Nikki Chooi

Nikki Chooi is a violinist appearing with the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, both in a chamber-style "UpClose" performance and as soloist in a program pairing a new violin concerto with orchestral showpieces by Dukas, Ravel, and Poulenc. Listeners can expect a season that mixes intimate, up-close music making with a large-scale concerto appearance.

On the "Sorcerer's Spell" program, Chooi takes the solo role in Habibi's Violin Concerto, a contemporary work placed alongside orchestral favorites: Dukas's L'Apprenti Sorcier, famous for its mischievous bassoon theme and buildup of enchanted brooms run amok, and Ravel's Ma mère l'oye, a suite of fairy-tale miniatures scored with delicate, storybook orchestration. The evening closes with Poulenc's Gloria, a choral-orchestral work, so the violin concerto sits as the featured solo centerpiece between fantastical scene-painting and vocal grandeur. In the "BPO UpClose" appearance, listeners can expect a smaller-scale, closer format typical of that series, likely emphasizing dialogue between performer and audience alongside chamber-scaled repertoire.