Mischa Maisky is hailed as a living legend of the cello. — Photo courtesy of the artist

HÀ NỘI — Vietnamese cellist Đinh Hoài Xuân will perform alongside world-renowned cello virtuoso Mischa Maisky at the 13th Cello Fundamento concert, scheduled for November 2 at Hồ Gươm Opera in Hà Nội.

Maisky, who is based in Belgium, will be joined by pianist Lily Maisky, his daughter, and French violinist Nicolas Dautricourt.

Ranked among the world’s 10 greatest cellists of all time, Maisky continues to perform with leading musicians, including pianist Martha Argerich. His daughter Lily and son Sascha Maisky, a violinist, have also performed with him.

Xuân is set to become the first Asian cellist to perform a cello duet with Maisky. She said she first met him while pursuing further studies in Romania and had expressed her wish to invite him to Việt Nam. The two have remained in contact since then although it took several attempts before Maisky could arrange a visit.

Cellist Đinh Hoài Xuân, founder and director of the Cello Fundamento international concert series. — Photo courtesy of the artist

As the concert organiser, Xuân said securing a performance by an artist of Maisky’s calibre would normally be prohibitively expensive, describing his participation as a special gesture towards Vietnam and a personal honour.

Dautricourt, a frequent jury member at international classical music competitions, has performed twice at Cello Fundamento concerts, playing a Stradivarius violin valued at US$20 million. His continued involvement has helped strengthen the concert series’ reputation.

For the upcoming concert, Maisky personally selected the programme and will appear in every performance. At Xuân’s suggestion, he agreed to include works by Brahms and Schumann alongside Schubert to better suit Vietnamese audiences.

Xuân will join Maisky in the second half for a four-movement sonata by Handel, lasting approximately 15 minutes. She said she had spent months preparing and had mastered all four movements, even practising alternative tempos to accommodate Maisky’s interpretation.

Although she once dreamed of performing solo with leading symphony orchestras, Xuân noted that chamber music presents its own challenges, requiring musicians to perform with greater precision and sensitivity.

She described the 13th Cello Fundamento concert as the most technically demanding edition in the series’ history. Meanwhile, she continues to hone her skills in pursuit of opportunities to perform as a soloist with prestigious orchestras, maintaining that perseverance is essential to artistic growth. —  VNA/VNS