Liam&Lala
Cello & Piano
Thursday
March 16 2023
7:30pm
$$ MEMBERS $26 / REGULAR $29
Doors open at Les portes ouvrent à 6:45pm
Capitol Theatre
Liam&LaLa is a new cello/piano duo composed of two of Canada’s brightest young talents, cellist David Liam Roberts and pianist LaLa Lee. The duo are dedicated to innovative programming and unforgettably engaging performances. In November 2020, they made their recital debut for Cecilia Concerts at the Lilian Piercey Concert Hall in Halifax, to great acclaim. Despite having formed under the extraordinary circumstances of the ongoing pandemic, the duo has quickly developed a unique and exciting artistic voice.
Individually, David Liam and LaLa are both establishing themselves as two of the most promising emerging Canadian musicians. David Liam is the winner of the 1st Prize and Grand Award at the 2018 National Music Festival of Canada as well as the esteemed 2020 Michael Measures 2nd Prize, while LaLa performs extensively throughout China and Canada and has played concerti with orchestras including the Shanghai Philharmonic, Xiamen Philharmonic Orchestra, and Symphony Nova Scotia. Both artists have been featured on CBC’s list of Canada’s 30 Top Classical Musicians Under 30 and are recipients of The Royal Conservatory’s most prestigious scholarships.
David Liam Roberts
Winner of the 1st Prize and Grand Award at the 2018 National Music Festival, David Liam Roberts is establishing himself as one of the most exciting Canadian cellists of his generation. Named one of Canada’s “30 Hot Classical Musicians under 30” by CBC in 2019, David Liam is known for his extraordinary technique and sincerely communicative performances. He is the 2020 recipient of the Michael Measures 2nd Prize, awarded by the Canada Council for the Arts and NYO Canada. David Liam was awarded 2nd Prize at the Women’s Musical Club of Winnipeg’s 2018 Doris McLellan Competition, after a performance of Dvorak’s B minor Cello Concerto as soloist with the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra. After winning the grand prize of the Winnipeg Music Festival on his fourteenth birthday, the Winnipeg Free Press praised him as “prodigiously gifted… displaying an artistic sensibility well beyond his tender age”.
Originally from Winnipeg, the Métis cellist now studies with Hans Jørgen Jensen and Andrés Díaz at the Glenn Gould School (GGS) of the Royal Conservatory of Music, where he holds the Chisholm full scholarship and is supported by the Manitoba Arts Council. At the GGS, he has performed as principal cellist of the Royal Conservatory Orchestra, working under conductors such as Tania Miller and Andrei Feher. During the 2017-18 season, he was a frequent substitute cellist for the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra.
LaLa Lee
Praised for her sensitive expression and profound understanding of music, LaLa Lee is described by Juno Award winning composer Dinuk Wijeratne as “undoubtedly a talent to watch”. The 21-year-old pianist has delighted audiences worldwide with solo, chamber, and orchestral performances and was named as one of CBC’s 30 Hot Classical Musicians under 30. In the past, she has been invited to perform at a private function for Renée Fleming and Alexander Shelley and was a Featured Artist at the Scotia Festival of Music where she collaborated with Phil Myers, former Principal Horn of the New York Philharmonic.
Despite her young age, LaLa has performed with many great musicians including conductors Bernhard Gueller, Muhai Tang, Dinuk Wijeratne, and Daniel Bartholomew-Poyser. She has played with orchestras including the Shanghai Philharmonic, Xiamen Philharmonic Orchestra, Symphony Nova Scotia, Nova Sinfonia, and Chebucto Symphony Orchestra. Originally from Halifax, Nova Scotia, LaLa is currently studying to earn her Bachelor’s of Music (Honours) at the Glenn Gould School of Music, in the studio of John Perry and David Louie. She has been awarded the prestigious Henry Hung Foundation full scholarship and stipend. From the age of three, LaLa began learning piano, studying at the Maritime Conservatory of Performing Arts and with Lynn Stodola of Dalhousie University.
Individually, David Liam and LaLa are both establishing themselves as two of the most promising emerging Canadian musicians. David Liam is the winner of the 1st Prize and Grand Award at the 2018 National Music Festival of Canada as well as the esteemed 2020 Michael Measures 2nd Prize, while LaLa performs extensively throughout China and Canada and has played concerti with orchestras including the Shanghai Philharmonic, Xiamen Philharmonic Orchestra, and Symphony Nova Scotia. Both artists have been featured on CBC’s list of Canada’s 30 Top Classical Musicians Under 30 and are recipients of The Royal Conservatory’s most prestigious scholarships.
David Liam Roberts
Winner of the 1st Prize and Grand Award at the 2018 National Music Festival, David Liam Roberts is establishing himself as one of the most exciting Canadian cellists of his generation. Named one of Canada’s “30 Hot Classical Musicians under 30” by CBC in 2019, David Liam is known for his extraordinary technique and sincerely communicative performances. He is the 2020 recipient of the Michael Measures 2nd Prize, awarded by the Canada Council for the Arts and NYO Canada. David Liam was awarded 2nd Prize at the Women’s Musical Club of Winnipeg’s 2018 Doris McLellan Competition, after a performance of Dvorak’s B minor Cello Concerto as soloist with the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra. After winning the grand prize of the Winnipeg Music Festival on his fourteenth birthday, the Winnipeg Free Press praised him as “prodigiously gifted… displaying an artistic sensibility well beyond his tender age”.
Originally from Winnipeg, the Métis cellist now studies with Hans Jørgen Jensen and Andrés Díaz at the Glenn Gould School (GGS) of the Royal Conservatory of Music, where he holds the Chisholm full scholarship and is supported by the Manitoba Arts Council. At the GGS, he has performed as principal cellist of the Royal Conservatory Orchestra, working under conductors such as Tania Miller and Andrei Feher. During the 2017-18 season, he was a frequent substitute cellist for the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra.
LaLa Lee
Praised for her sensitive expression and profound understanding of music, LaLa Lee is described by Juno Award winning composer Dinuk Wijeratne as “undoubtedly a talent to watch”. The 21-year-old pianist has delighted audiences worldwide with solo, chamber, and orchestral performances and was named as one of CBC’s 30 Hot Classical Musicians under 30. In the past, she has been invited to perform at a private function for Renée Fleming and Alexander Shelley and was a Featured Artist at the Scotia Festival of Music where she collaborated with Phil Myers, former Principal Horn of the New York Philharmonic.
Despite her young age, LaLa has performed with many great musicians including conductors Bernhard Gueller, Muhai Tang, Dinuk Wijeratne, and Daniel Bartholomew-Poyser. She has played with orchestras including the Shanghai Philharmonic, Xiamen Philharmonic Orchestra, Symphony Nova Scotia, Nova Sinfonia, and Chebucto Symphony Orchestra. Originally from Halifax, Nova Scotia, LaLa is currently studying to earn her Bachelor’s of Music (Honours) at the Glenn Gould School of Music, in the studio of John Perry and David Louie. She has been awarded the prestigious Henry Hung Foundation full scholarship and stipend. From the age of three, LaLa began learning piano, studying at the Maritime Conservatory of Performing Arts and with Lynn Stodola of Dalhousie University.