The internationally renowned violinist and Peabody Preparatory alumna Hilary Hahn will speak at the Peabody Conservatory Commencement, Tuesday, May 23, at 10:00 am in Miriam A. Friedberg Concert Hall. A three-time Grammy Award winner acclaimed for her virtuosity, expansive interpretations, and creative programming, Ms. Hahn’s early studies and first public performance (at age 6) were at the Peabody Preparatory.
In recent seasons, Ms. Hahn has served as artist-in-residence at the Seattle Symphony, the Orchestre National de Lyon, and Vienna’s Konzerthaus, where she performed Mozart with the Camerata Salzburg, Dvořák with the Vienna Symphony, and Vieuxtemps with the Vienna Philharmonic, plus a solo recital. As part of each of these residencies, she created and performed free – and sometimes surprise – outreach activities and performances customized to each city.
Since last season, in recital tours across the U.S., Europe, and Japan, Ms. Hahn has been premiering six new partitas for solo violin by composer Antón García Abril. In 27 Pieces: the Hilary Hahn Encores is Ms. Hahn’s multi-year commissioning project, started in 2011, to revitalize the duo encore genre. She has released 16 albums on the Deutsche Grammophon and Sony labels, in addition to three DVDs, an Oscar-nominated movie soundtrack, an award-winning recording for children, and various compilations.
When she was 10 years old, Ms. Hahn was admitted to the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia to study with Jascha Brodsky. She completed her university requirements at the age of 16, having already made her solo debuts with the Baltimore, Pittsburgh, Utah, and Bavarian Radio symphony orchestras and the New York Philharmonic, among others. She continued her studies for three more years, delving into languages, literature, and writing, and received her bachelor’s degree at 19. She holds honorary doctorates from Ball State University and Middlebury College.
This year marks the Peabody Conservatory’s 135th graduation exercises, where one Performer’s Certificate, 88 Bachelor of Music degrees, 111 Master of Music degrees, 11 Master of Arts degrees, 24 Graduate Performance Diplomas, two Artist Diplomas, and 13 Doctor of Musical Arts degrees are scheduled to be conferred. The ceremony, which begins at 10:00 am on Tuesday, May 23, will be live streamed at Ustream.
