Chamber Series Concerts

Duo Zinck-Chicha
October 27, 2024
4:00 – 6:00 PM 

The Zinck-Chicha Duo was founded in 1985 by French violinist Bernard Zinck and pianist Carole Chicha when they were both students at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique de Paris in the chamber-music class of Geneviève Joy-Dutilleux. After winning first prize in chamber music, the two musicians lost sight of each other for more than forty years. Bernard Zinck decided to move the United States to continue his musical training, ultimately establishing his career as a soloist and teacher after winning the Yehudi Menuhin Trust Award in 1992. After winning several prizes in international competitions (Vercelli and Marsala), Carole Chicha has devoted herself to chamber music and teaching.

In 2022, the two musicians reconnected by chance and together, decided to reform their duo. Since then, they have performed in France at the Polish Cultural Center and the Ile Saint-Louis Theater in Paris, in the conservatories of Melun and the Great South, at the Musiques et Vignes en Confluence chamber music festival in the Loire Valley and at the Académie des Arts in Flaine. They have been Artists in Residence at the Maison Dutilleux-Joy in Candes Saint Martin, France.

The Zinck-Chicha duo has a special affinity with early twentieth-century composers such as Chausson, de Falla, Lekeu, Poulenc, Respighi, Szymanowski and Turina, who drew inspiration from their rich national, musical and folkloric heritage. The Duo repertoire makes a special effort to celebrate Women Composers and Romance and Turbulences.

Carole Chicha entered the CNSMDP (Paris Superior Conservatory of Music and Dance) at the age of twelve in the preparatory cycle, in solfège, theory, harmony and piano studies with Ventislav Yankoff. She then continued her studies at the college level in the classes of Gabriel Tacchino for piano, and Geneviève Joy-Dutilleux for chamber music. In 1985, she graduated by winning first prize in the piano and chamber music competitions. She decided to deepen her training by attending master classes with renowned pedagogues such as Jean-Claude Pennetier, Michel Beroff, Evgeny Malinin and Catherine Collard. Music critic Jean Abel notes that “her eloquent playing has the ardor and assurance of youth and musical chops that allows her to display her brilliance enthusiasm. » Carole Chicha is a professor of piano and chamber music at the Conservatory of Melun in Seine-et-Marne.

After winning his first violin prize at the CNSMDP, Bernard Zinck continued his musical studies at the Juilliard School (Bachelor and Master of Music) in New York, then at Temple University in Philadelphia where he earned a doctorate in musical performance (DMA). Winning the 1992 Yehudi Menuhin Foundation Award in Paris helped Zinck establish an international career. He has performed worldwide as venues such as Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris and the festivals of Montmartre/Radio France festivals/Grange de Meslay/Flâneries de Reims in France, Academy Franz Liszt in Budapest, Mozarteum in Salzburg, San Clemente Basilica in Rome, Szymanowski Festivals in Poland and Sicily, Brighton Arts Festival in England, Carnegie Recital Hall in New York, National Gallery in Washington, St James Cathedral in Chicago, Oji Hall in Tokyo, Samyook University in Seoul, Cecília Meireles Hall in Rio de Janeiro and in the municipal theaters of Curitiba, Porto Alegre, Recife, São Luis, Uberlândia in Brazil. In 2023, Bernard Zinck joined the roster of the New York Classical Music Society artists. He currently serves as Director of the String Department at the University of Wisconsin- Milwaukee and is the artistic director of Lakeside Chamber Music Workshop and the chamber music festival Musiques et Vignes en Confluence. Zinck has written articles for String Magazine and The Strad and has recorded for Ligia Digital, Musical Heritage Society and Vienna Modern Masters record labels.

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