Music of Legends concert series celebrates The Magic of Christmas

The Music of Legends concert series caps off its run with The Magic of Christmas at the Wachholz College Center on Dec. 16.

The concert features timeless Christmas carols and songs performed by Kalispell-based violinist Wai Mizutani and pianist Clementa Cazan German, along with Xiao Long Chen and his sons Zichong and Ziao Chen of Polson.

Born in Beijing, China, Wai Mizutani is a renowned violinist and Julliard graduate. As a child pro and later moving to Hong Kong with his parents, he became the youngest first violinist in the Hong Kong Philharmonic’s history at 14, according to his bio.

He has performed worldwide with orchestras such as the Juilliard Symphony Orchestra, the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra and the New York Philharmonic Orchestra, which has taken him to famed venues such as Carnegie Hall, Avery Fisher Hall, the Kennedy Center and  Hollywood Bowl.

Born in Brasov, Romania, Clementa Cazan German began studying music at 6 years old when she was accepted at the Gheorghe Dima Music Academy, according to her bio. At 9, she won first prize at the Ciprian Porumbescu Competition in Romania. Under the direction of conductor Ilarion Ionescu Galati, she performed for the first time as a soloist at 12 with the Gheorghe Dima Philharmonic. At 14, she was one of three candidates accepted at the  George Enescu Music Academy in Bucharest, Romani. In 1983, she immigrated to the U.S. and the following year was accepted into Juilliard where she went on to win the Worcester Symphony Young Musicians Competition and was a finalist in the Beethoven Concerto Competition.

After graduating with a master's degree in piano performance, she founded New Tempo Music Studio, teaching piano, music theory, voice and chamber music. 

The Chen brothers all began playing instruments at young ages in their home country of China and have lived in Polson since 2018. 

Their father, Xiao Long Chen, began playing piano at 5 years old. At 15, he began attending a high school affiliated with the China Conservatory of Music and went on to major in piano and composition at the China Conservatory of Music. Since graduation, he’s taught piano and musical production at the university level, composed symphonies and played piano for major films, TV series, musicals, shows and records in China. The most famous film he has scored was for is “Let the Bullets Fly,” an action comedy.

Zichong Chen, 16, began learning piano with his father at the age of 4. He currently studies cello and piano under the direction of Wai Mizutani, who also teaches his brother, Ziao, and composition from his father Xiaolong. As he embarks on a path to performing, his hope is to one day compete in the International Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw, Poland.

Ziao Chen, 9, first started learning piano but discovered a love for the violin after hearing it played for the first time by Wai Mizutani at a Christmas concert in 2021. In 2022, he officially picked up the violin, learning more than 500 pieces, including major concertos by Paganini, Tchaikovsky, Sibelius, Lalo, Bruch, Mendelssohn and Wieniawski within the year.

Since that time he has performed alongside his teacher in local community concerts and recently at the Wachholz in November.

The concert starts at 7pm Tickets are $25 and may be purchased online at wachholzcollegecenter.org or at the box office, 795 Grandview Drive, Kalispell. 

For more information call 756-1400.