Solace Ray Chen

• Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 - 1750):
• 1 Johann Sebastian Bach: Violin Partita No. 3 in E Major, BWV 1006: I. Preludio 03:58
• 2 Johann Sebastian Bach: Violin Sonata No. 1 in G Minor, BWV 1001: II. Fuga. Allegro 05:22
• 3 Johann Sebastian Bach: Violin Partita No. 2 in D Minor, BWV 1004: III. Sarabande 04:38
• 4 Johann Sebastian Bach: Violin Sonata No. 2 in A Minor, BWV 1003: IV. Allegro 04:13
• 5 Johann Sebastian Bach: Violin Sonata No. 3 in C Major, BWV 1005: III. Largo 04:00
• 6 Johann Sebastian Bach: Violin Partita No. 3 in E Major, BWV 1006: III. Gavotte en Rondeau 03:07
• Total Runtime 25:18

Info for Solace

Award-winning recording artist Ray Chen, dubbed “the ray of sunshine in the violin world” (The Times), announces his new studio album fully professionally recorded and released from home during the global lockdown. Entitled ‘Solace’, Ray shares works from J. S. Bach’s Six Sonatas and Partitas for Solo Violin, released digitally on 7th August on Decca Classics.

The events of 2020 which brought the world to a standstill have also created a time for self-reflection, and a renewed appreciation of the power of music. Ray explains, “Music heals the soul, it calms us, centres us, and creates focus in our lives. Bach’s music, in particular, written so far ahead of its time, reminds us of an important message: that humanity struggles onwards despite the odds.” To achieve ‘Solace’, Ray built a professional studio from scratch in his very own home. He sourced the best recording equipment possible and remotely enlisted the help of record producer Jonathan Allen to handle the logistics of installing and setting up his ‘studio’ to perfection.

The violinist has selected six of Bach’s movements to represent the personal and powerful feelings he has experienced during this year. Opening with Preludio from Bach’s E Major Partita No. 3, Ray sets out a familiar sense of joy and connection. The Fugue from Bach’s G Minor Sonata No. 1 follows, meandering and searching for truth through a filter of anxious worry.

The Sarabande from his D minor Partita greets our senses with darkness and vulnerability, faced with the feeling of loneliness. This evolves into the frustration of trying to find the end of the thread which is expressed through Ray’s surrendering of Bach’s A minor Sonata No. 2 titled simply: Allegro. The album concludes with two of the most delicate Bach movements, Largo from his C Major Sonata No. 3 to evocate the feeling of hopefulness and Gavotte en Rondeau.

Whether it be through a virtual competition or performance video, Ray’s fan engagement across his social channels has seen an unprecedented increase thanks to his innovative approach. Ray will expand his relationship with fans around the album and he is incredibly excited to share his music with them. In addition to the album, Ray is also sharing a new documentary which illustrates the process of creation of the project.

On choosing to record these particular works, Ray reflected on the way in which the COVID−19 pandemic has impacted his music-making: “My mentor Christoph Eschenbach once told me, ‘music when it repeats itself, cannot be played the same because by then you are already a few seconds older and wiser.’ Certain events have the power to change the way we look at the world forever. Music has that same power.”

Ray Chen, violin

Ray Chen
Winner of the Queen Elisabeth (2009) and Yehudi Menuhin Competitions (2008), Ray Chen is among the most compelling young violinists today. “Ray has proven himself to be a very pure musician with great qualities such as a beautiful youthful tone, vitality and lightness. He has all the skills of a truly musical interpreter,” said the great Maxim Vengerov.

Ray has released two critically acclaimed albums on Sony: a recital program “Virtuoso” of works by Bach, Tartini, Franck, and Wieniawski, and the Mendelssohn and Tchaikovsky concertos with Swedish Radio Orchestra and Daniel Harding. Following the success of these recordings, Ray was profiled by The Strad and Gramophone magazines as “the one to watch”. “Virtuoso” was distinguished with the prestigious ECHO Klassik award. His third recording, an all-Mozart album with Christoph Eschenbach and the Schleswig-Holstein Festival Orchestra, was released in January 2014.

Ray continues to win the admiration of fans and fellow musicians worldwide. In 2012, he became the youngest soloist ever to perform in the televised Nobel Prize Concert for the Nobel Laureates and the Swedish Royal Family. His Carnegie Hall debut with the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic and Sakari Oramo, as well as his sold-out Musikverein concert with the Gewandhaus Orchestra and Riccardo Chailly were met with standing ovations. Since the 2012- 13 season, Ray has been invited to join Konzerthaus Dortmund's series “Junge Wilde,” which presents young and groundbreaking artists in Germany. Later this season, Ray will make his San Francisco recital debut at the SF Jazz Center. He also looks forward to his upcoming recital tour of Australia and his debuts with the Orchestre National de France and the London Philharmonic Orchestra.

Followed by over 1.5 million people people on SoundCloud, Ray Chen looks to expand the classical music audience by increasing its appeal to the young generation via all available social media platforms. He is the first ever classical musician to be invited to write a regular blog about his life as a touring soloist for the largest Italian publishing house, RCS Rizzoli (Corriere della Sera, Gazzetta dello Sport, Max). In his unstinting efforts to break down barriers between classical music, fashion and pop culture, he is supported by Giorgio Armani and was recently featured in Vogue magazine.

Born in Taiwan and raised in Australia, Ray was accepted to the Curtis Institute of Music at age 15, where he studied with Aaron Rosand and was supported by Young Concert Artists. He plays the 1715 "Joachim" Stradivarius violin on loan from the Nippon Music Foundation.

This album contains no booklet.