Igudesman & Joo
Encyclopedia
Igudesman & Joo is a duo comprising classical musicians, Aleksey Igudesman
and Richard Hyung-ki Joo
, whose shows combine comedy with classical music and popular culture. They aim to make classical music
accessible to a wider and younger audience.
and Hyung-ki
met at the age of twelve, at the Yehudi Menuhin School
, in England
, and since then, have remained strong friends and writing partners. In 2004, following in the footsteps of luminaries such as Victor Borge
and Dudley Moore
, they created their show, "A Little Nightmare Music". Since then, they have performed with major symphony orchestras around the world and have played at some of the world's biggest stages and festivals.
, Janine Jansen
, Gidon Kremer
, Mischa Maisky
, Viktoria Mullova
, and Julian Rachlin
, have joined them in their musical sketches, and recently, they performed for one of classical music's greatest conductors, Bernard Haitink
, who thereafter said, "Igudesman and Joo played at my 80th birthday celebrations. I nearly died laughing. I'd like to invite them back for my 85th, but that might be considered reckless...Great musicians, great fun."
Their performances reach well outside of the classical field and in 2008 they toured Europe
with legends of the pop world such as Robin Gibb
(Bee Gees
), Midge Ure
(Ultravox
), co-creator of Live Aid
and Band Aid
, Tears for Fears
, Simple Minds
, and Kim Wilde
. Igudesman and Joo have also collaborated with the actor Roger Moore
on several occasions for UNICEF.
and Kremerata Baltica
named “Being Gidon Kremer” premiered in 2008 and was performed in Schleswig Holstein and Rheingau Musik Festival
as well as in Asia
, Europe and Russia
.
On YouTube their clips have been watched over 18 million times, to date. A one hour version of an early performance in the Vienna Musikverein of “A Little Nightmare Music” is available on their homepage.
The duo has received positive reviews from musicians and entertainers alike. Among them are Terry Jones
, Sir Roger Moore
, violinist Gidon Kremer
, violinist Julian Rachlin
, and cellist Mischa Maisky
.
Aleksey Igudesman
Aleksey Igudesman is a Russian violinist, composer, conductor and actor. He performs in the duo Igudesman & Joo.- Biography :Igudesman was born in Leningrad, Russia. At the age of 12 he was accepted at the Yehudi Menuhin School in England...
and Richard Hyung-ki Joo
Richard Hyung-ki Joo
British-Korean pianist, composer, and creator and star of “Igudesman & Joo: A Little Nightmare Music”. Billy Joel chose Joo to arrange and record his classical piano pieces for the album Fantasies & Delusions. It was recorded at the Mozart-Hall, Vienna Konzerthaus, and reached the No...
, whose shows combine comedy with classical music and popular culture. They aim to make classical music
Classical music
Classical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...
accessible to a wider and younger audience.
Beginning
AlekseyAleksey Igudesman
Aleksey Igudesman is a Russian violinist, composer, conductor and actor. He performs in the duo Igudesman & Joo.- Biography :Igudesman was born in Leningrad, Russia. At the age of 12 he was accepted at the Yehudi Menuhin School in England...
and Hyung-ki
Richard Hyung-ki Joo
British-Korean pianist, composer, and creator and star of “Igudesman & Joo: A Little Nightmare Music”. Billy Joel chose Joo to arrange and record his classical piano pieces for the album Fantasies & Delusions. It was recorded at the Mozart-Hall, Vienna Konzerthaus, and reached the No...
met at the age of twelve, at the Yehudi Menuhin School
Yehudi Menuhin School
The Yehudi Menuhin School is a specialist music school in Surrey, England. It was founded in 1963 by the violinist Yehudi Menuhin.The School also gives pupils the best musical education any specialist schools can with a number of internationally main teachers, Simon Fischer , Natalya Boyarskaya ,...
, in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, and since then, have remained strong friends and writing partners. In 2004, following in the footsteps of luminaries such as Victor Borge
Victor Borge
Victor Borge ,born Børge Rosenbaum, was a Danish comedian, conductor and pianist, affectionately known as The Clown Prince of Denmark,The Unmelancholy Dane,and The Great Dane.-Early life and career:...
and Dudley Moore
Dudley Moore
Dudley Stuart John Moore, CBE was an English actor, comedian, composer and musician.Moore first came to prominence as one of the four writer-performers in the ground-breaking comedy revue Beyond the Fringe in the early 1960s, and then became famous as half of the highly popular television...
, they created their show, "A Little Nightmare Music". Since then, they have performed with major symphony orchestras around the world and have played at some of the world's biggest stages and festivals.
Shows
Many of classical music's biggest names, such as Emanuel AxEmanuel Ax
Emanuel Ax is a Grammy-winning American classical pianist. He is currently a teacher on the faculty of the Juilliard School. He is considered one of the best known concert pianists of the 21st century.-Early life:...
, Janine Jansen
Janine Jansen
Janine Jansen is a violinist. She began to study the violin at age 6. Her father and both her brothers are also musicians. Her mother is a classical singer and is a sister of the bass Peter Kooy...
, Gidon Kremer
Gidon Kremer
Gidon Kremer is a Latvian violinist and conductor. In 1980 he left the USSR and settled in Germany.-Biography:Kremer was born in Riga to parents of German-Jewish and Latvian-Swedish origins. He began playing the violin at the age of four, receiving instruction from his father and his grandfather,...
, Mischa Maisky
Mischa Maisky
Mischa Maisky is a Latvian cellist.Maisky began studies at the Leningrad Conservatory and later with Mstislav Rostropovich at the Moscow Conservatory whilst pursuing a concert career throughout the Soviet Union. In 1966 he won 6th Prize at the Moscow International Tchaikovsky Competition. In 1970,...
, Viktoria Mullova
Viktoria Mullova
Viktoria Yurievna Mullova is a Russian violinist. She is best known for her performances and recordings of a number of violin concerti, compositions by J.S. Bach, and her innovative interpretations of popular and jazz compositions by Miles Davis, Duke Ellington, The Beatles, and...
, and Julian Rachlin
Julian Rachlin
Julian Rachlin is a Lithuanian-born violinist and violist.-Background and early life:Born in Vilnius, he emigrated in 1978 with his musician parents to Austria. In 1983, he entered the Konservatorium Wien and studied violin in the Soviet tradition with Boris Kuschnir, while also receiving private...
, have joined them in their musical sketches, and recently, they performed for one of classical music's greatest conductors, Bernard Haitink
Bernard Haitink
Bernard Johan Herman Haitink, CH, KBE is a Dutch conductor and violinist.- Early life :Haitink was born in Amsterdam, the son of Willem Haitink and Anna Haitink. He studied music at the conservatoire in Amsterdam...
, who thereafter said, "Igudesman and Joo played at my 80th birthday celebrations. I nearly died laughing. I'd like to invite them back for my 85th, but that might be considered reckless...Great musicians, great fun."
Their performances reach well outside of the classical field and in 2008 they toured Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
with legends of the pop world such as Robin Gibb
Robin Gibb
Robin Hugh Gibb, CBE is a British singer and songwriter. He is best known as a member of the Bee Gees, co-founded with his twin brother Maurice , and elder brother Barry....
(Bee Gees
Bee Gees
The Bee Gees are a musical group that originally comprised three brothers: Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb. The trio was successful for most of their 40-plus years of recording music, but they had two distinct periods of exceptional success: as a pop act in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and as a...
), Midge Ure
Midge Ure
James "Midge" Ure, OBE is a Scottish guitarist, singer, keyboard player, and songwriter...
(Ultravox
Ultravox
Ultravox is a British New Wave rock band. They were one of the primary exponents of the British electronic pop music movement of the late 1970s/early 1980s. The band was particularly associated with the New Romantic and New Wave movements....
), co-creator of Live Aid
Live Aid
Live Aid was a dual-venue concert that was held on 13 July 1985. The event was organized by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise funds for relief of the ongoing Ethiopian famine. Billed as the "global jukebox", the event was held simultaneously in Wembley Stadium in London, England, United Kingdom ...
and Band Aid
Band Aid
Band Aid may refer to:* Band Aid , a musical ensemble raising money for famine relief* "Band Aid", a song on Pixie Lott's album Turn It Up* Band-Aid, a brand of adhesive bandage** Adhesive bandage, a genericised trademark...
, Tears for Fears
Tears for Fears
Tears for Fears are an English new wave band formed in the early 1980s by Roland Orzabal and Curt Smith.Founded after the dissolution of their first band, the mod-influenced Graduate, they were initially associated with the New Wave synthesiser bands of the early 1980s but later branched out into...
, Simple Minds
Simple Minds
Simple Minds are a Scottish rock band who achieved worldwide popularity from the mid-1980s to the early 1990s. The band produced a handful of critically acclaimed albums in the early 1980s and best known for their #1 US, Canada and Netherlands hit single "Don't You ", from the soundtrack of the...
, and Kim Wilde
Kim Wilde
Kim Wilde is an English pop singer, author and television presenter who burst onto the music scene in 1981 with the number 2 UK Singles Chart new wave classic "Kids in America". In 1987 she had a major hit in the United States when her version of The Supremes' classic "You Keep Me Hangin' On"...
. Igudesman and Joo have also collaborated with the actor Roger Moore
Roger Moore
Sir Roger George Moore KBE , is an English actor, perhaps best known for portraying British secret agent James Bond in seven films from 1973 to 1985. He also portrayed Simon Templar in the long-running British television series The Saint.-Early life:Moore was born in Stockwell, London...
on several occasions for UNICEF.
Being Gidon Kremer
Their project together with Gidon KremerGidon Kremer
Gidon Kremer is a Latvian violinist and conductor. In 1980 he left the USSR and settled in Germany.-Biography:Kremer was born in Riga to parents of German-Jewish and Latvian-Swedish origins. He began playing the violin at the age of four, receiving instruction from his father and his grandfather,...
and Kremerata Baltica
Kremerata Baltica
Kremerata Baltica is a chamber orchestra consisting of young musicians from Baltic countries . It was founded by Gidon Kremer in 1997.The name is a pun on camerata, the general word applying to various chamber music groups....
named “Being Gidon Kremer” premiered in 2008 and was performed in Schleswig Holstein and Rheingau Musik Festival
Rheingau Musik Festival
The Rheingau Musik Festival is an international summer music festival in Germany, founded in 1987. It is mostly for classical music, but includes other genres...
as well as in Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
, Europe and Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
.
A Little Nightmare Music
A Little Nightmare Music” has received much acclaim by critics and audiences alike. It has taken them all over the world, including Verbier Festival, Bergen Festival, Yehudi Menuhin Festival in Gstaat, Lockenhaus, Saratoga Festival, New York and festivals run by Renault Capucon and Yuri Bashmet.On YouTube their clips have been watched over 18 million times, to date. A one hour version of an early performance in the Vienna Musikverein of “A Little Nightmare Music” is available on their homepage.
The duo has received positive reviews from musicians and entertainers alike. Among them are Terry Jones
Terry Jones
Terence Graham Parry Jones is a Welsh comedian, screenwriter, actor, film director, children's author, popular historian, political commentator, and TV documentary host. He is best known as a member of the Monty Python comedy team....
, Sir Roger Moore
Roger Moore
Sir Roger George Moore KBE , is an English actor, perhaps best known for portraying British secret agent James Bond in seven films from 1973 to 1985. He also portrayed Simon Templar in the long-running British television series The Saint.-Early life:Moore was born in Stockwell, London...
, violinist Gidon Kremer
Gidon Kremer
Gidon Kremer is a Latvian violinist and conductor. In 1980 he left the USSR and settled in Germany.-Biography:Kremer was born in Riga to parents of German-Jewish and Latvian-Swedish origins. He began playing the violin at the age of four, receiving instruction from his father and his grandfather,...
, violinist Julian Rachlin
Julian Rachlin
Julian Rachlin is a Lithuanian-born violinist and violist.-Background and early life:Born in Vilnius, he emigrated in 1978 with his musician parents to Austria. In 1983, he entered the Konservatorium Wien and studied violin in the Soviet tradition with Boris Kuschnir, while also receiving private...
, and cellist Mischa Maisky
Mischa Maisky
Mischa Maisky is a Latvian cellist.Maisky began studies at the Leningrad Conservatory and later with Mstislav Rostropovich at the Moscow Conservatory whilst pursuing a concert career throughout the Soviet Union. In 1966 he won 6th Prize at the Moscow International Tchaikovsky Competition. In 1970,...
.