An Artist’s Next Chapter: Ray Ushikubo Debuts the 1741 Guarneri “Playfair” Violin

Zipper Hall

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This event is now sold out. However, there are always no-shows. Patrons without tickets will be invited to join the standby line and allowed into the hall 10 minutes before curtain, if space is available.

Experience the brilliance of Colburn Artist Ray Ushikubo in a recital marking his debut on a remarkable instrument, the c. 1741 “Playfair” Violin, an outstanding example of the work of Bartolomeo Giuseppe Guarneri “del Gesù,” crafted in Cremona, Italy.

Thanks to the generous loan from Colin Maki Inc., audiences will have the opportunity to experience the instrument’s extraordinary voice brought to life by one of today’s most gifted young musicians. This violin will serve as a vital companion to Mr. Ushikubo as he embarks on what promises to be a remarkable career.

Ray Ushikubo is a twenty-four-year-old Japanese-American pianist and violinist who has performed on the stages of Carnegie Hall and Walt Disney Concert Hall, and appeared on NBC’s The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. Ushikubo made his orchestral debut at age ten with the Young Musicians Foundation Orchestra in Los Angeles’s Dorothy Chandler Pavilion with Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 1 alongside conductor Teddy Abrams. A recipient of the prestigious Davidson Fellow Laureate Award in 2014, Ushikubo was named a Young Steinway Artist and won the 2017 Hilton Head International Piano Competition and the 2016 Piano Concerto Competition at the Aspen Music Festival and School. Ushikubo was featured as a Young Artist-in-Residence of the national radio broadcast Performance Today with host Fred Child and he has been featured on NPR’s From the Top where he was named a Jack Kent Cooke Young Artist.

Runtime is approximately 55 minutes without intermission.

Ushikubo is currently represented by Colburn Artists, a unique in-house management program for Colburn students on the cusp of professional careers. Created in order to provide guidance and support during the critical transition from the conservatory environment to a performance career, the Colburn Artists program is designed to prepare students to work with industry leaders and artist managers.