

Lin Conducts Rachmaninoff & Ravel
June 15 @ 8:00 pm
TICKETS: $49 Premium Reserved | $39 Standard Reserved | $34 Adult Lawn | $15 Child (1-12) & Student Lawn (with valid ID)
GATES OPEN: @ 5:45 PM Early Entry | 6:00 PM General Public | 7:00 PM Pre-Concert Talks
ALCOHOL: A selection of beer and wine will be available for purchase. Customers will also be permitted to bring in outside alcohol for this performance.
Music and memory interweave in Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Symphonic Dances, in which the composer expresses a deep nostalgia for his homeland after 20 years in exile, while Maurice Ravel’s glittering concerto for piano and orchestra pays tribute to Harlem jazz and the Basque folk songs of his childhood.
PROGRAM
Brian Raphael Nabors
Pulse
Maurice Ravel
Concerto in G Major
Clayton Stephenson, piano
Sergei Rachmaninoff
Symphonic Dances, Op. 45
Learn more about the music and the artists by coming early for our 30-minute Pre-Concert Talk (excludes concerts with film and/or non-classical events).
Note: Schedule, programs, and artists subject to change. Visit Brittfest.org for the most current information. Standard BFO programs run 90 minutes with intermission.
Sponsors & Grantors:
Sponsors: Cutler Investment Group, LLC, Rogue Valley Manor, Diamond Medical Maintenance, Inc, and Kubli Haus
Grantor: The Carpenter Foundation
Hailed by the Virginia Gazette as “a rock solid” and “animated” conductor, Chia-Hsuan Lin (pronounced “jah-shwen”) delights audiences throughout the world with her trademark energy and command. In 2024, Lin celebrates her inaugural season as Music Director of Rochester Symphony, and she is also named Principal Guest Conductor of the Richmond Symphony, where she served as Associate Conductor since 2016.
This season, Lin returns to the podium with the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra in a pair of world premieres with the virtuosic cellist-vocalist-composer Abel Selaocoe. Also returning to conduct the Minnesota Orchestra in concert with Tony DeSare and Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra, Lin debuts with Charlotte Symphony and Cirque de la Symphonie, and with Portland Symphony in Star Wars: A New Hope. As guest conductor, Lin has also directed the Saint Louis Symphony, Virginia Symphony, Fort Wayne Philharmonic, Williamsburg Symphony, Richmond Ballet, Baltimore Chamber Orchestra, and Taipei Philharmonic Chorus. Her work as cover conductor spans renowned ensembles such as the New York Philharmonic, National Symphony, Saint Louis Symphony, Minnesota Orchestra, and Opéra de Rouen Normandie, covering esteemed conductors such as Gianandrea Noseda, Marin Alsop, Stéphane Denève, Sir Mark Elder, Jahja Ling, Yu Long, Nicholas McGegan, Valentina Peleggi, Thomas Søndergård, John Storgårds, Juraj Valčuha, Osmo Vänskä, and many more. The Chautauquan Daily praised Lin for her 2024 direction of Dvořák Symphony No. 8, “The entire CSO profited from Lin’s direction, from the violins’ beguiling rendition of the third movement’s lilting theme to the brass punches and horn whoops.”
Lin received accolades in 2019 as a last-minute replacement in Williamsburg Symphony’s performance of Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 6. Assuming the podium the day of the concert, the Virginia Gazette reported Lin as “leading them through a thoroughly top-drawer performance” in “an exceptionally absorbing interpretation and rendering.”
An advocate for the next generation of musical talent, Lin has collaborated with award-winning artists Paul Huang, Sterling Elliot, Amaryn Olmeda, Kevin Zhu, Inna Faliks, and Eduardo Rojas. She previously served as Music Director of The Richmond Symphony Youth Orchestra, and University of Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, and Assistant Conductor of Opera at the CCM Spoleto Music Festival in Italy. As Interim Music Director of the Contemporary Youth Orchestra of Cleveland, she led unique projects in collaboration with Chris Thile and Michael Stanley. Her list of premieres continues to grow, showcasing music that often transcends traditional classical boundaries, with new works by Texu Kim, Stephen Prutsman, Zachary Wadsworth, PaviElle French, Laura Schwendinger, Steve Heitzeg, and Jennifer Jolley.
Lin, a native of Taiwan, pursued conducting with Apo Hsu and Mark Gibson, and she received her Doctorate of Orchestral Conducting at Northwestern University in Chicago with Victor Yampolsky. She is married to horn player James Ferree and lives in Baltimore.
American pianist Clayton Stephenson’s love for music is immediately apparent in his joyous charisma onstage, expressive power, and natural ease at the instrument. Hailed for interpretations that are “fresh, incisive and characterfully alive” (Gramophone), he is committed to making an impact on the world through his music-making. Growing up in New York City, Clayton found musical inspiration in community programs. As he describes it, the “Third Street Music School jump-started my music education; the Young People’s Choir taught me phrasing and voicing; Juilliard’s Music Advancement Program introduced me to formal and rigorous piano training, which enabled me to get into Juilliard Pre-College; the Morning side Music Bridge validated my talent and elevated my self-confidence; and the Boy’s Club of New York exposed me to jazz.” He received an Avery Fisher Career Grant in 2024 and is a 2025 Sphinx Medal of Excellence honoree.
Recent and upcoming highlights include the New York Philharmonic and Houston and Cincinnati Symphony Orchestras; and Grant Park, Washington Performing Arts at the Kennedy Center, Fondation Louis Vuitton, and 92NY.