Circle of Friends Special Event with violinist Randall Goosby and pianist Zhu Wang
Sunday, October 18, 2026
3–5 p.m.
Academy Art Museum
106 South St, Easton, MD 21601
This event is by invitation to Chesapeake Music’s “Circle of Friends,” supporters who have generously contributed $1,000 or more during a Fiscal Year (October 1 – September 30) to help fulfill our mission: To bring renowned musicians to delight, engage and surprise today’s audiences, and educate, inspire, and develop tomorrow’s.
Chesapeake Music is excited to welcome back violinist Randall Goosby and pianist Zhu Wang. Signed exclusively to Decca Classics, Randall is recognized for his sensitivity, intensity, and commitment to expanding the classical repertoire through the works of underrepresented composers. His acclaimed album Roots, created with Zhu, explores the rich legacy of African-American music and features works by pioneering composers. Zhu Wang, winner of the 2026 Maria Canals International Piano Competition of Barcelona, the 2024 New Orleans International Piano Competition, and 2020 YCA Susan Wadsworth International Auditions, has earned international recognition for his exceptional musicianship and has performed at renowned venues including Carnegie Hall, The Kennedy Center, and the Berliner Philharmonie. Returning to Chesapeake Music, Randall and Zhu bring their remarkable partnership to the stage in a program that showcases their exceptional musicianship.
Randall Goosby
“For me, personally, music has been a way to inspire others” –Goosby’s own words sum up perfectly his commitment to being an artist who makes a difference. Signed exclusively to Decca Classics in 2020 at the age of 24, American violinist Randall Goosby is acclaimed for the sensitivity and intensity of his musicianship alongside his determination to make music more inclusive and accessible, as well as bringing the music of under-represented composers to light. Goosby was recently appointed to Juilliard School’s Preparatory Division and joins the Pre-College violin faculty beginning in Fall 2025.
Highlights of Randall Goosby’s 2025/26 season include debut performances with the Atlanta Symphony/Leonard Slatkin, Orchestre National de France/Cristian Măcelaru, KBS Symphony/Peter Oundjian, andSan Diego Symphony/Kahchun Wong.Goosby returns to the San Francisco Symphony, Pittsburgh Symphony, and New Jersey Symphony. He appears in recital across North America and Europe with pianist Zhu Wangas well as with the Renaissance Quartet, and joins clarinetist Anthony McGill and pianist Joshua Mhoon in a program presented by the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society.
Summer 2025 includes Goosby’s debut at the Bravo! Vail Music Festival with the Philadelphia Orchestra and Marin Alsop performing Mozart’s Violin Concerto No. 3, and at the Verbier Festival where he performs solo and chamber recitals. Goosby returns to the Cleveland Orchestra with Marie Jacquot, and joins the Music Academy of the West as a Mosher Guest Artist. Previous engagements have included debut performances with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra/Sir Mark Elder, Minnesota Orchestra/Thomas Søndergård, National Arts Centre Orchestra/Alexander Shelley, Montreal Symphony Orchestra/Dalia Stasevska, and Netherlands Radio Philharmonic/Michele Mariotti. Goosby joined the London Philharmonic Orchestra on their 2024 U.S. tour led by Edward Gardner performing Barber’s Violin Concerto. As of 2024/25, Goosby is a member of Konzerthaus Dortmund’s series “Junge Wilde”.
Goosby’s debut album for Decca, entitled ‘Roots’, is a celebration of African-American music which explores its evolution from the spiritual through to present-day compositions. Collaborating with pianist Zhu Wang, Goosby curated an album paying homage to the pioneering artists that paved the way for him and other artists of colour. It features three world-premiere recordings of music written by African-American composer Florence Price, and includes works by composers William Grant Still and Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson plus a newly commissioned piece by acclaimed double bassist Xavier Foley, a fellow Sphinx Organization and Young Concert Artists alumnus. “Roots: Deluxe Edition” was released in spring 2024 and features new recordings of music by Carlos Simon, William Grant Still and Florence Price.
In spring 2023, Goosby’s debut concerto album was released for Decca Classics together with Yannick Nézet-Séguin and the Philadelphia Orchestra performing violin concertos by Max Bruch and Florence Price. Gramophone Magazine observed: “There’s an honesty and modesty…This playing isn’t dressed to impress but to express.”
Goosby is deeply passionate about inspiring and serving others through education, social engagement and outreach activities. He has enjoyed working with non-profit organizations such as the Opportunity Music Project and Concerts in Motion in New York City, as well as participating in community engagement programs for schools, hospitals and assisted living facilities across the United States. Goosby collaborates frequently with the Iris Collective, an organization based in his hometown of Memphis, TN which builds community through music education and creative engagement. Goosby was the inaugural recipient of the 2024 Harmony for Change Award presented by Midori & Friends and also named the Cincinnati Symphony’s 24/25 MAC Music Innovator, a season-long residency in which he curated and lead community engagement activities with young musicians, and at historic cultural sites throughout the city of Cincinnati.
Randall Goosby began studying violin at the age of seven, andmade his solo debut with the Jacksonville Symphony at age nine. Four years later, he became the youngest First Prize winner of the Sphinx Competition at thirteen, leading to debut performances with the New York Philharmonic, Cleveland Orchestra, and New World Symphony the following year.
A former student of Itzhak Perlman and Catherine Cho, he received his Bachelor’s, Master’s and Artist Diploma degrees from the Juilliard School. He is an alumni of the Perlman Music Program and studied previously with Philippe Quint. He plays the Antonio Stradivarius, Cremona, “ex-Strauss,” 1708 on generous loan from Samsung Foundation of Culture.
Zhu Wang
Praised as “especially impressive” and “a thoughtful, sensitive performer” who “balanced lyrical warmth and crisp clarity”(Tommasini–The New York Times), Chinese pianist Zhu Wang has won the 71st Maria Canals International Piano Competition of Barcelona, receiving the Fundació Occident Prize in March 2026. He was a winner of the 2020 Young Concert Artists Susan Wadsworth International Auditions, and Gold Medalist at 2024 New Orleans International Piano Competition. Zhu was one of the finalists in the 2019 Clara Haskil International Piano Competition, and one of the prizewinners of 2024 Cleveland International Piano Competition. The world-renowned pianist Fou Ts’ong recognized Zhu as an “excellent pianist with a natural sense of harmony and imagination,” whose sensitive and engaging performances exhibit a remarkable depth of musicianship and poise beyond his age.
Highlights of his upcoming 26-27 season include orchestral appearances including Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 5 with the Baton Rouge Symphony and Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue with the Acadiana Symphony. His recital and festival schedule spans international stages with engagements at the Newburyport Chamber Music Festival, the NY People’s Symphony Concert Series, Pelican Chamber Concerts, Chapel Hill’s Music at the Meadows Recital Series, the Cedars Classical Concert Series, NewBridge on the Charles, and a Colorado Recital Tour. Abroad Zhu will appear at the Santa Cristina D’Aro in Spain, the Pianale Piano Academy Festival, and Banff Art of Piano, alongside the Santa Cecilia Piano Competition. He will also return to the Decca studio for a series of high-profile recordings with Randall Goosby.
Highlights of past seasons include appearing as a soloist with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, and the New York Youth Symphony in Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage at Carnegie Hall, alongside performances with the Columbus, Kansas City, Spokane, Memphis, and Richmond Symphony Orchestras, and a solo recital for the Hilton Head International Piano Competition.
Celebrated for his “technical mastery and deep sense of lyricism,” (The Durango Herald), Zhu has appeared in recital at Kennedy Center’s Terrace Theater, Southampton Rising Stars, Music at Dumbarton Oaks, The Morgan Library & Museum, Hayden’s Ferry Chamber Music Series, Buffalo Chamber Music Society, Salon de Virtuosi, and Zankel Hall at Carnegie Hall, which made The New York Times’ “Best of Classical Music 2021” list.
An avid chamber musician, Zhu has appeared on series such as Chamber Music Detroit, Bridgehampton Chamber Music Festival, Vancouver Recital Society, La Jolla Music Society, Stanford Live, Hamilton College, Four Seasons Chamber Music Festival, Howland Chamber Music Series, Chesapeake Music, Clarion Concerts, Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, and Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. Zhu is an alum of Kneisel Hall Chamber Music School, Bravo! Vail, Caramoor’s Evnin Rising Stars, Music@Menlo International Program, and he regularly appears in chamber music recitals with violinist Randall Goosby.
A native of Hunan Province, China, Zhu started learning piano at the age of five following his grandfather’s love of music. Zhu is a graduate of Curtis Institute of Music and The Juilliard School and received Gina Bachauer Scholarship, Mieczyslaw Munz Scholarship, and Mehlin Prize. His mentors are Robert McDonald, Mikhail Voskerensky, Emanuel Ax, Angela Hewitt and Zhe Tang. He gratefully acknowledges the support of the Bagby Foundation for the Musical Arts. Zhu currently lives in New York City with his wife Chloe and their beloved three cats, Chaz, Tùzi and Juzí.