Yiran Zhao, born in China and based in Berlin, is a composer, performer, audio designer and sound artist. The use of light and shadow is as much a part of her vocabulary as performative elements and visual media. The Briton Christian Mason uses a text by Paul Griffiths on the (light-related) schooling behavior of fish for his new work "The Oddity Effect". Both works, as well as the premiere of a prize-winning piece from the ACHT BRÜCKEN composition competition, will be conducted by Ustina Dubitsky, who attracted attention through her successful participation in the Besançon conducting competition and winning the La Maestra conducting competition.

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The Oddity Effect

Museum Ludwig

All energies are spent. Clara Iannotta canvasses the empty chest from which the heart has stealthily withdrawn, whilst George Lewis contemplates the insoluble predicament of humankind’s double nature as both mental and physical beings. In this inhospitable terrain, where all seems lost to the world, Brendan Champeaux, Shiqi Geng and Yiran Zhao stake out a territory of new sound architectures: three world premieres by a new generation of composers.

Strange bird

Wiener Konzerthaus

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OVERTURES: EMF 2024 Conducting Scholars

Guilford College

Be transformed by the heartbreaking serenity of Gustav Mahler’s Ninth Symphony. Led by Grammy Award-winning conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin, this transcendent farewell—hailed as “the greatest Mahler ever composed” by Viennese composer Alban Berg—showcases Mahler at the height of his skill, pushing symphonic form to its limits. From its poignant opening motives to final tender notes that slowly dissipate into silence, follow a journey that celebrates the splendor of life—and the peaceful recognition of its inevitable end. Lyrical, searching, and deeply human, this monumental work unfolds with extraordinary emotional depth and color.

Yiran Zhao

Events

Upcoming events

Nov 8, 2026

Yannick Leads Mahler 9 · Curtis Institute of Music

Past events

May 18, 2025

The Oddity Effect · Kölner Philharmonie

Oct 25, 2024

Strange bird · Klangforum Wien

Future and recently performed repertoire

Conductor in Umoja by Coleman

Curtis Institute of Music

Conductor in Symphony No. 9 by Mahler

Curtis Institute of Music

About

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