The immensely versatile and internationally lauded pianist and conductor Ian Hobson, whose playing has been described by Gramophone as “intensely alive to expressive nuance, textural clarity and elastic shaping,” continues his Robert Schumann Cycle recital series on Friday evening, December 13, at 7:00 p.m., at New York’s Tenri Cultural Institute. The Schumann Cycle is devoted to the composer’s entire solo piano and chamber works with piano.

Entitled The trios, the full program follows:

Piano Trio No.1 in D minor, Op.63

Piano Trio No. 2 in F major, Op. 80

Piano Trio No. 3 in G minor, Op.110

Lucia Lin, violin; Ko Iwasaki, cello; Ian Hobson , piano

Pianist and conductor Ian Hobson—called “powerful and persuasive” by The New York Times— is recognized internationally for his command of an extraordinarily comprehensive repertoire, his consummate performances of the Romantic masters, his deft and idiomatic readings of neglected piano music old and new, and his assured conducting from both the piano and the podium. As of September 2023, Maestro Hobson has been appointed Guest Conductor of the esteemed Sinfonia Varsovia.

Reviewing Mr. Hobson’s latest Schumann Cycle concert on May 10 with Andrés Cárdenes (violin), Jun Iwasaki (violin), Csaba Erdélyi (viola), and Ko Iwasaki (cello), critic Walter Aparicio of New York Concert Review called the group of musicians “expert chamber music collaborators.” He had this to say about the ensemble’s performance of Schumann’s Piano Quartet in E-flat major, Op. 47: “Each member of the ensemble demonstrated a profound affection for this melody, infusing it with deep sentiment every time it recurred…The ensemble exhibited excellent communication and demonstrated a keen understanding of Schumann’s adept transitions from Baroque elements to Romanticism within the piece—a skill finely executed.” (May 14, 2024)