Kuang-Hao Huang

Kuang-Hao Huang is a pianist scheduled to perform as soloist with the Symphony of Oak Park and River Forest. The appearance is part of an "America 250!" program that pairs him with music by Walker, Bonds, and Schuman. He performs Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 23 in A major, K.488, on this occasion.

Listeners will hear Huang as soloist in Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 23 in A major, K.488, a work known for its lyrical slow movement written in a minor key, one of only two times Mozart used that particular key in his piano concertos, giving it a wistful, almost operatic sadness. The concerto opens with a gentle orchestral introduction before the piano enters with a songful, elegant theme, and the concerto overall favors clarity and warmth over flash. The rest of the program situates this concerto alongside American works: George Walker's Folk Songs for Orchestra, Margaret Bonds' Montgomery Variations movement "Prayer Meeting," and William Schuman's New England Triptych, so audiences can expect a concert built around contrasts between European classical tradition and American musical voices.