Breaking: Yuja cancels Chicago with Klaus
OrchestrasWe’re hearing that Yuja Wang has dropped out of next week’s Bartok concerto with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and her former boyfriend Klaus Mäkelä.
Chicago still has her name up in lights on the website but they’ve been calling around agents for a replacement.
This may become a frequent occurrence. Yuja and Klaus booked three years’ worth of concerts together before the breakup, embarrasing agents on both sides.
When workplace romances go bad, this can happen. She should find a nice doctor or lawyer.
It was a mismatch from the get go.
In age, in power dynamics …
Did they breakup the moment Chicago made their offer to Klaus, and Yuja was like, honey, don’t take it, let’s just stay put in Paris, you and me forever, and he’s like, babe, you’re getting old and clingy, it’s not becoming of you…
What!? Chicago made an offer?
It’s not clear that that has occurred.
yes – few hours ago it was announced
Yuja Wang resides in NYC.
It’s so, like, irritating when you, like, use “like” all the time even though it, like, means nothing. Sounds as if, like, you are about 16 and can’t, like, think clearly
Do you honestly believe Yuja Wang needs this petulant twitt to maintain her career? He was WAY over his water mark with her.
In cinema it happens very frequently that actors/directors have romance before or during a shooting but at the end they are almost everytime proffesional… When the film goes on the screens they do the promotion for it together in festival. In this case it’s not the case.
why doctor or lawyer? those professions produce many narcissistic individuals that are hard to live with.
Just find a regular guy with a regular job who loves her for her (preferably someone not in the music industry).
…like Jay Leno and other Hollywood celebs who married normal people and are still happily married.
Just make sure she gets a prenup it’s a smart thing to do.
Because her burn rate is likely unsustainable for a classical pianist, even a famous one.
@Tim: Sharp hatchet but likely true.
It’s an elite world with plenty of talent knocking.
A billionaire with nothing left to prove a la Salma Hayek might be just the thing.
First statement largely untrue. You only hear about the failed relationships, not the myriad successful ones.
I’m available
Dutoit and Argerich continued mutual engagements long after divorcing.
So apparently are Andris Nelsons and Christine Opolais. The appeared together recently in the Shostakovich Lady Macbeth, that was done in both New York and Boston.
She needs all the help she can get
Her voice is falling apart. I hope she is well.
Previn and Mutter made it work, too.
And Stevie Nicks/Lindsey Buckingham as well.
100 percent right . She needs A guy her age and better looking , she is just too pretty for ugly guys.
I’m available….and willing!
Meaning available to play the concerto or available to replace her boyfriend?
Barkis is willing!!
Once I kindly suggested to consult preventively with lawyer regarding the unhuman divorce and taxation laws of the cold country already year ago, however, got a quick adverse reaction then…
Frustrating for everyone involved, I guess, especially if CSO are planning to make their big MD announcement. I didn’t think they were together that long.
Didn’t have enough clothes to wear in Chicago!
Baby it’s cold outside…
Surely they’re not going to cancel every joint engagement? Did they not consider that maybe it won’t last and that they still need to be able to work together? Or, here’s a thought: Maybe there’s another reason she cancelled this Chicago gig?
Surely no one thought Yuja was actually capable of sustaining a relationship! I mean, you’ve heard and seen her interviews, right? Right?
Any man in Yuja’s life is going to take a backseat to her prime love – Rachmaninoff.
well,other man are going to take a backseat to their partners prime love- fashion, money and so on.
so, nothing unusual in this case
The agents should have asked me before they booked concerts with this couple.I definitely saw this breaking up coming.
aha you are clairvoyant! Very modest
Dang. I have a ticket to one of next week’s open rehearsal sessions and was so looking forward to seeing what her rehearsal outfit would be.
I have seen her several time in concerts there are better pianists to see.
Not to mention to hear.
Not many
I thoroughly enjoyed listening to her Rachmaninov in Philadelphia last year, though I couldn’t see her very well from the third balcony.
Not that many better to see, but to hear for sure!
Now now
Equal to her? I’ll, slightly reluctantly, say, “maybe;” but better….I don’t think so. It’s common, when a musician has astounding technical ability, to say, probably assume, that the feeling, emotional parts of their performances is, somehow, wanting, hence, overall, they’re not so terrific. But with Yuja, it’s just not true. Yes, it’s hard to imagine someone, especially so young, can have it all, the technique AND the passion, but she does. Whether personally, and particularly, in a close one-on-one relationship, she’s “he’ll on wheels” who knows? But that’s got nothing to do with her incredible playing.
Her talents are phenomenal, but I still prefer other pianists over all.
Her playing will gain more depth and emotion because she is experiencing the realities of life. Her broken heart will heal, but her playing will deepen!
Such as?
Madam Wang is no Pavarotti, he was forever
Truly? Who are your favorite pianists?
You missed ‘very little’.
It’s not so much that she’ll be *cancelling* 3 seasons of concerts with him, she’ll be *losing* 3 seasons of work and income (of concerts with Klaus)…
I mean she better start rescheduling now. Her agent must also be pissed off for the lost revenue.
La donna e mobile
Her new appointment with New York Phil – plus Dudamel going there soon – means she will be super-busy in NYC for the next few years – and her home is there also. Clever girl.
ooh, the ultimate revenge, dating a Latino papi, better conductor better lover (alas not better orchestra)
Is this your troll personality or are you really this clueless and vulgar? Your numerous posts here are giving creepy old man vibes
Yet you read them all and comment to them.
Your wordings are disgusting, probably that reflect your inner dark side.
That’s hilarious. Three seasons of Paris, Oslo, and Amsterdam? Who cares? She didn’t bother with any of them, or Chicago or Cleveland for that matter, before the relationship.
L’uomo potrebbe anche essere mobile…
She will end up canceling at least the first year. The rumor mill is rife with reports of his loose zipper. In order to be happy, she needs to find someone who will follow her around the world and hold her fur backstage.
Plenty of men would hold her fur and kiss the ground in gratitude.
loose zipper?? He’s still in his 20’s!
Plus, polyamory is the norm for his generation. Maybe she, in her late 30’s, didn’t get the memo.
Chicago apparently continues the lose zipper tradition
Klaus and Yuja should take a look at the video of Martha Argerich and Charles Dutoit rehearsing Ravel in 2009 and (somewhat) reminiscing.
I just saw them in Monte Carlo. So nice together and they permeated good vibes all around.
Radiated?
Yuja and Dutoit got it on too in Boston. So say friends in that orchestra.
Oh, this IS funny!! An 87 year old man can still have get it on without the aid of a truckload of Viagra!!? Sort of kills the spontaneity somehow, doesn’t it!!
In this case it might not take any.
It sounds like things are still raw there. Maybe someday they’ll reconcile and it will be like Argerich and and ex, Dutoit (who even came to his defense after Dutoit had been accused of being abusive to musicians).
I assume they were the classical music equivalent of Bennifer or Brangelina? Klauja, perhaps? Better for everyone this way.
Obviously it would have been Yuus
I’m looking forward to her Sunday May 12 7:30pm recital in L.A. Horowitz always played on Sunday afternoon 4pm in consideration for his fans who had to work the next day so they (and he) could feel relaxed before and after the concert.
One of Yuja’s memorable encores was the Bizet-Horowitz Carmen variations, absolutely stunning.
Why does this comment have more dislikes than likes? It’s nothing but positivity.
Because of the positivity? SD commenters are never happier than when grumbling.
Good point. Well fortunately, now it has more likes than dislikes.
I agree. Having just recently heard Yuja’s recording of this piece, ìt sounds ( to my amateur ear) wonderful and lacks nothing. Must say, it is sad to hear some of the comments here. This performer is a force of nature and intellect, giving such pleasure to music lovers around the world. None of us know what is going on in her life beyond the concert hall, so why speculate.
Happy World Piano Day 2024
name your favorite pianist of all time.
mine = Richter
I know I will have 75 thumbs donwn : Yeol Eum Son and Buchbinder.
Ignore the thumbs-downers. Son is an excellent choice, a truly extraordinary pianist.
Watch Son’s “La ci darem la mano” on youtube it’s pretty amazing!
Interesting choices, and both magnificent pianists. Yeol is underrated in my opinion.
Liberace, darlings!
“Races are for horses” — Bartok
Impossible for me to name a single favorite, just as I find it impossible to name a single favorite composer. Composer varies from day to day; and pianist varies from composer to composer…
Has to be Joyce Hatto. After all, she was how many pianists in one? Some 20 -30 or so that her husband was stealing from.
On a more serious not, poor Ms. Hatto had nothing to do with this con.
Serious not indeed.
Horowitz. No one else comes close, except Billy Joe
Agree RICHTER.
Horowitz. Never gonna hear anything like that again, not even from Yuja.
They are scheduled to appear together in Cleveland next month. Stay tuned.
Nice pun.
She’s out of that one too
Splitting up the vastly overrated couple should at least reduce the disappointment at the concerts they planned together.
Anyone who thinks Yuja is overrated hasn’t seen many musicians, or is just blowing off their mouth.
No more encores by Sibelius from Ms Wang then……
No more Chinese pieces from Mr Makela… oh there is none.
(Unless you count Das Lied von der Erde)
Strange. At the moment (2:20 PM on March 28), not only is Yuja Wang’s appearance still listed on the CSO website, it is still on her own website, as are subsequent appearances with Klaus Mäkelä, and at 10:30 am this morning I got an email from the CSO announcing the availability of additional tickets for an open rehearsal featuring both of them.
That’s because they are waiting until the last moment, when the president of the orchestra steps out on stage and makes that dreaded traditional announcement, “Ladies and gentlemen, I am sorry to inform you that for tonight’s performance…”
Everyone will groan, except the slippedisc readers in the audience who won’t be surprised at all.
That’s not the way it works. I’m starting to think maybe Norman’s report isn’t correct.
…to work with your significant other in music: so great when it’s good, so lousy when it’s not. buy hey, kids, let’s not be too hasty here…
Is that personal matter? Or between the two
As Father Ted would say, “it’s an ecumenical matter”!
Dating coworkers can lead to walking a land mine.
With regards to romances with people you work with, a former boss of mine had a quote that I have found very useful over the years – don’t sh-t where you eat
Isn’t that exactly what the last one did? At least Makela is not married, and this woman is not married and does not work for the CSO.
uh no?? not sure where you’re getting your information, but you are so wrong on this
I heard Makela in a concert. He has the technique. But musically, he’s decades behind real maestros like Mehta, Ozawa, Abbado, Muti, Chailly, Dutoit.
Charisma and charm sell tickets. That’s all it is nowadays.
Perhaps because he’s decades younger? he young
It would be interesting to see how Mehta, Ozawa, et al, were reviewed in their twenties. Does anybody remember that far back?
As a musician I once worked with said “it’s all a fake”.
He literally and figuratively is! He’s only 28! What could he possibly have to say yet?
I guess booking three years of joint concerts is the classical world’s equivalent of getting tattoos together in the first flush of love.
Dog whistle to bring out all the cave dwellers.
Why burn up agent phone lines? Jorge Federico Osorio is alive and well and living in Chicago. Ian Hobson is down the road in Champagne-Urbana. Or maybe a CSO principal would be up for a concerto on short notice?
Why the judgements and itoldyousos? Was looking forward to seeing/hearing them at Verbier. My wife asked me to wait until next year and I said I’ll be 75 and a lot can happen in a year. Turns out I shoulda gone last year!
This is why I always wait until the last minute to buy tickets at the CSO.
Overview
Sol Gabetta, whose “enthusiastic music-making and animated style are completely infectious” (Classical Voice), makes her CSO debut in Shostakovich’s captivating Cello Concerto No. 1 — a riveting journey through themes of defiance, sorrow and triumph. Electrifying conductor Klaus Mäkelä frames the program with Shostakovich’s Tenth Symphony, a searing portrait of the composer’s tormented life in Stalinist Russia, and the U.S. premiere of Sauli Zinovjev’s vibrant Batteria.
Please note: Pianist Yuja Wang, who was scheduled to perform Bartók’s Piano Concerto No. 2 on this program, has withdrawn from these concerts. Could be, she is just ill. Have you thought of that? She doesn’t seem like a person who would cancel a concert just like that.
I am seeing her tonight in minnesota. She was supposed to play The Bartok 2 but changed it to Prokofief 1, Four reasons unknown. She’s coming all the way to Minnesota for a fifteen minute student work.
If his performance in the bedroom was as bad as his performance on the podium then perhaps that’s why the relationship cracked ?
Yuja’s talent is in no doubt.
I hope she finds a nice partner who loves her for herself!
Ridiculous. Grow up.
Maybe Rupert is still available? I believe ( from a newspaper. Not so-called social media) that he’s lonely & hunting.
It’s really a tough life, being on the road
Unprofessional narcissist.
As far as I am concerned, professional musicians must honour their concert dates, regardless of their relationship to the performers. Otherwise, they are classless idiots, who lose all credibility. Wang is the loser here. She needs a better artistic agent who knows what professional behaviour means.
Cleveland orchestra still has Mäkelä and Wang on the same program in April. So, Wang just does not like Chicago?
The Cleveland Orchestra has also changed the program for Apr. 11-13 to Sol Gabetta and Mäkelä. So is this really just a pouting fit by a childish Wang?
Now it says TCO has Wang & Mäkelä playing together on April 18-20. Now that‘s better!
I take back my last remark. The other shoe has dropped. This according to Cleveland.com: “Virtuoso pianist Yuja Wang drops Cleveland Orchestra concerts from her tour schedule.” I don’t know if links are allowed in the comment section, so you will have to find this article yourself.
Not anymore. She just cancelled Cleveland
The next couple of weeks are going to be very, very funny.
Please stop resetting the app while I am trying to compose my response. It’s really rude.
The Rococo Variations by Ukrainian Russian composer P.I. Tchaikovsky and maybe Bruch’s Kol Nidrei as an encore would have been a more appropriate and provocative program. The War in Ukraine is not really about Stalin and the 20th Century. The war if i’m not mistaken is about honoring the principles of the Era of Enlightenment and the spoils of freedom according to Revolutionary Americana and the Marquis de Sade’s France !
Correct? N’est-ce pas? Naja?
She may have a medical reason for pulling out. Overuse injuries are common, for one possible example. Yannick has taken mental health breaks…
I am so upset. I bought these tickets as a present months ago, and THIS is how I figure out the cycle and guests changed!! CSO didn’t even bother to message about the significant change. I paid that money to see her, I want my money back.
Mari, I bought 4 tickets the day they went on sale, 8 months ago.
I immediatly sent a firm email to CSO and called them to demand a full refund. The moment they said no refund, I said okay you can take it up with my credit card company.
I’m now getting a full refund.
They cannot deny the refund tell them you want to speak to a supervisor.
A classic Spinal Tap behavior.
Even the Eagles showed up for their gigs when they hated each other.
Hey Klaus, put your precious ego in check and remember that you’re a guy waving a little stick at (already) talented people and everyday when she wakes up, she’s still Yuja Wang, the greatest pianist in over 100 years.
However, Yuja you gave your adoring Chicago followers the middle finger for 3 nights, and we won’t forget.
You’re both petulant children, so bag your empty apologies.
This is not rock n roll.
My friend and I bought tickets as soon as they went on sale . We flew to Chicago from Orlando , Fl only to find out the day before the concert that she canceled her appearance !!! Absolutely inconsiderate . If she books for an appearance in Orlando I will remember this in the reviews . Grow up !!