The Violin and the Prancing Horse

The upcoming season promises to be a busy one for violinist David Park, with a new appointment as Cultural Ambassador, major concert appearances , and a new CD. It seems to have a little bit of everything.

It has been several years since Park was made the Cultural Ambassador to Mercedes-Benz; now he can claim the support of another famed company. Recently, David Park was appointed the Cultural Ambassador of Ferrari. In this new role, Park will share in an artistic vision for the brand, bringing his musical talents to one of the most desirable supercars. Despite their being rivals in Formula 1, for Park, “it is a great privilege to be the first Cultural Ambassador for both these two luxury brands.”

Musically, Park will also reach a personal milestone by performing the last of the Big 5 violin concertos. Having previously appeared with orchestra playing the concertos of Brahms, Mendelssohn, Sibelius, and Tchaikovsky, this season he will tackle arguably the greatest of the lot: Beethoven. This will also be quite a special event as Park will be collaborating with a former student who will conduct the concert.

That is not the only event on Park’s calendar. Later in the season he will travel to California to perform the most technically demanding concerto in the repertoire. After the sublime Beethoven, Park will tackle the devilishly difficult Violin Concerto No. 1 of Paganini, the Ferrari of the violin. “It has been on the bucket list for concertos to play in my lifetime.” It is a piece that is rarely heard live in performance, but Park is up to the challenge.

Finally, David Park will follow up his award-winning CD Violin Meditations with a recording devoted entirely to Fritz Kreisler. It will be his debut recording for Centaur Records, one of the largest and oldest labels in the United States. Kreisler has long been a favorite of Park’s and he is “Very excited to record these miniature masterpieces.”

Wolfgang Jaeger, DME Indiana University