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Joshua Bell

Butterfly Lovers

Sony Classical
Release Date: June 30, 2023

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VII. Adagio cantabile (Official Video)
Joshua Bell - Interview
1 Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto: I. Adagio Cantabile (Chen Gang / Zhanhao He)  
2 II. Allegro (Chen Gang / Zhanhao He)  
3 III. Adagio Assai Doloroso (Chen Gang / Zhanhao He)  
4 IV. Pesante - Piu mosso - Duramente (Chen Gang / Zhanhao He)  
5 V. Lagrimoso (Chen Gang / Zhanhao He)  
6 VI. Presto resoluto (Chen Gang / Zhanhao He)  
7 VII. Adagio cantabile (Chen Gang / Zhanhao He)  
8 Introduction et rondo capriccioso in A minor, Op. 28 (Camille Saint-Saëns)  
9 'Méditation' from Thaïs (Jules Massenet)  
10 Zigeunerweisen, Op. 20 (Pablo de Sarasate)  
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GRAMMY® Award-winning violinist Joshua Bell’s forthcoming recording Butterfly Lovers features one of the most renowned works in the Chinese classical violin repertoire, the Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto. Recorded with the Singapore Chinese Orchestra (SCO) and conducted by Tsung Yeh, the work is a distinctive adaptation for an ensemble of traditional Chinese instruments. Available now for preorder, the new Sony Classical album will be released digitally and on CD on June 30, 2023.  The second track release - Massenet’s Méditation” from Thaïs - is out today – listen here.

The recording also features Bell as soloist in three popular Western Romantic works for violin and orchestra, all specifically arranged to be performed with the SCO’s virtuosic ensemble of Chinese instruments.

"I'm thrilled to have worked with the incredible Singapore Chinese Orchestra and Maestro Tsung Yeh on this recording, which includes the Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto as its centerpiece,” Joshua Bell says. “It was a joy to collaborate with the SCO musicians, who brought this work to life through the expressive sounds of the traditional Chinese instruments.”

Inspired by a hauntingly romantic Chinese legend, the concerto was written in 1959 by Chen Gang and He Zhanhao. The original version, richly scored for a full Western symphonic orchestra, has achieved global popularity. For this recording, Bell performed an adaptation of the work by Yang Hui Chang and Ku Lap-Man for an orchestra of traditional instruments. “The music beautifully describes the classic Butterfly Lovers story, featuring themes of romance, star-crossed lovers, and friendship,” Bell adds.

  • Joshua Bell becomes principal guest conductor of The New Jersey Symphony / The Violin Channel
    Posted At: October 11, 2024
    The Violin Channel writes….Violinist Joshua Bell has had a long and fruitful relationship with the New Jersey Symphony over the last three decades and appeared as a soloist in the Bruch Violin Concerto No. 1 in the 2022–23 season. In the Fall of 2023, Joshua led the New Jersey Symphony as soloist and conductor for the first time, in works of Beethoven and Mendelssohn — a collaborative musical week for both ...

  • Joshua Bell unleashes 'The Elements' at the Hollywood Bowl / SFCV
    Posted At: August 19, 2024
    SFCV - Richard S. Ginell writes….Star violinist Joshua Bell has been touring lately with a concoction that is new, interesting, highly ambitious, and (on paper) a gamble. He commissioned a six-movement violin concerto from five different composers — always a risk if you buy the old joke about a camel being a horse designed by a committee.Bell calls this composite work The Elements — not the periodic-table v...

  • Joshua Bell dazzles with Brahms gems. Eschenbach conducts / 90.1WRTI - The Philadelphia Orchestra in Concert
    Posted At: July 12, 2024
    90.1WRTI - Your Classical and Jazz Source - Melinda Whiting writes…..Join us on Sunday, July 14 at 1 p.m. on WRTI 90.1 and Monday, July 15 at 7 p.m. on WRTI HD-2 as The Philadelphia Orchestra in Concert features the Symphony No. 1 in C Minor by Johannes Brahms, as well as two beautiful works for violin and orchestra: Ernest Chausson's Poème and Henri Vieuxtemps' Violin Concerto No. 5. Joshua Bell is the vio...

  • Joshua Bell's 'Butterfly Lovers' with Singapore Chinese Orchestra led by Tsung Yeh makes makes CD Hotlist - July Picks
    Posted At: July 1, 2024
    GRAMMY® Award-winning violinist Joshua Bell’s recording of ‘Butterfly Lovers’ features one of the most renowned works in the Chinese classical violin repertoire, the Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto. Recorded with the Singapore Chinese Orchestra (SCO) and conducted by Tsung Yeh, the work is a distinctive adaptation for an ensemble of traditional Chinese instruments. Available now for preorder, the new Sony ...

  • Joshua Bell extends Academy of St Martin in the Fields MD tenure through August 2028 / theStrad
    Posted At: April 15, 2024
    WWith a career spanning almost four decades, GRAMMY® Award-winning violinist Joshua Bell is one of the most celebrated artists of his era. Bell has performed with virtually every major orchestra in the world, and continues to maintain engagements as a soloist, recitalist, chamber musician, conductor and as the Music Director of the Academy of St Martin in the Fields.Bell’s highlights in the 2023-24 season i...

  • Joshua Bell does it all at guest appearances with the New Jersey Symphony / NJARTS.net
    Posted At: December 4, 2023
    NJARTS.net - COURTNEY SMITH writes….If classical music were a sport, Joshua Bell would be a triathlete. His latest performance with New Jersey Symphony was a triathlon of sorts and featured the famed violinist in three distinct roles as concertmaster, soloist and conductor.“Joshua Bell Leads the New Jersey Symphony” — presented Nov. 30 and Dec. 1 at NJPAC in Newark and Dec. 3 at The Mayo Performing Arts Cen...

  • 'The Elements' and Bruch highlight Joshua Bell's dazzling performance with the Atlanta Symphony / EarRelevant
    Posted At: October 28, 2023
    EarRelevant's Mark Gresham writes….One or two times in a given season, the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra presents a classical “special” concert, a one-night-only event typically featuring a super-star performer guaranteed to sell out—big names like violinist Itzhak Perlman, cellist Yo-Yo Ma or, in the case of this past Wednesday night at Symphony Hall, violinist Joshua Bell.Guest conductor Peter Oundjian, an e...

  • Joshua Bell debuts new commissioned work at ASO concert / ARTS ATL
    Posted At: October 27, 2023
    Bell commissioned four pieces from different composers, and performed three of them Wednesday nightARTS ATL's JORDAN OWEN writes…..World renowned violinist and long recurring Atlanta Symphony Orchestra guest soloist Joshua Bell took the stage at Symphony Hall on Wednesday for another crowd-pleasing foray into works both old and new. It was a surprisingly restrained evening that favored melodic warmth over v...

  • Joshua Bell set for Melbourne, Brisbane and Sydney with the Academy of St Martin in the Fields / The Monthly
    Posted At: September 29, 2023
    The Monthly's Miriam Cosic writes….The latest work of the American classical music superstar – famed for his subway busking experiment – is a collaboration with the Singapore Chinese Orchestra.“He was a bit of a party boy,” a former artistic director of a leading European orchestra told us, on condition of strict anonymity. American trumpeter and composer Chris Botti said: “I first met Josh when he was 16 a...

  • Joshua Bell set to perform U.S. premiere of his new suite: 'The Elements' with New York Philharmonic / Forbes
    Posted At: September 29, 2023
    Forbes - Jane Levere writes….Grammy Award-winning violinist Joshua Bell will perform at the U.S. premiere of his newly commissioned suite, The Elements, for violin and orchestra, with the New York Philharmonic this weekend. The suite has five movements by Jake Heggie (fire), Jennifer Higdon (air), Edgar Meyer (water), Jessie Montgomery (space) and Kevin Puts (earth, earth reprise and finale). The ...

  • Music and conversation with Joshua Bell / WFMT: Chicago
    Posted At: September 6, 2023
    With a career spanning almost four decades, GRAMMY® Award-winning violinist Joshua Bell is one of the most celebrated artists of his era. Having performed with virtually every major orchestra in the world, Bell continues to maintain engagements as soloist, recitalist, chamber musician, conductor and Music Director of the Academy of St Martin in the Fields.The acclaimed violinist recounts stories from the st...

  • Joshua Bell chats about 'The Butterfly Lovers' Concerto with Boston's GBH
    Posted At: August 18, 2023
    GRAMMY® Award-winning violinist Joshua Bell’s recording Butterfly Lovers features one of the most renowned works in the Chinese classical violin repertoire, the Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto. Recorded with the Singapore Chinese Orchestra (SCO) and conducted by Tsung Yeh, the work is a distinctive adaptation for an ensemble of traditional Chinese instruments. The new Sony Classical album was released digi...

  • Joshua Bell chats about new 'Butterfly Lovers' recording with 'YourClassical'
    Posted At: August 1, 2023
    GRAMMY® Award-winning violinist Joshua Bell’s new recording Butterfly Lovers features one of the most renowned works in the Chinese classical violin repertoire, the Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto. Recorded with the Singapore Chinese Orchestra (SCO) and conducted by Tsung Yeh, the work is a distinctive adaptation for an ensemble of traditional Chinese instruments. Available now for preorder, the new Sony C...

  • Breathtaking musicianship from Joshua Bell and Daniil Trifonov at Carnegie Hall / theStrad
    Posted At: July 20, 2023
    theStrad writes….Leah Hollingsworth hears the performance of Beethoven, Prokofiev, Bloch, Franck, Clara Schumann and Brahms at the Stern Auditorium, Carnegie Hall, NY, on 30 May 2023 and writes….Violinist Joshua Bell once again proved himself to be not just an outstanding soloist and leader, but also a formidable collaborative partner in his recital with pianist Daniil Trifonov.Beethoven’s Violin Sonata op....

  • Watch Joshua Bell perform the 'Butterfly Lovers Concerto' / BBC Music Magazine
    Posted At: June 30, 2023
    Bell releases his new Butterfly Lovers recording for Sony Classical on 30 June 2023GRAMMY® Award-winning violinist Joshua Bell’s forthcoming recording Butterfly Lovers features one of the most renowned works in the Chinese classical violin repertoire, the Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto. Recorded with the Singapore Chinese Orchestra (SCO) and conducted by Tsung Yeh, the work is a distinctive adaptation for...

  • Joshua Bell chats about forthcoming Sony Classical recording: 'Butterfly Lovers' with US Classical Radio
    Posted At: June 15, 2023
    With a career spanning almost four decades, GRAMMY® Award-winning violinist Joshua Bell is one of the most celebrated artists of his era. Bell has performed with virtually every major orchestra in the world and continues to maintain engagements as soloist, recitalist, chamber musician, conductor, and Music Director of the Academy of St Martin in the Fields.Joshua Bell’s forthcoming recording Butterfly Lover...

  • Joshua Bell to perform Vieuxtemps, Chausson with SPO / The Korea Herald
    Posted At: May 15, 2023
    The American violinist returns to Korea for SPO debutThe Korea Herald's Park Ga-young writes….Renowned American violinist Joshua Bell will make his debut with the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra with two very special "old fashioned violin pieces" as he returns to Korea in May for the first time in five years to meet his favorite audience in the world.The 55-year-old chose Vieuxtemps’s Violin Concerto No. 5 in ...

  • Joshua Bell excels in the Sibelius Violin Concerto with San Francisco Symphony / The Berkeley Daily Planet
    Posted At: May 3, 2023
    The Berkeley Daily Planet's James Roy MacBean writes….In a career spanning almost four decades, Joshua Bell has established himself as one of the premier violinists of his era. He returned to Davies Hall for four performances, April 22-30, with the San Francisco Symphony under the direction of Dalia Stasevska, who was making her local debut. The main attraction for this series of concerts was the Violin Con...

  • Joshua Bells strong, nuanced NYPhil - Thanksgiving performance brought rich elements to Beethoven / popmatters
    Posted At: December 13, 2021
    popmatters - Sachyn Mital writes….An evening with Joshua Bell is always a treat, and given his status as one of the world’s foremost violinists, he is highly sought after. But it felt extraordinary to have him perform alongside the New York Philharmonic for three evenings around Thanksgiving, especially as it has only been a few months since the Philharmonic began hosting indoor shows again. Bell was the so...

  • Joshua Bell w/Academy start two-nights in Oklahoma / THE OKLAHOMAN
    Posted At: February 26, 2020

    Under celebrated violinist Joshua Bell's direction, the globally renowned Academy of St. Martin in the Fields will perform in concert tonight and Thursday at The McKnight Center for the Performing Arts on Oklahoma State University's campus in Stillwater. Both OSU performances will be under Bell's direction. Bell was named the music director of The Academy of St. Martin in the Fields in 2011, the ...

  • Joshua Bell and Lang Lang help pay tribute to longtime GRAMMY producer in epic sendoff / CBS NEWS
    Posted At: January 27, 2020

    It was music's biggest night – but this year's Grammy Awards took on a mournful tone as stars and fans paid tribute to basketball legend Kobe Bryant. The show opened with tributes to Bryant from Lizzo and host Alicia Keys. The Los Angeles Lakers legend died in a helicopter crash earlier Sunday. The Grammys were held in the Staples Center, where the Lakers play their home games. In a tri...

  • Joshua Bell receives Glashutte Original Music Festival Award / theStrad
    Posted At: May 28, 2019

    Joshua Bell has won the 16th Glashütte Original Music Festival Award, which honours ‘achievements in classical music education and support for young artists', and comes with a €25,000 grant. The American violinist, who was presented with the award after his concert with the Camerata Salzburg at the Dresden Music Festival yesterday, will be donating it to five organizations: Education Thro...

  • IU's Jacobs School to sell 5 violins incl; early Joshua Bell 'Guadagnini' loaner / Violinist.com
    Posted At: May 8, 2019

    The Indiana University Jacobs School of Music is selling five fine violins, including the 1750 Giovanni Battista Guadagnini violin that was loaned to Joshua Bell early in his career. "I officially started my career in 1982 at the age of 14, while continuing my studies at Indiana University under the great Josef Gingold," Bell said. "I was unable to afford a great violin at that time, but thankfully India...

  • L.A. Weekly's 'goLA picks' Joshua Bell, Jeremy Denk & Steven Isserlis at the CSUN: Soraya
    Posted At: May 3, 2019

    Joshua Bell is a flashy and stylish violinist who often appears as a star soloist with numerous orchestras, but in this May 8 concert at the CSUN: Soraya he breaks things down in a more intimate format, accompanied only by such classical-music luminaries as New York pianist Jeremy Denk and London cellist Steven Isserlis. Denk anchors this program of traditional piano trios by Mendelssohn, Shostakovich an...

  • Who's afraid of the big bad wolf? Not Montrealers / CBC
    Posted At: April 21, 2019

    CBC/QWF writer-in-residence Emira Tufo meets the yellow-eyed wolf who serenades Metro commuters. The masked violinist who plays in the Montreal Metro was inspired by the French-Belgian-German film, Le joueur de violon - the story of a concert musician who abandons the spotlight to play for passersby in the Paris Metro. The old proverb says; the Wolf is always bad, regardless of the colour of his pelt...

  • Joshua Bell w/Houston Symphony, navigate Beethoven's technical mastery and various moods / Houston Chronicle
    Posted At: March 18, 2019

    Historically, happy Beethoven has not amounted to popular Beethoven. Joshua Bell and the Houston Symphony hardly let that stop them this weekend. To say the least, the world's most famous composer is not remembered for his sunny disposition. But in 1806, he had ample reason to smile: That summer he completed a new symphony that his patron, one Prince Lichnowsky, had commissioned well in advance; and his ...

  • Joshua Bell discusses Max Bruch with NetNebraska
    Posted At: March 14, 2019

    Joshua Bell's recent Sony Classical release showcases two masterpieces from romantic composer Max Bruch. The album features Bell's first recording of the virtuosic Scottish Fantasy as well as a new recording of the Violin Concerto No. 1 in G minor, which he first recorded over thirty years ago with the Academy of St Martin in the Fields and Sir Neville Marriner. Now, as Music Director o...

  • Joshua Bell and Sam Haywood, set for UA-Centennial Hall recital / Tucson.com
    Posted At: February 9, 2019

    After years of guesting with the Tucson Symphony Orchestra and other ensembles that made it our way, Joshua Bell in 2011 played his first ever Tucson solo concert. Eight years and yet another TSO appearance - back in 2013 - later, Bell is bringing his latest solo recital to Centennial Hall with UA Presents on Friday, Feb. 15. Bell doesn't do a whole lot of recitals. In fact, we are the finale of a 10...

  • Win 2 tickets to see Joshua Bell at Roy Thomson Hall / Ludwig Van TOTONTO
    Posted At: February 1, 2019

    Courtesy of Roy Thomson Hall, Ludwig Van is giving away two sets of tickets to see Joshua Bell on Tuesday, February 12, 2019. Click here for details. With a career spanning more than 30 years as a soloist, chamber musician, recording artist, conductor, and arts education champion, Joshua Bell is one of the most celebrated violinists of his era. A Sony Classical artist, Bell has recorded more than 40 ...

  • Joshua Bell advances Long Center date with 89.5KMFA - Austin
    Posted At: October 4, 2018

    The new Sony Classical - Scottish Fantasy release from Grammy Award-winning violinist Joshua Bell showcases two masterpieces from romantic composer Max Bruch. In addition to Bell's first recording of the virtuosic Scottish Fantasy is the Violin Concerto No. 1 in G minor, which Bell first recorded over thirty years ago with the Academy of St Martin in the Fields and Sir Neville Mar...

  • Joshua Bell will honor Charles Hamlen for Classical Action fundraiser / Playbill
    Posted At: September 5, 2018

    Grammy Award-winning violinist Joshua Bell will pay tribute to IMG Artists co founder - Charles Hamlen, the late classical music manager who helped propel his career, in an intimate concert October 1. The performance will take place in the Tribeca loft of Simon Yates and Kevin Roon, with proceeds going to Classical Action: Performing Arts Against AIDS. Hamlen, who died from leukemia August 1 at the age o...

  • Joshua Bell - Bruch: Scottish Fantasy on KDFC - State Of the Arts
    Posted At: August 28, 2018

    A new Sony Classical release from Grammy Award-winning violinist Joshua Bell showcases two masterpieces from romantic composer Max Bruch. The album features Bell's first recording of the virtuosic Scottish Fantasy as well as a new recording of the Violin Concerto No. 1 in G minor, which he first recorded over thirty years ago with the Academy of St Martin in the Fields and Sir Neville Marriner. ...

  • Joshua Bell speaks with Spokane Public Radio
    Posted At: August 20, 2018

    A new Sony Classical release from Grammy Award-winning violinist Joshua Bell showcases two masterpieces from romantic composer Max Bruch. The album features Bell's first recording of the virtuosic Scottish Fantasy as well as a new recording of the Violin Concerto No. 1 in G minor, which he first recorded over thirty years ago with the Academy of St Martin in the Fields and Sir Neville Marriner. ...

  • Joshua Bell on what it's like to play and conduct at the same time / WETA
    Posted At: August 16, 2018

    Grammy Award-winning violinist Joshua Bell debuts his newest Sony Classical release featuring the first violin concerto by Max Bruch, and his Scottish Fantasy. The Scottish Fantasy is paired with a new recording of the Violin Concerto No. 1 in G minor, which he first recorded over thirty years ago with the Academy of St Martin in the Fields and Sir Neville Marriner. Now, as Music Director of th...

  • What are the best pieces by Saint-Saens? / BBC Music Magazine
    Posted At: August 12, 2018

    Today's BreakfastPromelette features a playlist of highlights by the French composer What are the best pieces by Saint-Saëns? Saint-Saëns In tonight's Prom, Joshua Bell is taking to the stage in Saint-Saëns's Violin Concerto No. 3. We've taken the opportunity to look back on some of our favourite works by the French composer. What's on at the Proms tonig...

  • All Classical Portland chats with Joshua Bell about his lifelong love of the Oregon Symphony
    Posted At: August 3, 2018

    Back in 2011, American violinist Joshua Bell became the first music director of London's Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields, since its founding by Neville Marriner.  Bell and the orchestra already had a longstanding relationship:  Around the time of the violinist's 19th birthday, he recorded Max Bruch's Violin Concerto No. 1 with the Academy.  Now...
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