Hailing from the exotic land of New Zealand, Amy Wang has become an established artist in the New York music scene. Her talent with a clarinet has made her a sought after addition in many performances at high end venues. She has not only performed in New York but also overseas in South America, Asia, Europe and Australia. Yet we must take note that her first instrument wasn’t even the clarinet but the piano. She was captured by the sound of the clarinet and decided to master it.
As we mentioned earlier Amy performed in South America. She had the pleasure of performing at a concert with Andrea Bocelli that drew 45,000 people. It was a huge honor for her. This was while living in South America where she was a piano coach at the National Conservatory and also taught the clarinet. In New York she had the pleasure of taking the stage at Carnegie Hall not once but three times. She performed twice as a principal clarinetist and once with a woodwind quintet.
“I completely understand why it is the most coveted performance venue anywhere in the world. Once you arrive and go through the stage door, you are greeted with concert posters along the hallway of all the great artists that have performed there, the Beatles, Renee Fleming, Leonard Bernstein, Billy Holiday, Judy Garland, Duke Ellington etc. Anyone who was anyone in music has performed there and you really feel the energy, even in the dressing room! When you step on the stage, the hall looks magnificent and you really feel that your musical heroes are with you because they have performed on the same stage.”
She has made some amazing strides as she played with the Grammy nominated woodwind quintet, Imani Winds to being an honored guest with the International Contemporary Ensemble. Besides that she has also took part in numerous recital programs all around the Tri-State area. It is no wonder she had the opportunity to play at Carnegie Hall but she also graced the stages of David Geffen Hall, Symphony Space and Merkin Hall.
Amy is also a concert curator and presentor. She is the Artistic Director for International Chamber Orchestra of America, where she plans and curates concerts. It is a difficult process but she says it is the most rewarding. Her job is to locate a venue, develop the concepts and collaborate with designers, artists, select musicians, plan rehearsals, direct rehearsals and perform in the concert. It is a lot to do but she has managed to be successful every time. Her most recent collaboration was with the Sotheby International and fashion designer Sienna Li at the Crown of Manhattan penthouse.
Currently, she is in the planning stages of setting up an all-female-led new chamber music collective based on collaborating with artists from other disciplines. Amy is a unique talent playing an instrument that few take notice of yet is one of the most important within any concert. Catch her when you can to take in her amazing sound.