Three Curtis Faculty Members Illuminate the Unusual with Penderecki's Concerto Grosso

Listeners will find it easy to get lost in Krzysztof Penderecki’s dark, vividly written Concerto Grosso No. 1 for Three Cellos.

The moody work constantly shifts between agitated solo cadenzas, unison passages, and orchestral melodies—sometimes within the span of a few measures. A nod to the Baroque concerto grosso form, Penderecki conceived it as an intense and dynamic conversation between the soloists and orchestra.

The fact that it’s scored for three of the same instruments makes the 35-minute piece even more unusual.

“It’s almost unsettling—you can truly get lost in who’s playing what,” says Curtis cello faculty member Nicholas Canellakis (’06). “We each get our own cadenza, but then we come together for this tonal choral with all three of us and the orchestra. There’s no real delineation between the parts.”

This Saturday, October 11, audiences can experience this first-hand as Canellakis joins fellow faculty members and alumni Yumi Kendall (’04) and Christine Jeonghyoun Lee (’13) to perform the piece with Curtis Symphony Orchestra, led by James Ross (’89). The program also features Samuel Barber’s (’34) Overture to The School for Scandal and Bruckner’s Symphony No. 3 in D minor.

Below, read on for more insights from Canellakis, Kendall, and Lee on the piece, their collaborative process, and what continues to inspire them as performers and teachers.

Like other works in concerto grosso format, Penderecki’s Concerto Grosso for Three Cellos features you each as soloists—and playing in tandem with each other. How has this duality influenced your process collaborating to perform the piece?

Nick Canellakis: For me, what’s most present in this piece is it’s unfamiliar—not many people have played it. It’s also highly unusual to have three of the same instruments performing together. There’s no delineation between the three parts. We’re constantly altering who’s playing the top, middle and bottom voices. If you close your eyes while listening, you honestly can’t tell who is playing what.

Christine Jeonghyoun Lee: None of us have played the piece before, so making it come alive has been real teamwork. Because there’s this built in dialogue between the three solo parts, we copy each other—but each of us still play our own solo part. So, there’s individuality but also a conversational element.

“I love the communication aspect. As performers, there’s this trust amongst each other that makes it special. I think that creates an energy everyone in the room can sense” —Christine Jeonghyoun Lee

Is there an aspect of the piece or your work together that continues to inspire you? 

Canellakis: It has this modernistic edge but also these incredible moments of tonal beauty. There’s this oscillation between tonal romanticism and rocked out, almost tribal elements—those parts are really cool. I think Penderecki’s closest spirit composer is Shostakovich. I’m eager in a way I haven’t been for a concerto performance in a long time. So often, I’m performing pieces I’ve played since I was a kid.

Yumi Kendall: What I love about this piece is it’s given me another chance to know Penderecki’s language. The way he writes feels so good on the cello. His patterns and motivic language are consistent—the way the fingers work backwards on the fingerboard, whether it’s fast or slow. He has this really unique motivic style that makes it feel like his own language. It feels like a Polish Shostakovich.

What makes this piece stand out? Why is it meaningful to listen to, learn about, and celebrate?

Lee: Penderecki is celebrating multi-cultural language. He’s Polish, but his musical language was influenced by composers like Anton Webern, John Cage, and Stravinksy, so there’s so much that goes into his music. It’s a reminder how connected we all are. If there’s a way we can all pause to reflect on that, I think that’s really powerful. And I think that’s what music does best.

At Curtis, we believe in learning by doing, encouraging our students to prioritize experiences that help them grow. In what ways does this philosophy show up in your own work, as a performer and a faculty member?

Kendall: Interestingly enough, the structure of this piece is analogous to our teaching philosophy at Curtis. We all teach private lessons, but most of us all share students, as well. We’re coordinated and connected—we even have a shared form to update each other on students’ major questions and goals. These layers of collaboration are mirrored in how this piece is written: We each play our part but also play together.

Lee: We learn how to practice through conversations and sharing perspectives. So, I go into lessons to share my experience and give students a platform to be heard. It’s not: I’m a teacher and you’re a student. We are doing this together. We’re serving the music together.

Join Canellakis, Kendall, and Lee this Saturday, October 11 at 3 p.m. for the Curtis Symphony Orchestra’s first concert of the 2025–26 series. Learn more and purchase tickets here.