International Cellist Finds Freedom & Strength in the United States

(Ben Hong | Photo courtesy of High Desert Chamber Music)

On Friday, May 5, Los Angeles Philharmonic Associate Principal Cellist Ben Hong will make his Bend debut in recital with pianist Ning An at 7:30pm at the Tower Theater in the concluding concert of High Desert Chamber Music’s 15th season.

Ben was born in Taiwan and grew up in a musical family. His father had wanted to be a musician but he had eight younger siblings and he didn’t want the family to spend their limited resources on private lessons. Ben’s dad wanted to give him the chance he never had and started music lessons for Ben when he turned nine. When trying to decide what kind of instrument to play, Ben’s mom visited a clairvoyant and she said he’s going to play this “big violin thing” and he’ll go abroad to study. She turned out to be right!

When Ben was growing up, there was a lot of tension between China and Taiwan. There was even shelling from time to time. Taiwan was under martial law. Boys over the age of 12 were not allowed to leave the country. Having only started cello lessons at the age of nine, Ben’s mother didn’t think he’d be good enough to leave the country before being forced to stay. But Ben practiced intensely and won a national competition at age 12 which gave him an exception to leave the country to study.

When Ben was 13 he moved to New York City without his parents. They sent him to live with former colleagues for the next five years. Ben continued his studies at Juilliard pre-college through high school.

In high school one day Ben was listening to a recording of the Elgar Cello Concerto and Tchaikovsky’s Rococo Variations; he loved the playing. It was Lynn Harrell. In an incredible turn of events, Lynn became Ben’s teacher when he went to play for Lynn during Ben’s senior year of high school. Harrell was teaching at USC at the time.

Ben moved west and became one of the youngest members of the LA Philharmonic when he won a seat in the cello section when he was 23. Six months later he won the Assistant Principal seat.

In addition to his regular orchestral performances, Ben has also established himself as a musical leader within Los Angeles. He performed as part of a memorial to Kobe Bryant during the Los Angeles Lakers first home game after the late basketball star had passed away. As Ben described on a recent call, “My role as a musician is that I’m trying to keep and nurture the good side of humanity by making music. This country gave me freedom of thought and speech and gave me the opportunity to grow as a person and musician. When the Lakers asked me to play the national anthem it made me stop and think. I’m truly so appreciative of this country.”

In Bend, Ben will be playing an extraordinary program including the Rachmaninov Cello Sonata and Shostakovich Cello Sonata in addition to a few smaller pieces. These two giants of the cello canon are sure to make a thrilling evening.

Please join us on Friday, May 5, at 7:30pm at the Tower Theatre. This concert is brought to you by Hayden Hones. Tickets are available through High Desert Chamber Music by phone or online.