ARTISTS


Da COSTA & SONG
VIOLIN & PIANO DUO

GALLERY | BIOGRAPHY | REVIEWS | CONCERTO | LINKS


GALLERY



Photography   Bo Huang, Montreal/Toronto

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BIOGRAPHY

Spectacular musicianship paired with a close friendship have been at the forefront of this exciting, artistic partnership of two renowned Montreal musicians, Alexandre da Costa and Wonny Song. This dynamic violin and piano duo have been inspiring audiences in the Quebec region for the past several years and have recently made appearances at the National Gallery of Canada, the Metropolitan Art Space of Tokyo, Japan and at CBC Radio 2’s Virtuosi Series.

Equally at ease with solo repertoire, both Mr. Song and Mr. Da Costa have been praised by the press for their impeccable playing. Alexandre Da Costa has been described as performing with “fluid expressiveness, profound and immaculate” (HERALDO DE ARAGON) and Mr. Song has been characterized as “a versatile, intelligent, and profoundly musical young pianist” by such reputable papers as The Washington Post. Messrs Da Costa & Song have collaborated on a major recording project with actor/ music enthusiast, Edgar Fruitier, which resulted in the release of a six CD box set, ‘Les Grands Classiques D’Edgar – La Musique Romantique’. This project was recorded on the prestigious Octave Classique label and has sold over 25,000 copies. In performance, the Da Costa & Song Duo recently played the Mendelssohn Double Concerto for Violin and Piano at Festival Domaine Forget. Next season, we will see them at Carnegie Hall as a guest duo with I Musici of Montreal and in recitals, Alexandre and Wonny will be performing in Montreal, Rouyn-Noranda, Val d’Or, St-Jean-sur-Richeliue and Beloeil, Quebec as well as Palau de les Arts in Valencia, Spain.

Winner of many prestigious national and international first prizes, Alexandre has appeared as soloist in nearly 1000 concerts throughout North America, Europe, UK and Asia. He has performed in major halls and with prestigious orchestras like the Royal Philharmonic of London with Leonard Slatkin and Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos. Mr. Da Costa has numerous CD titles to his credit and his next concerto recording with Montreal Symphony is for Warner Classics International.

Wonny Song has performed and competed in many international festivals and competitions and has played recitals in such venues as Carnegie’s Zankel Hall, the Kennedy Center’s Terrace Theater and the Chungmu Concert Hall in Korea to name only a few. He has also made appearances with many orchestras including the Santa Barbara Chamber Orchestra, Montreal’s Orchestre Métropolitain, the Orchestra of Saint Luke’s, the Cincinnati Symphony, the Montreal Symphony, the Toronto Symphony, the National Arts Center Orchestra, and the EuroAsian Philharmonic Orchestra in Korea and Thailand. Wonny has two solo recordings, the first on the Canadian label, XXI-21 Records and the second on the Octave Classique label.

It is inevitable that the synergy of these energetic, talented artists will prove to be one of Canada’s finest piano duos ever to be heard.

(as of October 2009)

REVIEWS

“Il a fallu se rendre dans le cadre accueillant du Centre d’arts Orford pour se remonter le moral avec une bonne nouvelle: un grand duo piano-violon québécois est né! L’association entre deux Montréalais, Wonny Song et Alexandre da Costa, a tout du ticket gagnant. Ils se connaissent depuis toujours, ont étudié ensemble mais ne forment un tandem musical que depuis six mois.

Ils nous ont offert une grande et très émouvante soirée de musique de chambre. On savait Wonny Song créateur d’atmosphères et remarquable technicien. Mais Alexandre da Costa a grandi et épaissi, musicalement, avec le violon Stradivarius de 1667 qui lui est prêté depuis deux ans par la Fondation Canimex et le mécène Roger Dubois, qui a, par ailleurs, offert au Centre d’arts Orford un piano Yamaha d'une grande beauté sonore.

Le nouveau son d’Alexandre da Costa est soyeux, doux, très vivant et nourri dans les nuances piano. Il sait aussi être puissant (surtout dans un cadre acoustiquement aussi gratifiant que la salle Gilles-Lefebvre) dans Brahms et Prokofiev. Le bonheur dispensé samedi aux mélomanes chanceux rassemblés à Orford est surtout le fruit d'une force narrative, sensible et jamais affectée du duo.”

- LE DEVOIR, Montréal

PREFERRED CONCERTO LIST
2010-2011

Mendelssohn Concerto for Violin, Piano and Strings

The Complete Beethoven Violin and Piano Sonatas (1 -3 Recitals)
Programme I - Sonatas Nos. 1, 4, 2, 8
Programme II - Sonatas Nos. 5, 10, 7
Programme III - Sonatas Nos. 3, 6, 9

The Complete Brahms Sonatas (1 Recital)

Recital repertoire available upon request
Master classes and workshops available
Other concerti available upon request


LINKS

Artist Website
www.concertsdcs.com