Discover
Jennifer Koh named “2016 Instrumentalist of the Year” by Musical America
Cedille Records extends our congratulations to Jennifer Koh who was jusy named “ 2016 Instrumentalist of the Year” by Musical America. Since 1960, the Musical America Awards have been “recognizing artistic excellence and achievement in the arts.” Past award winners include Leonard Bernstein, Itzhak Perlman, and Riccardo Muti. In its award announcement, Musical America praises Koh as an “all-time original” and a prolific artist:
In the last decade alone, [Koh] has commissioned and/or premiered nearly 40 works; produced and hosted the initial episodes of Off Stage On Record, a web series on life as a concert artist; taken her “Music Messenger” series into thousands of classrooms across the country; and launched two performance/recording series—Bach and Beyond and Two x Four—that juxtapose the music of J.S. Bach with 20th and 21st-century works.
A native of Glen Ellyn, Illinois, Koh received her pre-college musical training in greater Chicago. Her modern interpretations of classical music have made her an important representative of Chicago’s musical community, and we could not be prouder that she is a longstanding member of the Cedille family.
The annual Musical America Awards will be presented in a special ceremony at Carnegie Hall on Tuesday, December 8.
Recommended
Commissioned by Cedille Records specially for our 2025 Emerging Artist Competition winner, oboist Oliver Talukder, as a companion for his Briefly Gorgeous album, Powder is a two-track single of Two Songs for voice, oboe/English horn, and piano by Delfin Demiray, who was Talukder’s classmate at the Curtis Institute of Music. The first song features Chicago mezzo, Sophia Maekawa, while Talukder performs the second song’s special effect and extended technique-infused vocal line himself (as an “overdub”), demonstrating yet another facet of his artistry.
Winner of Cedille Records’ 2025 Emerging Artist Competition, Chicago-born oboist Oliver Talukder makes his solo recording debut with Briefly Gorgeous. Joined by pianist Moriah Trenk, Talukder presents an album inspired by themes of identity, love, family, and belonging. Drawing on his Mexican and Bengali heritage and his Chicago upbringing, the program explores where classical music intersects with Latino and South Asian traditions, creating a musical portrait shaped by Talukder’s unique story.
With the new month comes a new featured playlist on Spotify — or, in this case, a refresh of our Artist Debuts on Cedille playlist, originally created in 2022 to celebrate the inaugural album by the first Emerging Artist Competition winner, saxophonist Julian Velasco.
The update is to celebrate oboist Oliver Talukder, winner of Cedille’s second competition, as well as other artists who have made their Cedille debus since 2022. (Oliver’s track will be added on Friday when his album, Briefly Gorgeous, is released.)
Enjoy Cedille’s Weekly Featured Release.