Asian composers including Chen Ge Xin, Tyzen Hsiao, An-Lun Huang, Che-Yi Lee, and Huan-Zhi Li with guest appearances by SF Symphony Second Clarinet Yuhsin Galaxy Su, who performs Che-Yi Lee's arrangement of Liu Chia-Chang's Alone Ascending the West Chamber, and erhu player George Gao who plays his original work Capriccio No. 6, "Shaoyin."
The Lunar New Year presenting sponsor is Zenni Optical.
The celebration begins at 4pm with preconcert lobby festivities open to all ticketholders, featuring an array of entertainment and activities, such as lion dancers, fortune readers, art making, and cultural performances.
Chen and the Orchestra open the 5pm Lunar New Year concert with Huan-Zhi Li's energetic and popular Chinese orchestral work Spring Festival Overture and "Wishing You Prosperity," an uplifting traditional song arranged by Y.T. Phoon. Making her solo debut with the Orchestra, SF Symphony Second Clarinet Yuhsin Galaxy Su performs Che-Yi Lee's arrangement of Liu Chia-Chang's Alone Ascending the West Chamber, popularized by iconic Taiwanese singer Teresa Teng in the 1980s. The program continues with music from Che-Yi Lee's virtuosic Dancing Strings and Tyzen Hsiao's The Angel from Formosa, a piece that evokes the rural beauty of Hsiao's home country of Taiwan. Chen also conducts Huang Ruo's Flower Drum Song from Feng Yang from Folk Songs for Orchestra, originally commissioned and premiered by the SF Symphony at the 2012 Chinese New Year concert.
Erhu player George Gao joins Chen and the Orchestra to perform his original work Capriccio No. 6, "Shaoyin," which premiered with the Singapore Chinese Orchestra in 2023. The erhu is a traditional two-stringed bowed instrument that is also known as the "Chinese violin." The program concludes with An-Lun Huang's Saibei Dance from Saibei Suite No. 2, which features styles of wind and percussion from Northwest China, and Chen Ge Xin's Gong Xi Gong Xi, a popular Chinese Lunar New Year song that translates to "Congratulations" or "Wishing You Happiness and Prosperity."
The postconcert Lunar New Year Banquet begins at 6:30pm in Zellerbach Rehearsal Hall at Davies Symphony Hall, and features a lucky draw and live music, including a special performance. VIP dinner packages include access to the preconcert receptions, premium concert seating, and seating at the banquet. The banquet is catered by McCalls Catering & Events, with lighting design by Got Light and projection design by Yuki Izumihara.
In-kind support for Lunar New Year is generously provided by Asian Wine Association of America, The Caviar Co., Hine Cognac, Iron Horse Vineyards, and Nikka Whisky.
Proceeds from the Lunar New Year celebration support the Symphony's artistic, education, and community programs, benefiting tens of thousands of people each year. This concert is presented in partnership with the San Francisco Arts Commission.
~~~
About the artists
Taiwanese American conductor Mei-Ann Chen is renowned as one of the most versatile, compelling, and dynamic international conductors today. Music director of the MacArthur Award-winning Chicago Sinfonietta since 2011, her contract has been unanimously extended through the end of the 2028-29 season. Chief conductor of Austria's Recreation - Grosses Orchester Graz at Styriarte (the first female Asian conductor to hold such a position with an Austrian orchestra) since fall 2021, she also serves as artistic advisor of the Springfield Symphony Orchestra (MA) since 2024, the first-ever artistic partner of Houston's ROCO since 2019 and artistic partner with Northwest Sinfonietta (WA) since 2022. Former posts include artistic director of the National Taiwan Symphony Orchestra Summer Festival (2016-21) and music director of the Portland Youth Philharmonic (Oregon, 2002-07). Chen was named conductor laureate of the Memphis Symphony after serving as music director (2010-16). She has made recordings for Cedille Records, Innova Records, and Naxos, and releases her third album for Cedille with Chicago Sinfonietta and Flutronix later this season. A passionate advocate for music education, Chen is a visiting scholar at the National Taiwan Normal University. She dedicates significant time in mentoring young conductors through various programs, including the Chicago Sinfonietta Freeman Conducting Fellowship program (helping to launch professional careers for more than a dozen young conductors) and the Taki Alsop Fellowship, and conducts ensembles at important educational institutions, both nationally and abroad. An acclaimed communicator praised for her energy and enthusiasm, Chen is a sought-after guest conductor and has appeared with distinguished orchestras throughout the Americas, Europe, the United Kingdom, Scandinavia, and her native Taiwan (over 160 to date), and continues to expand her relationships with orchestras worldwide.
Hailed as one of the most exciting, innovative and respected erhu masters today, the Gemini Award nominated erhu master George Gao began studying the erhu at the age of six. After winning the first prize in the Beijing National Erhu Competition, he launched an international performing career. He has toured the United States, Canada, France, Germany, Denmark, Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong and China extensively and has featured as a soloist with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Bamberg Symphony Orchestra, Aalborg Symphony Orchestra, Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra, Taiwan National Chinese Orchestra, National Arts Center Symphony Orchestra, Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, and Edmonton Symphony Orchestra. He has also performed recitals at venues like the Glenn Gould Studio, the Royal Conservatory of Music (Toronto), City Hall Concert Hall (Hong Kong), and the National Concert Hall (Taipei). Billions of people around the world have watched him on CCTV, China's most watched TV station.
Yuhsin Galaxy Su joined the San Francisco Symphony as Second Clarinet at the beginning of the 2024-25 season. She completed a master's degree at the Colburn School, where she studied with Yehuda Gilad, and before that studied at the Curtis Institute of Music with Anthony McGill. During her time at Curtis, Su was selected for the Curtis 20/21 Ensemble and performed Arnold Schoenberg's Pierrot lunaire in fully choreographed productions at the Kimmel Center, Columbia University, Kennedy Center, and Curtis Field Recital Hall. She has also been a soloist at the Musique et Vin Music Festival and Marlboro Music Festival. She won top prizes in the 2013 and '14 HSNU Concerto Competition, third prize and audience prize at the International Morningside Music Bridge in Canada, first prize at the Young Classical Virtuoso of Tomorrow Music Competition, and two Chimei Arts Awards.
Welcome the Year of the Horse with the San Francisco Symphony! Our annual Lunar New Year event draws upon Asian traditions, past and present, in a celebration of music and community.
Mei-Ann Chen conductor
George Gao erhu
Yuhsin Galaxy Su clarinet
San Francisco Symphony
Program
HUAN-ZHI LI Spring Festival Overture
TRADITIONAL (arr. Y.T. Phoon) Wishing You Prosperity
LIU CHIA-CHANG (arr. Che-Yi Lee) Alone Ascending the West Chamber
CHE-YI LEE Music from Dancing Strings
TYZEN HSIAO The Angel from Formosa
HUANG RUO "Flower Drum Song from Feng Yang" from Folk Songs for Orchestra
GEORGE GAO Capriccio No. 6 "Shaoyin"
AN-LUN HUANG Saibei Dance, from Saibei Suite No. 2
GE XIN CHEN (arr. Che-Yi Lee) Gong Xi Gong Xi
~~~
San Francisco Symphony celebrates the Year of the Horse with the Lunar New Year concert and banquet on Saturday, February 28 at Davies Symphony Hall.
Lunar New Year, or Spring Festival, is the most important holiday for many cultures in East, South, and Southeast Asia, and is celebrated by people of Asian descent worldwide. This year's celebration is an elegant commemoration of the Lunar New Year, drawing upon vibrant Asian traditions, past and present.
Conductor Mei-Ann Chen and the Orchestra perform works by Asian composers including Chen Ge Xin, Tyzen Hsiao, An-Lun Huang, Che-Yi Lee, and Huan-Zhi Li with guest appearances by SF Symphony Second Clarinet Yuhsin Galaxy Su, who performs Che-Yi Lee's arrangement of Liu Chia-Chang's Alone Ascending the West Chamber, and erhu player George Gao who plays his original work Capriccio No. 6, "Shaoyin."
The Lunar New Year presenting sponsor is Zenni Optical.
The celebration begins at 4pm with preconcert lobby festivities open to all ticketholders, featuring an array of entertainment and activities, such as lion dancers, fortune readers, art making, and cultural performances.
Chen and the Orchestra open the 5pm Lunar New Year concert with Huan-Zhi Li's energetic and popular Chinese orchestral work Spring Festival Overture and "Wishing You Prosperity," an uplifting traditional song arranged by Y.T. Phoon. Making her solo debut with the Orchestra, SF Symphony Second Clarinet Yuhsin Galaxy Su performs Che-Yi Lee's arrangement of Liu Chia-Chang's Alone Ascending the West Chamber, popularized by iconic Taiwanese singer Teresa Teng in the 1980s. The program continues with music from Che-Yi Lee's virtuosic Dancing Strings and Tyzen Hsiao's The Angel from Formosa, a piece that evokes the rural beauty of Hsiao's home country of Taiwan. Chen also conducts Huang Ruo's Flower Drum Song from Feng Yang from Folk Songs for Orchestra, originally commissioned and premiered by the SF Symphony at the 2012 Chinese New Year concert.
Erhu player George Gao joins Chen and the Orchestra to perform his original work Capriccio No. 6, "Shaoyin," which premiered with the Singapore Chinese Orchestra in 2023. The erhu is a traditional two-stringed bowed instrument that is also known as the "Chinese violin." The program concludes with An-Lun Huang's Saibei Dance from Saibei Suite No. 2, which features styles of wind and percussion from Northwest China, and Chen Ge Xin's Gong Xi Gong Xi, a popular Chinese Lunar New Year song that translates to "Congratulations" or "Wishing You Happiness and Prosperity."
The postconcert Lunar New Year Banquet begins at 6:30pm in Zellerbach Rehearsal Hall at Davies Symphony Hall, and features a lucky draw and live music, including a special performance. VIP dinner packages include access to the preconcert receptions, premium concert seating, and seating at the banquet. The banquet is catered by McCalls Catering & Events, with lighting design by Got Light and projection design by Yuki Izumihara.
In-kind support for Lunar New Year is generously provided by Asian Wine Association of America, The Caviar Co., Hine Cognac, Iron Horse Vineyards, and Nikka Whisky.
Proceeds from the Lunar New Year celebration support the Symphony's artistic, education, and community programs, benefiting tens of thousands of people each year. This concert is presented in partnership with the San Francisco Arts Commission.
~~~
About the artists
Taiwanese American conductor Mei-Ann Chen is renowned as one of the most versatile, compelling, and dynamic international conductors today. Music director of the MacArthur Award-winning Chicago Sinfonietta since 2011, her contract has been unanimously extended through the end of the 2028-29 season. Chief conductor of Austria's Recreation - Grosses Orchester Graz at Styriarte (the first female Asian conductor to hold such a position with an Austrian orchestra) since fall 2021, she also serves as artistic advisor of the Springfield Symphony Orchestra (MA) since 2024, the first-ever artistic partner of Houston's ROCO since 2019 and artistic partner with Northwest Sinfonietta (WA) since 2022. Former posts include artistic director of the National Taiwan Symphony Orchestra Summer Festival (2016-21) and music director of the Portland Youth Philharmonic (Oregon, 2002-07). Chen was named conductor laureate of the Memphis Symphony after serving as music director (2010-16). She has made recordings for Cedille Records, Innova Records, and Naxos, and releases her third album for Cedille with Chicago Sinfonietta and Flutronix later this season. A passionate advocate for music education, Chen is a visiting scholar at the National Taiwan Normal University. She dedicates significant time in mentoring young conductors through various programs, including the Chicago Sinfonietta Freeman Conducting Fellowship program (helping to launch professional careers for more than a dozen young conductors) and the Taki Alsop Fellowship, and conducts ensembles at important educational institutions, both nationally and abroad. An acclaimed communicator praised for her energy and enthusiasm, Chen is a sought-after guest conductor and has appeared with distinguished orchestras throughout the Americas, Europe, the United Kingdom, Scandinavia, and her native Taiwan (over 160 to date), and continues to expand her relationships with orchestras worldwide.
Hailed as one of the most exciting, innovative and respected erhu masters today, the Gemini Award nominated erhu master George Gao began studying the erhu at the age of six. After winning the first prize in the Beijing National Erhu Competition, he launched an international performing career. He has toured the United States, Canada, France, Germany, Denmark, Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong and China extensively and has featured as a soloist with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Bamberg Symphony Orchestra, Aalborg Symphony Orchestra, Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra, Taiwan National Chinese Orchestra, National Arts Center Symphony Orchestra, Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, and Edmonton Symphony Orchestra. He has also performed recitals at venues like the Glenn Gould Studio, the Royal Conservatory of Music (Toronto), City Hall Concert Hall (Hong Kong), and the National Concert Hall (Taipei). Billions of people around the world have watched him on CCTV, China's most watched TV station.
Yuhsin Galaxy Su joined the San Francisco Symphony as Second Clarinet at the beginning of the 2024-25 season. She completed a master's degree at the Colburn School, where she studied with Yehuda Gilad, and before that studied at the Curtis Institute of Music with Anthony McGill. During her time at Curtis, Su was selected for the Curtis 20/21 Ensemble and performed Arnold Schoenberg's Pierrot lunaire in fully choreographed productions at the Kimmel Center, Columbia University, Kennedy Center, and Curtis Field Recital Hall. She has also been a soloist at the Musique et Vin Music Festival and Marlboro Music Festival. She won top prizes in the 2013 and '14 HSNU Concerto Competition, third prize and audience prize at the International Morningside Music Bridge in Canada, first prize at the Young Classical Virtuoso of Tomorrow Music Competition, and two Chimei Arts Awards.
read more
Mei-Ann Chen conductor
George Gao erhu
Yuhsin Galaxy Su clarinet
San Francisco Symphony
Program
HUAN-ZHI LI Spring Festival Overture
TRADITIONAL (arr. Y.T. Phoon) Wishing You Prosperity
LIU CHIA-CHANG (arr. Che-Yi Lee) Alone Ascending the West Chamber
CHE-YI LEE Music from Dancing Strings
TYZEN HSIAO The Angel from Formosa
HUANG RUO "Flower Drum Song from Feng Yang" from Folk Songs for Orchestra
GEORGE GAO Capriccio No. 6 "Shaoyin"
AN-LUN HUANG Saibei Dance, from Saibei Suite No. 2
GE XIN CHEN (arr. Che-Yi Lee) Gong Xi Gong Xi
~~~
San Francisco Symphony celebrates the Year of the Horse with the Lunar New Year concert and banquet on Saturday, February 28 at Davies Symphony Hall.
Lunar New Year, or Spring Festival, is the most important holiday for many cultures in East, South, and Southeast Asia, and is celebrated by people of Asian descent worldwide. This year's celebration is an elegant commemoration of the Lunar New Year, drawing upon vibrant Asian traditions, past and present.
Conductor Mei-Ann Chen and the Orchestra perform works by Asian composers including Chen Ge Xin, Tyzen Hsiao, An-Lun Huang, Che-Yi Lee, and Huan-Zhi Li with guest appearances by SF Symphony Second Clarinet Yuhsin Galaxy Su, who performs Che-Yi Lee's arrangement of Liu Chia-Chang's Alone Ascending the West Chamber, and erhu player George Gao who plays his original work Capriccio No. 6, "Shaoyin."
The Lunar New Year presenting sponsor is Zenni Optical.
The celebration begins at 4pm with preconcert lobby festivities open to all ticketholders, featuring an array of entertainment and activities, such as lion dancers, fortune readers, art making, and cultural performances.
Chen and the Orchestra open the 5pm Lunar New Year concert with Huan-Zhi Li's energetic and popular Chinese orchestral work Spring Festival Overture and "Wishing You Prosperity," an uplifting traditional song arranged by Y.T. Phoon. Making her solo debut with the Orchestra, SF Symphony Second Clarinet Yuhsin Galaxy Su performs Che-Yi Lee's arrangement of Liu Chia-Chang's Alone Ascending the West Chamber, popularized by iconic Taiwanese singer Teresa Teng in the 1980s. The program continues with music from Che-Yi Lee's virtuosic Dancing Strings and Tyzen Hsiao's The Angel from Formosa, a piece that evokes the rural beauty of Hsiao's home country of Taiwan. Chen also conducts Huang Ruo's Flower Drum Song from Feng Yang from Folk Songs for Orchestra, originally commissioned and premiered by the SF Symphony at the 2012 Chinese New Year concert.
Erhu player George Gao joins Chen and the Orchestra to perform his original work Capriccio No. 6, "Shaoyin," which premiered with the Singapore Chinese Orchestra in 2023. The erhu is a traditional two-stringed bowed instrument that is also known as the "Chinese violin." The program concludes with An-Lun Huang's Saibei Dance from Saibei Suite No. 2, which features styles of wind and percussion from Northwest China, and Chen Ge Xin's Gong Xi Gong Xi, a popular Chinese Lunar New Year song that translates to "Congratulations" or "Wishing You Happiness and Prosperity."
The postconcert Lunar New Year Banquet begins at 6:30pm in Zellerbach Rehearsal Hall at Davies Symphony Hall, and features a lucky draw and live music, including a special performance. VIP dinner packages include access to the preconcert receptions, premium concert seating, and seating at the banquet. The banquet is catered by McCalls Catering & Events, with lighting design by Got Light and projection design by Yuki Izumihara.
In-kind support for Lunar New Year is generously provided by Asian Wine Association of America, The Caviar Co., Hine Cognac, Iron Horse Vineyards, and Nikka Whisky.
Proceeds from the Lunar New Year celebration support the Symphony's artistic, education, and community programs, benefiting tens of thousands of people each year. This concert is presented in partnership with the San Francisco Arts Commission.
~~~
About the artists
Taiwanese American conductor Mei-Ann Chen is renowned as one of the most versatile, compelling, and dynamic international conductors today. Music director of the MacArthur Award-winning Chicago Sinfonietta since 2011, her contract has been unanimously extended through the end of the 2028-29 season. Chief conductor of Austria's Recreation - Grosses Orchester Graz at Styriarte (the first female Asian conductor to hold such a position with an Austrian orchestra) since fall 2021, she also serves as artistic advisor of the Springfield Symphony Orchestra (MA) since 2024, the first-ever artistic partner of Houston's ROCO since 2019 and artistic partner with Northwest Sinfonietta (WA) since 2022. Former posts include artistic director of the National Taiwan Symphony Orchestra Summer Festival (2016-21) and music director of the Portland Youth Philharmonic (Oregon, 2002-07). Chen was named conductor laureate of the Memphis Symphony after serving as music director (2010-16). She has made recordings for Cedille Records, Innova Records, and Naxos, and releases her third album for Cedille with Chicago Sinfonietta and Flutronix later this season. A passionate advocate for music education, Chen is a visiting scholar at the National Taiwan Normal University. She dedicates significant time in mentoring young conductors through various programs, including the Chicago Sinfonietta Freeman Conducting Fellowship program (helping to launch professional careers for more than a dozen young conductors) and the Taki Alsop Fellowship, and conducts ensembles at important educational institutions, both nationally and abroad. An acclaimed communicator praised for her energy and enthusiasm, Chen is a sought-after guest conductor and has appeared with distinguished orchestras throughout the Americas, Europe, the United Kingdom, Scandinavia, and her native Taiwan (over 160 to date), and continues to expand her relationships with orchestras worldwide.
Hailed as one of the most exciting, innovative and respected erhu masters today, the Gemini Award nominated erhu master George Gao began studying the erhu at the age of six. After winning the first prize in the Beijing National Erhu Competition, he launched an international performing career. He has toured the United States, Canada, France, Germany, Denmark, Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong and China extensively and has featured as a soloist with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Bamberg Symphony Orchestra, Aalborg Symphony Orchestra, Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra, Taiwan National Chinese Orchestra, National Arts Center Symphony Orchestra, Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, and Edmonton Symphony Orchestra. He has also performed recitals at venues like the Glenn Gould Studio, the Royal Conservatory of Music (Toronto), City Hall Concert Hall (Hong Kong), and the National Concert Hall (Taipei). Billions of people around the world have watched him on CCTV, China's most watched TV station.
Yuhsin Galaxy Su joined the San Francisco Symphony as Second Clarinet at the beginning of the 2024-25 season. She completed a master's degree at the Colburn School, where she studied with Yehuda Gilad, and before that studied at the Curtis Institute of Music with Anthony McGill. During her time at Curtis, Su was selected for the Curtis 20/21 Ensemble and performed Arnold Schoenberg's Pierrot lunaire in fully choreographed productions at the Kimmel Center, Columbia University, Kennedy Center, and Curtis Field Recital Hall. She has also been a soloist at the Musique et Vin Music Festival and Marlboro Music Festival. She won top prizes in the 2013 and '14 HSNU Concerto Competition, third prize and audience prize at the International Morningside Music Bridge in Canada, first prize at the Young Classical Virtuoso of Tomorrow Music Competition, and two Chimei Arts Awards.
show less
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