David Finckel and Wu Han. Photo courtesy of Music@Menlo.
In Tuesday’s (6/24) The Strad, an unbylined article states, “Cellist David Finckel and pianist Wu Han have announced they will step away from their roles as founding artistic directors of the Music@Menlo festival and institute, following summer 2026. The duo has served as the driving artistic force behind Music@Menlo since its inception in 2003.” Music@Menlo is based in Atherton, California. “In a joint statement, they said: ‘Music@Menlo is one of our proudest and most cherished achievements … a place where extraordinary artistry and education thrive side by side. While it is difficult to step away from something so close to our hearts, we know the time has come to entrust its future to new leadership.’… Over the past 25 years, close to 400 artists have come to Music@Menlo from around the world to perform in main-stage concerts, lead multimedia Encounter lectures, coach students of the Chamber Music Institute, and work with Menlo School students during the annual Winter Residency. Its Chamber Music Institute has provided a training program and festival-based experiences for 563 aspiring musicians. Its programs for gifted musicians aged 10-19 and pre-professional artists aged 20-30 are now tuition-free.”
