Duo Recital by Rafał Blechacz (Piano) and Bomsori Kim (Violin)
ProgrammeAbout the PerformersTicketingPre-concert Talk
Beethoven
Violin Sonata No. 7 in C minor, Op. 30, No. 2
Paderewski
Violin Sonata in A minor, Op. 13
Franck
Violin Sonata in A
Szymanowski
Nocturne and Tarantella, Op. 28
The performance will run for about 2 hours including a 15-minute intermission.
Members of the audience are strongly advised to arrive punctually. Latecomers and those who leave their seats during the performance will only be admitted and allowed to return to their seats respectively during the intermission or at a suitable break. The presenter reserves the right to refuse admission of latecomers, or determine the time and manner of admission of latecomers.
The programme does not represent the views of the Leisure and Cultural Services Department.
The presenter reserves the right to change the programme and subsitute artists.
Rafał Blechacz (Piano)
Polish pianist Rafał Blechacz is widely regarded as an artist of rare distinction. Described by The Washington Post as “a musician in service to the music, searching its depths, exploring its meaning and probing its possibilities”. He stands today among the world’s finest pianists, in high demand for the honesty and vision he brings to performances of everything from Bach and Beethoven to Chopin and Szymanowski.
Blechacz was born in the small town of Nakło nad Notecią in northern Poland in June 1985. He showed early signs of musical talent and began piano lessons at the age of five. His outstanding technical and artistic abilities were reflected in a series of competition successes, including second prize at the Arthur Rubinstein International Competition for Young Pianists in Bydgoszcz in 2002, joint first prize at the Hamamatsu International Piano Competition in the following year, and, most notably, first prize at the 2005 International Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw, where he became the first Polish musician to receive the top prize since Krystian Zimerman thirty years earlier.
The eloquence and intensity of Blechacz’s performances at the International Chopin Piano Competition—delivered just months before his twentieth birthday—were rewarded not only with the winner’s medal but also a clean sweep of the event’s four special prizes and the Audience Award. He signed an exclusive contract with Deutsche Grammophon in May 2006, following Krystian Zimerman to become the second Polish pianist to join the yellow label. An album of solo works by Debussy and Szymanowski appeared in 2012, followed in 2013 by a critically acclaimed recording of Chopin’s mature Polonaises. His sixth Deutsche Grammophon album, released in 2017, was devoted to works by Bach, including Partitas, Nos. 1 and 3 and the Italian Concerto. In 2019, Blechacz released his debut chamber music album for the label, collaborating with Korean violinist Bomsori Kim in a programme of works by Fauré, Debussy, Szymanowski and Chopin.
In 2014, Blechacz was honoured with the prestigious Gilmore Artist Award, conferred every four years in recognition of “extraordinary piano artistry”. In addition to these accolades, he has garnered the endorsement of senior colleagues such as Martha Argerich, winner of the International Chopin Piano Competition in 1965, who praised him as “a very honest, extraordinary and sensitive artist”, and the Irish pianist and pedagogue John O’Conor, who described him as “one of the greatest artists I have ever heard in my life”.
Bomsori Kim (Violin)
Korean violinist Bomsori Kim’s recent highlights included tours with the Bamberg Symphony Orchestra conducted by Jakub Hrůša in Germany and Asia and a return to Carnegie Hall with the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Jaap van Zweden. She also made her debuts with the Orchestre de Paris, the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, and the Academy of St Martin in the Fields. She has toured with the Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich under Paavo Järvi and made further debuts with the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, and the Orquesta y Coro Nacionales de España. She has also performed with the Vienna Symphony Orchestra at the Golden Hall in the Vienna's Musikverein and made her Concertgebouw debut with the Residentie Orkest The Hague.
Kim is a frequent guest at major international festivals, including the Rheingau Musik Festival, the Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival, and the Verbier Festival. In 2021, she was named Focus Artist of the Rheingau Musik Festival and began a five-year residency at the Gstaad Menuhin Festival as Menuhin’s Heritage Artist. She has appeared with leading orchestras worldwide, including the New York Philharmonic, Danish National Symphony Orchestra, San Francisco Symphony, Los Angeles Philharmonic, and Montreal Symphony Orchestra, under the baton of distinguished conductors such as Fabio Luisi, Paavo Järvi, Marin Alsop, Jakub Hrůša, Santtu-Matias Rouvali, and Jaap van Zweden. She was hailed by Crescendo Magazine as “This violinist is ready for anything: with virtuosity, presence, clarity and a warm, rich tone, Bomsori is adept at making each moment her own”.
Kim’s accolades include prizes at the ARD International Music Competition, the International Tchaikovsky Competition, the Queen Elizabeth Competition, and the International Jean Sibelius Violin Competition, as well as the Young Artist Award from the Korean Ministry of Culture. Her discography for Deutsche Grammophon includes a duo album with pianist Rafał Blechacz featuring works by Fauré, Debussy, Szymanowski and Chopin, which received the Fryderyk Award for "Best Polish Album Abroad". Her most recent release, a recording of Carl Nielsen’s Violin Concerto with the Danish National Symphony Orchestra conducted by Fabio Luisi, was honoured with the 2024 "BBC Music Magazine" Award.
Born in South Korea, Kim studied at Seoul National University with Young Uck Kim and at The Juilliard School with Sylvia Rosenberg and Ronald Copes. She performs on the 1725 Guarneri del Gesù “ex-Moller”, generously loaned by the Samsung Foundation of Culture and The Stradivari Society of Chicago.
Information provided by the artists
Duo Recital by Rafał Blechacz (Piano) and Bomsori Kim (Violin)
Tickets available from 30 Marchat all URBTIX outlets, self-service ticketing kiosks, on internet, by mobile app and telephone.
Half-price tickets available for senior citizens aged 60 or above, people with disabilities and the minder, full-time students and Comprehensive Social Security Assistance (CSSA) recipients (limited tickets for full-time students and CSSA recipients available on a first come, first served basis).
"Great Music" Early Bird Discount (from 30 Mar 10:00am to 12 Apr 11:59pm)
30% off for each purchase of standard tickets for 2 or more different performances of 'Duo Recital by Rafał Blechacz (Piano) & Bomsori Kim (Violin)', 'Gewandhausorchester Leipzig', 'Violin Recital by Renaud Capuçon', 'Duo Recital by Sol Gabetta (Cello) & Patricia Kopatchinskaja (Violin)' and 'Piano Recital by Jan Lisiecki' (which should include 'Gewandhausorchester Leipzig').
"Great Music" Package Discount
For each purchase of standard tickets for 'Duo Recital by Rafał Blechacz (Piano) & Bomsori Kim (Violin)', 'Gewandhausorchester Leipzig', 'Violin Recital by Renaud Capuçon', 'Duo Recital by Sol Gabetta (Cello) & Patricia Kopatchinskaja (Violin)' and 'Piano Recital by Jan Lisiecki', the following concession applies: 10% off for any 2 performances, 15% off for any 3 performances, 25% off for any 4 or more performances.
"Great Music" Group Booking Discount
For each purchase of standard tickets for 'Duo Recital by Rafał Blechacz (Piano) & Bomsori Kim (Violin)', 'Gewandhausorchester Leipzig', 'Violin Recital by Renaud Capuçon', 'Duo Recital by Sol Gabetta (Cello) & Patricia Kopatchinskaja (Violin)' and 'Piano Recital by Jan Lisiecki', the following concession applies: 10% off for 4–9 tickets, 15% off for 10–19 tickets, 20% off for 20 or more tickets.
Exclusive Offer to Museum Pass Holders
Museum Pass Holders can enjoy 10% discount for each purchase of 1 or more standard tickets. Please present valid physical or electronic Museum Pass upon purchase tickets at URBTIX outlets.
Patrons can enjoy only one of the above discount offers.
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Echoes of Passion: Rafał Blechacz and Bomsori Kim's Lyrical Conversations
Date: 22 Jun 2026 (Mon)
Time: 6:45pm
Venue: Foyer Committee Room North, 7/F, High Block, Hong Kong City Hall
Speaker: Albert Ho (Music Practitioner)
In Cantonese. The talk will run for about 1 hour.
Admission free on a first come, first served basis.
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