Voices of Resilience - Daniel Hamin Go - cello, and Ben Smith - piano

Daniel Hamin Go - Cello

The first time Daniel Hamin Go picked up the cello, he was 12.

As he drew the bow across the open C string, the cello’s vibrations resonated throughout his entire body. He remembers being moved and filled with light - a light that has guided his desire to explore the truth that lies in life, in music, and in himself. It’s the light that fuels his need to connect with audiences and to share interpretations that demand a full commitment to emotional expression - and it’s what’s propelling his international career as a soloist and chamber musician.

Go has performed across three continents, making appearances at the Berliner Philharmonie, Cadogan, Carnegie Hall, Flagey Studios, and Konzerthaus Berlin. As an avid chamber musician, Go has received invitations to festivals including the Four Seasons Chamber Music Festival, IMS Prussia Cove, Kronberg Academy, Krzyzowa Music, Mendelssohn on Mull, Music Academy of the West, Ravinia's Steans Institute of Music, Tsinandali Festival, and Yellow Barn, and his chamber partners amongst others include Jonathan Biss, Glenn Dicterow, Miriam Fried, David Geber, Ida Kavafian, Richard O’Neill, Daniel Philips, Rachel Podger, Wolfgang Redik, Fazil Say, Barry Shiffman, and Jean-Claude Vanden Eynden.

Go’s 24-25 season includes appearances at Big Lake Arts, Caledon Music Festival, Kallos Chamber Music Series, Music & Beyond, and a western-Canada tour as a Debut Atlantic artist.

With the generous support of Canada Council for the Arts and Ontario Arts Council, Go is looking forward to recording his debut album, HAN.

Go’s education took place in six institutions across five countries, regularly participating in masterclasses with Steven Isserlis, Ferenc Rados, Rita Wagner, Frans Helmerson, and Ralph Kirshbaum. Daniel received a Bachelor of Music from the Manhattan School of Music under the tutelage of Julia Lichten and David Geber, a Master of Music at the Hochschule für Musik 'Hanns Eisler' Berlin in the class of Nicolas Altstaedt, and as a recipient of the prestigious Bicentenary Award and the Drake Calleja Trust Award, Daniel completed an Advanced Diploma at the Royal Academy of Music. During the 2021-22 season, Daniel was an artist-in-residence at the coveted Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel working closely with Gary Hoffman. During the 2022-23 season, Daniel held a fellowship position at the Royal Conservatory of Music’s Rebanks Family Fellowship and International Residency Program.

Daniel performs on a cello made by Antonio & Rafaelle Gagliano, Naples ca. 1830, generously on loan by CANIMEX INC., from Drummondville (Quebec), Canada.

Benjamin Smith - Piano

Described as a “thoughtful and immensely exciting performer” with “scintillating technique” (Barrie Examiner), pianist Benjamin Smith has performed as soloist and chamber musician across Canada, the United States, and Mexico. He has been a laureate of numerous competitions, including the Virginia Waring International Piano Competition, and the CMC Stepping Stone Competition. Guest appearances include the Stony Brook Symphony Orchestra, the New Juilliard Ensemble, the Las Vegas Young Artists Orchestra, the Ontario Philharmonic, Orchestra London, the Burlington Symphony, and the Hart House Orchestra. As soloist, his repertoire includes several rarities, such as the Schoenberg and Schnittke piano concertos. Festival performances include repeat appearances at Toronto Summer Music, Music Niagara, and New Park (Ithaca, NY). American performances include recitals for the Texas Chopin Society and Chicago’s Landowska Harpsichord Society. Recent seasons have seen two concerts in Carnegie Hall: once as soloist in Gershwin’s Rhapsody In Blue with the Hart House Orchestra, and previously in recital with Canadian cellist Dongkyun An. A disc with Mr. An of Saint-Saens, Schumann, and Beethoven is currently available on most streaming platforms.

Devoting considerable time to chamber music, Ben has been heard nationally on CBC Music, as well as radio broadcasts in the UK. He has partnered in recital with a myriad of renowned artists, as well as with ensembles such as the Penderecki, Cecilia, Annex, and Tokai string quartets. For two seasons he performed as one-third of the Israelievitch-Smith-Ahn piano trio, and has recently been playing as a member of the Andromeda piano trio.

Dr. Smith currently serves on the faculties of both the Glenn Gould School (GGS) and the Taylor Young Artist Academy at the Royal Conservatory.  His principal teachers have included Andrea Battista, James Anagnoson, Julian Martin, and Christina Dahl. Along with a DMA from Stony Brook University, he holds a Bachelors degree from the University of Toronto, an Artist Diploma from the GGS, and a Masters from Juilliard.

Host or Publisher The Chamber Music Society of Mississauga