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Joshua Bell & Academy of St Martin in the Fields
February 26, 2025
Overview
Joshua Bell and the Academy of St Martin in the Fields return to Davies Symphony Hall for a program of favorites. This concert, the culmination of a music residency with ASMF and Bell at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, features Rimsky-Korsakov’s Scheherazade, performed side-by-side with students from SFCM, and Bach’s Concerto for Two Violins in D minor, featuring SFCM student Fiona Cunninghame-Murray alongside Bell.
Artists
Leader and Violin
Stephanie Gonley
Director (Haydn)
Violin
Musicians from the SF Conservatory of Music
Program
Johann Sebastian
Bach
Concerto for Two Violins in D minor, BWV 1043
Franz Joseph
Haydn
Symphony No. 29 in E major
Nicolai
Rimsky-Korsakov
Scheherazade
Sponsors
Benjamin-Ealovega01-min.jpg?format=auto&fit=crop&w=605&h=430&width=2400&height=1259&ext=.jpg&auto=format)
Joshua Bell & Academy of St Martin in the Fields
Fiona Cunninghame-Murray
Joshua Bell
Leader and Violin
With a career spanning almost four decades, Grammy Award–winning violinist Joshua Bell has performed with virtually every major orchestra in the world, and continues to maintain engagements as soloist, recitalist, chamber musician, conductor, and music director of the Academy of St Martin in the Fields.
Mr. Bell’s highlights this season include an international tour of his newly-commissioned project, The Elements, featuring works by living composers. The work receives its premiere with the Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, Hong Kong Philharmonic, New York Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony, and Seattle Symphony. Last summer he released his new album on Sony Classical, Butterfly Lovers. He made his San Francisco Symphony debut in 1991 as a Shenson Young Artist.
Mr. Bell has been nominated for six Grammy Awards, was named Instrumentalist of the Year by Musical America, deemed a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum, received the Avery Fisher Prize, and was named an Indiana Living Legend. He has performed for three American presidents and the justices of the Supreme Court of the United States. He also participated in Barack Obama’s Committee on the Arts and Humanities’ mission to Cuba on an Emmy-nominated PBS Live from Lincoln Center special, “Joshua Bell: Seasons of Cuba,” celebrating renewed cultural diplomacy between Cuba and the United States.
Fiona Cunninghame-Murray
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Violin
Violinist Fiona Cunninghame-Murray was born in Marin, California and raised in Baltimore. She studied at the Peabody Pre-Conservatory with Lenelle Morse and earned her bachelor's degree at the University of Michigan where she studied under David Halen, concertmaster of the St. Louis Symphony. She is currently pursuing her master's degree at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, studying with San Francisco Symphony violinist Chen Zhao and Simon James.
During her summers, Cunninghame-Murray has participated in music festivals including the Meadowmount Festival, where she studied with Gerardo Ribeiro, Sally Thomas, and Kikuei Ikeda of the Tokyo String Quartet; and the Aspen Music Festival, under Robert Lipsett. Her performances include sharing the stage with Gil Shaham and the Aspen Festival Orchestra and collaborating with Wynton Marsalis and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra. She has also participated in masterclasses with artists such as Hilary Hahn, Midori, Daniel Ashalamov of the American String Quartet, and Daniel Phillips of the Orion String Quartet.
The outstanding violin being used by Fiona Cunninghame-Murray is by Antonio Stradivari of Cremona, ca. 1728, known as the “Caressa, Thunis,” and is on loan through the generous efforts of Bein & Fushi, Inc. of Chicago.
During her summers, Cunninghame-Murray has participated in music festivals including the Meadowmount Festival, where she studied with Gerardo Ribeiro, Sally Thomas, and Kikuei Ikeda of the Tokyo String Quartet; and the Aspen Music Festival, under Robert Lipsett. Her performances include sharing the stage with Gil Shaham and the Aspen Festival Orchestra and collaborating with Wynton Marsalis and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra. She has also participated in masterclasses with artists such as Hilary Hahn, Midori, Daniel Ashalamov of the American String Quartet, and Daniel Phillips of the Orion String Quartet.
The outstanding violin being used by Fiona Cunninghame-Murray is by Antonio Stradivari of Cremona, ca. 1728, known as the “Caressa, Thunis,” and is on loan through the generous efforts of Bein & Fushi, Inc. of Chicago.
Academy of St Martin in the Fields
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Founded in 1958 by Sir Neville Marriner, the Academy of St Martin in the Fields has evolved into a musical powerhouse, an orchestra renowned across the world for commitment to the musical freedom of its players and the sharing of joyful, inspiring performances. Today, with music director Joshua Bell, ASMF’s player-led approach empowers every member of the orchestra, creating a direct line and electrifying connection between the orchestra and its audiences, resulting in collaborative performances that transcend the traditional conductor-led model.
ASMF presents more than 100 concerts in the 2024–25 season. International highlights include a 19-date European tour featuring cycles of Beethoven’s Piano Concertos with Jan Lisiecki alongside works by Errollyn Wallen, Ruth Gipps, and Anna Clyne, followed by a visit to the United States in February and March. ASMF’s commitment to a social purpose manifests in impactful projects harnessing the power of music to empower. The Academy has a longstanding history of work connecting with people experiencing homelessness, and education projects that develop autonomy and creativity among emerging musicians worldwide.
ASMF’s work in the United States and the residency at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music is kindly supported by Maria Cardamone and Paul Matthews.
The work of the Academy of St Martin in the Fields in the United States is generously supported by the American Friends of the Academy of St Martin in the Fields (Maria Cardamone, President).
Exclusive Management for the Academy of St Martin in the Fields: Opus 3 Artists.
ASMF presents more than 100 concerts in the 2024–25 season. International highlights include a 19-date European tour featuring cycles of Beethoven’s Piano Concertos with Jan Lisiecki alongside works by Errollyn Wallen, Ruth Gipps, and Anna Clyne, followed by a visit to the United States in February and March. ASMF’s commitment to a social purpose manifests in impactful projects harnessing the power of music to empower. The Academy has a longstanding history of work connecting with people experiencing homelessness, and education projects that develop autonomy and creativity among emerging musicians worldwide.
ASMF’s work in the United States and the residency at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music is kindly supported by Maria Cardamone and Paul Matthews.
The work of the Academy of St Martin in the Fields in the United States is generously supported by the American Friends of the Academy of St Martin in the Fields (Maria Cardamone, President).
Exclusive Management for the Academy of St Martin in the Fields: Opus 3 Artists.
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