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Guest Artists 2026-2027 |
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| PIANO | ||
| Charles Berofsky—equally at home as a pianist and composer—seeks to engage audiences through a myriad of styles and genres of music. From a musical family, he enjoys playing as pianist of the Berofsky Piano Quartet. Raised in Ann Arbor, Michigan, he began piano lessons at the age of 6, developed an interest in composition from young, and started organ lessons at age 14. He has been a prizewinner at international piano competitions such as Campillos (1st Prize and Orchestra Prize), New York (3rd Prize as solo performer and 1st prize for the piano 4-hands ensemble), and Thousand Islands (1st Prize). His festival participation includes the Lieven Foundation in Vienna, Music Acedemy of the West, Taos, Mozarteum, Orford, Chautauqua, and Bowdoin. Charles also won piano competitions at Eastman and the New England Conservatory, where he received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees, respectively. He is currently studying with Antti Siirala at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater München. His past teachers include HaeSun Paik, Alan Chow, and Logan Skelton. ~ www.charlesberofsky.com |  |
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| Pianist-composer Michael Stephen Brown has been hailed by the Chicago Tribune for “working wonders at the keyboard” and the New York Times called him “one of the leading figures in the current renaissance of performer-composers.” Winner of the 2026 Andrew Wolf Award and a recent fellow at both the MacDowell and Yaddo artist colonies, he is also a recipient of Lincoln Center’s Emerging Artist Award and an Avery Fisher Career Grant. Michael performs recitals and concertos worldwide and receives commissions from leading orchestras, performers, and chamber music festivals. Some career highlights include a solo recital at Alice Tully Hall for the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, concerts with his longtime duo partner, cellist Nicholas Canellakis, and collaborations with violinist Pinchas Zuckerman. His recent compositions include The Carnival of Endangered Wonders: A Zoological Fantasy, a large-scale chamber work, and the symphonic American Diaries, which draws inspiration from words by Maya Angelou, Langston Hughes, and his own grandfather’s World War II diary. Michael earned dual degrees in piano and composition from Juilliard, and is an alum of CMS’s Bowers Program. He resides in New York City with his two 19th-century Steinway D pianos, Octavia and Daria. ~ www.michaelbrownmusic.com Photo by Neda Navee |
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| Janice Carissa, from Indonesia, has been praised as “masterful” by the San Diego Tribune and having a “fleet-fingered touch that is particularly impressive,” as well as for her artistry that “conveys a vivid story rather than a mere showpiece” by the Chicago Classical Review. In 2022 she was named a Gilmore Young Artist and won a Salon de Virtuosi award in 2018. Her sparkling performances have captivated audiences in venues such as the Sydney Opera House, Louis Vuitton Fondation, Carnegie Hall, Kennedy Center, and Millennium Park’s Jay Pritzker Pavilion. Following her Philadelphia Orchestra debut at age 16, she substituted for Andre Watts as soloist with Orpheus and went on to perform with many orchestras in the U.S. Deeply devoted to chamber music, Janice has appeared with Ravinia, on Caramoor’s Evnin Rising Stars, Bravo! Vail (as a piano fellow), Marlboro, Kneisel Hall, and North Shore festivals, performing with artists such as Vadim Gluzman, Pamela Frank, and Paul Neubauer. She has also been featured on WXQR and NPR’s From the Top. In Indonesia, Janice performed for the President at the Presidential Palace in Jakarta, and for Lady Dewi Sukarno in Bali. Together with her brother Ryan Ferguson, she played a duo recital in the “Fantastic Sound of Two Pianos” at the Sydney Opera House in 2011. Born in Surabaya, Janice first studied with her mother at age 5 and entered Curtis at age 15 in 2013, studying with Gary Graffman. She earned her master’s at Juilliard as a Kovner Fellow under Robert McDonald. ~ janicecarissa.com ~ janicecarissa.com |  |
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| Fei Fei, born in Shenzhen, China, is a winner of the Concert Artists Guild and a top finalist at the 14th Van Cliburn competitions. Praised by the Plain Dealer for her “bountiful gifts and passionate immersion into the music she touches,” she continues to build a reputation for her poetic interpretations, charming audiences with her “passion, piquancy and tenderness” and “winning stage presence” (Dallas Morning News). As as concerto soloist, she has performed with many orchestras in the U.S., Hong Kong, China, and Germany. Her festival participations include Bravo, Lake George, and Music@Menlo; and as a recitalist, she has played on the Dame Myra Hess and Gilmore Rising Stars series, at the Warsaw Philharmonic Hall, Auditorio Nacional de Madrid, and the Louvre. Fei-Fei was showcased in the documentary, Virtuosity, about the 2013 Cliburn competition, which aired on PBS in 2015, and is a member of the Aletheia Piano Trio. ~ feifeipiano.com Photo by Lisa-Marie Mazzucco |  |
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| Anna Han—winner of 2nd prize at the 2023 Naumburg competition and 1st prize at the 2023 National Federation of Music Clubs Young Artist Auditions—strives to deliver heartfelt performances through a variety of classical styles. Her repertoire includes more than 30 compositions by living composers, many of them premiers; 20 concerti; and over 100 works for piano and strings. Her performances attempt to reveal truths of human emotions and help audiences experience music from all periods in their times. Recent highlights include performances at the Alte Oper in Frankfurt, Jordan Hall in Boston, and Lucerne Festival in Switzerland. And she has appeared in recitals with Steven Isserlis, Kim Kashkashian, and many others. Currently she is the Education Director of the Lunenburg Academy in Nova Scotia, where she was pianist in residence. She is also on the faculty of Yellow Barn’s Young Artist Program. Born in Arizona, Anna started piano lessons at age 5 with Fei Xu, her only teacher for 13 years. A masters graduate of Juilliard on a Kovner Fellowship under Robert McDonald, she then studied with Christopher Elton at the Royal Academy of Music in London, winning the Sterndale Bennett Prize. She later received her Artist Diploma from Barenboim-Said under Sir András Schiff and Schaghajegh Nostrati, and is now studying with Sir Schiff at the Kronberg Academy. ~ annahan.net |  |
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| Pianist Maxim Lando was lauded by Jay Nordlinger in the New Criterion as “a total musical being” and by Anthony Tommasini in the New York Times as displaying “brilliance and infectious exuberance” combined with “impressive delicacy” and “wild-eyed danger.” Among his winnings are the 2022 Vendome Prize, 2022 New York Franz Liszt Competition, 2018 YCA Auditions at age 16, and 2020 Gilmore Young Artist Award. His recital debuts held at Carnegie’s Zankel Hall and Kennedy Center Terrace Theater were hailed by the New York Times as concerts “You Won’t Want To Miss!” Maxim has filled in for and collaborated with Lang Lang on several occasions, including a 3-pianist performance of Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue with Lang Lang, Chick Corea, and the Philadelphia Orchestra for Carnegie Hall’s 2018 Opening Night Gala. As a soloist, he has performed in over 30 orchestras across the U.S. and Europe, appearing in major halls and festivals in the U.S., Europe, and Asia. Career highlights include playing for the historic opening of Steinway and Sons in Beijing, and performing Rachmaninoff’s 3rd Concerto with the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra in Madison for an outdoor audience of 50,000. Maxim is passionate about chamber music and unusual repertoire. His CD “Into Madness” with violinist Tassilo Probst, recorded by Bavarian Radio on Berlin Classics, was awarded a 2023 International Classical Music Award for the best chamber music recording of the year. ~ maximlando.com Photo by Matt Dine |
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| Drew Petersen has been praised for his “bejeweled articulation” by the Washington Post and the New York Times noted his “technique to spare. His commanding and poetic performances are displayed in repertoire ranging from Bach to Zaimont. A winner in the 2015 Leeds Competition, Drew is also a recipient of the 2018 Avery Fisher Career Grant and 2017 American Pianists Award. As a soloist, he performs with many orchestras in the U.S. In solo recital, he has appeared at the 92nd St Y, Kennedy Center, Gilmore Keyboard Festival, Dame Myra Hess Concerts, Lincoln Center’s Mostly Mozart Festival, and Ravinia Festival. On air, he has performed on McGraw-Hill Young Artists Showcase, From the Top, and Performance Today. His profiles have been featured in the New York Times, New York Magazine, and the documentary Just Normal by award-winning director Kim Snyder. A champion of chamber music, Drew has appeared on French radio’s France Musique while a member of a Verbier Festival piano trio. His first solo recording of music by American composers on the Steinway & Sons label was acknowledged by BBC Music Magazine. His appearance in Andrew Solomon’s New York Times bestselling book, Far From the Tree, sparked a nationwide conversation on raising extraordinary and different children. In 2006 he was named a Davidson Fellow for his portfolio entitled Keeping Classical Music Alive. Drew is a graduate of Harvard at age 19, cum laude, in social science, and of Juilliard on a Kovner Fellowship. A competitive swimmer, he continues his regular open water swims. ~ drewpetersenpiano.com Photo by Dario Acosta |  |
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Roman Rabinovich—praised by the New York Times for his “uncommon sensitivity and feeling”—is known for weaving intellect, curiosity, and spontaneity into performances that are as thought-provoking as they are emotionally resonant. He won the Rubinstein Competition in 2008 and a Salon de Virtuosi award. With a repertoire that spans 6 centuries from Byrd to Boulez and beyond, he has garnered critical acclaim for his performances throughout Europe and the U.S. in venues like Leipzig’s Gewandhaus, Cité de la Musique in Paris, and Carnegie Hall. As a soloist, he had performed with all the major orchestras in Israel, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Dohnányi Orchestra in Budapest, Prague Symphony, and Meininger Hofkapelle, to name a few. And he has collaborated with conductors such as Sir Roger Norrington, Zubin Mehta, and Ludovic Morlot. A passionate advocate for Haydn, Roman has performed full sonata cycles at the Lammermuir and Bath festivals and curated a Haydn Day at Wigmore Hall. His 2 acclaimed recordings on First Hand Records reveal a pianist of elegance, wit, and expressive insight. His debut CD of ballet music by Ravel, Prokofiev, and Stravinsky on the Orchid Classics label was likewise praised. An additional focus on Bach’s Goldberg Variations is accompanied by a 32-episode social media series exploring the work. Born in Tashkent and raised in Israel, Roman debuted with the Israel Philharmonic at age 10. He studied piano with his mother from the age of 6, and at the Rubin Academy in Tel Aviv. A graduate of Curtis and Juilliard, he was chosen by Sir András Schiff for his Building Bridges series. Roman now codirects ChamberFest Cleveland and ChamberFest West. Dubbed “a true polymath, in the Renaissance sense of the word” by Seen & Heard International, he is also a composer and visual artist. ~ www.romanrabinovich.net |
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| Swiss-born Spanish-Dutch pianist Albert Cano Smit has been praised for his “dazzling technical and emotional dexterity” by DNA, and Le Devoir called him “a moving young poet” and noted, “a superb musician has spoken.” Among his winnings are the 2019 YCA Auditions and First Prize at the 2017 Naumburg Competition. Acknowledged for his captivating performances, storytelling quality, and nuanced musicality, Albert has performed across Europe and the U.S., appearing as a soloist with numerous orchestras. Highlights include his recital at Fondation Louis Vuitton (streamed live globally), 4-hand performances of the Schubert Fantasy with pianist Jean-Yves Thibaudet in Los Angeles and Beverly Hills, and concerts across Germany and the U.S. with violinist William Hagen, with whom he recorded the CD Danse Russe. A passionate chamber musician, he has collaborated with the Ebène, Casals, Gerhard, Szymanowski, and Zemlinsky Quartets, Gary Hoffman and Lev Sivkov. And he has participated at the Rheingau festival and Wissembourg festival, where he has been in residence for 7 years. A polyglot who speaks 5 languages, Albert is a master’s graduate of Juilliard. When he was a boy, he spent 5 years singing with L’Escolania, the boys choir at the Benedictine abbey Santa Maria de Montserrat in Catalonia. ~ www.albertcanosmit.com |  |
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| Chelsea Wang—praised by the New York Times as an “excellent young pianist”—has won many awards including prizes at the Seoul, Washington, and New York International Piano competitions. She made her orchestral debut at the age of six and has performed as a soloist with the Fort Worth Symphony and Des Moines Symphony, among many others. As a chamber musician she has played with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, Manhattan Chamber Players, and Dame Myra Hess Series; and she is a 2-year Fellow of Ensemble Connect. Her numerous appearances have taken place at venues such as Carnegie Hall, Kennedy Center, Chamber Hall of the Warsaw Philharmonic, Seoul Arts Center, and Kaohsiung Weiwuying Center. Her festival participation includes Music@Menlo, Ravinia, Bravo!Vail, Tippet Rise, Angel Fire, Four Seasons, and Banff. She has also been heard on “What Makes It Great” with Rob Kapilow, NPR’s “From the Top,” and WQXR. Among the numerous musicians with whom she has collaborated are Peter Wiley, Roberto Diaz, Anne-Marie McDermott, Anton Nel, Bright Sheng, András Schiff, Richard Goode, Seymour Lipkin, and Miriam Fried. A native of West Des Moines, Iowa, Chelsea is a graduate of Curtis and Peabody, and is now pursuing a doctorate at Northwestern’s Bienen School. Her teachers include Ignat Solzhenitsyn, Leon Fleisher, and James Giles. ~ chelseawangpianist.com Photo by Ken Kubota |  |
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| Keyi Wang, at age 17, is already a laureate of prizes and awards. Raised in Hainan, China’s southernmost island, she started playing the piano at age 4 and played her first recital at age 8. In 2015 she won the Pearl-River Kayserburg and Steinway International Competition in China. Upon moving to New York in 2017, at age 10, she has attended Juilliard Pre-College and is a student of Hung-Kuan Chen and Tema Blackstone. She won First Prize at the 2018 Princeton Steinway Youth Piano Competition, Juilliard Concerto Competition, 2019 Steinway Junior Competition, the Juilliard-Bachauer Scholarship Competition, and the 2022 Juilliard Liszt Competition. Keyi also is a Scholar of the Artemisia Foundation, where she received a prize for outstanding artistry; a Lang Lang Foundation Young Scholar alumnus; and a 2022 scholarship recipient of the Chopin Foundation of the United States. Her festival participation includes Aspen and the Shanghai Conservatory Piano Festival. Keyi attends the Dwight School and was featured in its Global Concerts at Carnegie Hall and at Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Rose Hall. |  |
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William Wolfram, winner of the William Kapell, Naumburg, and Tchaikovsky competitions, is recognized as an artist who combines powerful Romantic instincts with a truly formidable command of the keyboard. Millions have seen him on public television, where he was prominently featured throughout the documentary of the 1986 Tchaikovsky Piano Competition. The noted piano authority Joseph Horowitz in his book, The Ivory Trade, characterizes him as a polished Romantic virtuoso, worthy of comparison to the young Van Cliburn and Vladimir Horowitz. Photo by Steve J Sherman |
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| VIOLIN | ||
| Joshua Brown has been praised for his unique musical voice and instincts. At his debut as soloist with the Cleveland Orchestra at the age of 15, ClevelandClassical reported that “Brown was spellbinding throughout his entire time on stage.” Since then he has performed with orchestras in the U.S. and Europe, including the Munich Radio Orchestra, Chicago Civic Orchestra, and ProMusica Chamber Orchestra, in concert halls such as the Kennedy Center, Carnegie Hall, and Severence Hall. He has made solo appearances on NPR’s “From the Top” and WFMT’s “Introductions;” and has been featured on WFMT and Fox5DC. He has also been featured in recitals on the Dame Myra Hess Series, Tchaikovsky Festival in Moscow, and Cincinnati’s Matinée Musicale. Joshua’s numerous winnings include the 10th Leopold Mozart Competition (at age 19); IX Tchaikovsky Competition for Young Musicians; and the Grand Prize at the 2016 ENKOR Competition. As a member of the Kairos String Quartet, Joshua won First Prize at the Barnett and Rembrandt competitions, and Gold Medals at the 2018 Fischoff competition. Joshua currently studies violin with Donald Weilerstein at the New England Conservatory. He plays a 1679 Pietro Guarneri on generous loan from the Stradivari Society of Chicago. ~ www.joshuabrownviolinist.com |  |
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| Violinist Jennifer Frautschi, two-time GRAMMY nominee and Avery Fisher Career Grant winner, has garnered worldwide acclaim as an adventurous musician with a wide-ranging repertoire. Equally at home with classic and contemporary music, her recent seasons have featured innumerable performances and recordings of works ranging from Brahms and Schumann to Berg and Schoenberg. She has also premiered several works composed for her by today’s prominent composers. Jennifer has performed as soloist with Pierre Boulez and the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Christoph Eschenbach and the Chicago Symphony at Ravinia, and at Wigmore Hall and Lincoln Center’s Mostly Mozart Festival, to name a few. Selected by Carnegie Hall for its Distinctive Debuts series, she made her New York recital debut in Weill Hall; and as part of the European Concert Hall Organization’s Rising Stars series, debuted at ten of Europe’s most celebrated concert venues, including the Salzburg Mozarteum, Vienna Konzerthaus, Amsterdam Concertgebouw, La Cité de la Musique in Paris, and Brussels’ Théȃtre Royal de la Monnaie. She has also appeared in recital and in chamber music at Ravinia, La Jolla, the Phillips Collection in D.C., Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, Beijing’s Imperial Garden, Monnaie Opera in Brussels, La Chaux des Fonds in Switzerland, and San Miguel de Allende Festival in Mexico. Her extensive discography includes several discs for Naxos, 3 widely-praised CDs for Artek, and 2 GRAMMY-nominated recordings with the Fred Sherry Quartet. Born in Pasadena, she began playing the violin at age 3, and has studied at Colburn, Harvard, the New England Conservatory, and Juilliard. She now teaches in the graduate program at Stony Brook University. Jennifer performs on the 1722 “ex-Cadiz” Stradivarius on generous loan from a private American foundation with support from Rare Violins in Consortium. ~ www.jenniferfrautschi.com |  |
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| William Hagen is the third prize winner of the 2015 Queen Elisabeth Competition (the highest ranking American since 1980). Having captured the attention of the Belgian press and public during the competition, he has been hailed as a “brilliant virtuoso…a standout” (The Dallas Morning News) with “an intellectual command of line and score, and just the right amount of power” (violinist.com), who “plays with an obvious and sincere love for the very act of music making” (North Texas Performing Arts News). He also won second prize at the 2014 Fritz Kreisler Competition. At age 22, he is already a seasoned performer on concert stages in the U.S. and abroad, and has played with conductors such as Marin Alsop, JoAnn Falletta, and Keith Lockhart. Recent performances include a tour of Belgium with the Orchestre Philharmonique Royal de Liège and Brussels Philharmonic. William has spent summers at Verbier in Switzerland, and at Aspen. A native of Utah, he began violin lessons at the age of four. At age 10, he studied with Robert Lipsett at the Colburn Community School, commuting to Los Angeles for lessons. William plays on an Andrea Guarneri violin made in Cremona, circa 1675. ~ www.williamhagen.com |  |
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| Violinist Stefan Jackiw is one of America’s foremost violinists, captivating audiences with playing that combines poetry and purity with an impeccable technique. Hailed by the Boston Globe for his “uncommon musical substance” that is “striking for its intelligence and sensitivity,” Stefan has appeared as soloist with the Boston, Chicago, New York, Philadelphia, and San Francisco symphony orchestras, among others. Recent highlights include his debut with the Cleveland Orchestra and Juraj Valcuha, with subsequent performances in Dallas, Detroit, and Luxembourg; performances of Prokofiev's Second Violin Concerto at Carnegie Hall with Mikhail Pletnev as part of a multi-city tour with the Russian National Orchestra; as well as performances with the St. Louis Symphony, Minnesota Orchestra, Indianapolis Symphony, Rotterdam Philharmonic under Yannick Nézet-Séguin, and Netherlands Radio Symphony with Ludovic Morlot at the Concertgebouw. In Asia, Stefan has appeared with the Tokyo Symphony and Seoul Philharmonic; he also toured Korea, playing chamber music with Gidon Kremer and Kremerata Baltica. In Australia, he toured with the Australian Chamber Orchestra play-directing Mendelssohn. Recital highlights include playing the complete Ives violin Sonatas with Jeremy Denk at Tanglewood and Boston’s Jordan Hall, and the performance of the complete Brahms violin sonatas, which he recorded for Sony. He also recently recorded the Beethoven Triple with Inon Barnatan, Alisa Weilerstein, Alan Gilbert and Academy of St. Martin in the Fields. Stefan has performed in numerous festivals and concert series such as Aspen, Ravinia, Caramoor, Schleswig-Holstein, New York’s Mostly Mozart, Philharmonie de Paris, and Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw. As a chamber musician, he has collaborated with the likes of Steven Isserlis, Yo-Yo Ma, and Gil Shaham, and forms a trio with Jay Campbell and Conrad Tao. At the opening night of Zankel Hall, Stefan was the only young artist invited to perform, playing alongside Emanuel Ax, Renée Fleming, Evgeny Kissin, and James Levine. Born to physicist parents of Korean and German descent, Stefan Jackiw began playing the violin at the age of 4. His teachers include Zinaida Gilels, Michèle Auclair, and Donald Weilerstein. He holds a B.A. from Harvard and an Artist Diploma from the New England Conservatory, and is the recipient of an Avery Fisher Career Grant. Stefan plays a violin made in 1750 in Milan by G.B. Guadagnini, on generous loan from a private collection. He lives in New York City. ~ www.stefanjackiw.com |  |
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| First-Prize winner of the 2023 Elmar Oliveira International Violin Competition, prizewinner of the 2018 Menuhin Competition held in Geneva, and Violin Channel’s “Rising Star” Hina Khuong-Huu has been playing the violin since the age of three. Hina has performed as a soloist with the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra, Chamber Orchestra of Geneva, Flanders Symphony Orchestra, Mittel Europa Orchestra, and the Musica Mundi Orchestra, and she was recently a recipient of the Salon De Virtuosi Career Grant. Additional concert highlights have included a performance of Sarasate’s Navarra at the Juilliard Pre-College Division’s Centennial Gala with her sister Fiona and a performance with Maxim Vengerov at Buckingham Palace for Princess Alexandra. Throughout the spring and summer of 2021, Hina worked with violinist Jennifer Koh in her “Alone Together” series, and she has appeared on the NPR radio show From the Top. A native of New York, Hina studies under Professor Li Lin at the Juilliard Pre-College and attends the Spence School. In the summers, she has studied with artists such as Itzhak Perlman at the Perlman Music Program, Shlomo Mintz at Crans Montana Classics in Switzerland, and Ivry Gitlis and Menahem Pressler in Belgium. ~ www.hinakhuonghuu.com |  |
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| Born in New York City, fourteen-year-old violinist Fiona Khuong-Huu is a recipient of the 2022 Arkady Fomin Scholarship Fund, along with the prestigious career grant award from Salon De Virtuosi. Additional accolades include first prize at the 2017 Grumiaux Competition; second prize at “Il Piccolo Violino Magico” in San Vito al Tagliamento, Italy; and third prize and best virtuoso interpretation at the 2019 Louis Spohr Competition. In 2019, Fiona and her sister Hina were invited to perform at Buckingham Palace, where they played Vivaldi’s Concerto for Four Violins with Maestros Maxim Vengerov and Marios Papadopoulos. Fiona has also been honored to perform for Juilliard’s Pre-College Centennial Gala at Alice Tully Hall, at the Bozar Concert Hall in Brussels with the Flanders Symphony Orchestra, and as a soloist with the Oxford Philharmonic, Musica Mundi, Mitteleuropa, and Juilliard Orchestras. Fiona has appeared on the NPR show From the Top on multiple occasions. Fiona studies the violin under Professor Li Lin, Kenneth Renshaw, and Stella Chen at the Juilliard Pre-College division, and she has taken lessons and masterclasses with artists such as Menahem Pressler, Ivry Gitlis, Shlomo Mintz, Maxim Vengerov, and Vadim Gluzman, among others. Fiona is a student at the Spence School in New York. ~ fionakhuonghuu.com |  |
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| Geneva Lewis, born in Auckland, has forged a reputation as a musician of consummate artistry whose performances speak from and to the heart. Lauded for “remarkable mastery of her instrument” (CVNC) and hailed as “clearly one to watch” (Musical America), Geneva won a 2022 Borletti-Buitoni Trust Award, 2021 Avery Fisher Career Grant, and Grand Prize of the 2020 Concert Artists Guild Competition. She was also named a Performance Today Young Artist in Residence, Musical America’s New Artist of the Month, and BBC Radio 3’s New Generation Artist. The Kiwi performs throughout the U.S. and Europe—after her solo debut at age 11 with the Pasadena POPS, she has appeared as soloist with many orchestras, such as Orpheus, Pasadena Symphony, and the Auckland Philharmonia. Recital highlights include performances at Wigmore Hall, Tippet Rise, Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, and Dame Myra Hess Concerts. Geneva is also a founding member of the Callisto Trio, a Bronze Medal winner at the Fischoff Competition. Her festival participation includes Marlboro, Ravinia, Perlman Chamber Music Workshop, Holland Music Sessions, Taos, and the Heifetz Institute. She plays a composite violin by G.B. Guadagnini, c1766, generously on loan from a Charitable Trust. ~ www.genevalewisviolinist.com Photo by Donald van Hasselt |  |
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| Lun Li, born in Shanghai, has been described as having an “admirable command of all the possibilities of the bow, and uses it with delightful musical sense” by a Ludwig van Montréal critic. He is a First Prize winner in the 2021 Young Concert Artists Auditions, as well as the Paul A. Fish Memorial Prize and Buffalo Chamber Music Society Prize, and was named the John French Violin Chair at YCA. He is also the joint First Prize winner at the recent Lillian and Maurice Barbash J.S. Bach Competition. Traveling between Shanghai and Philadelphia has brought him experience and honor. In 2012, as a result of winning second place at the 2nd Haydn Chamber Music Competition in Shanghai, his quartet was invited to perform at the Helsinki Music Centre Festival. His festival appearances include Marlboro, Music@Menlo, Music from Angel Fire, and Verbier. Lun recently graduated from Curtis with a bachelor’s degree under Ida Kavafian, on a Jean Sterne fellowship; he is now pursuing a master’s degree at Juilliard, studying with Catherine Cho and Joseph Lin. ~ www.lunliviolin.com Photo by Tam Photography |  |
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| Stefan Milenkovich is recognized internationally for both exceptional artistry and his life-long commitment to humanitarianism. Winner of the Indianapolis, Paganini, Tibor Varga, Queen Elisabeth, Yehudi Menuhin, and Young Concert Artists competitions, he has performed for President Reagan, Mikhail Gorbachev and Pope John Paul II, and at the age of 16, played his 1000th concert in Monterrey, Mexico. Stefan was appointed a “Child Ambassador” and received the 2003 “Most Humane Person” award in Belgrade, Yugoslavia, the city of his birth. He is member of the Corinthian Trio ~ www.stefanmilenkovich.com |  |
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| Oliver Neubauer currently studies at Juilliard on a Kovner Fellowship in the studios of Itzhak Perlman and Li Lin. He had previously been at the Perlman Music Program and PMP Suncoast as a student of Perlman, Catherine Cho, and Sean Lee. A recipient of the Gold Award at the 2018 National YoungArts Competition, he is also winner of the 2017 Young Musicians Competition at the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. As a soloist, Oliver has appeared with the National Repertory Orchestra, Sound Symphony, and Symphony of Westchester. He has also performed at the Neue Galerie, American Museum of Natural History, Great Performers Series in Palm Beach, Weill Hall, and the Asian Cultural Center. His festival participation includes Mostly Music, La Jolla, Music@Menlo, Lake Champlain, Chamber Music Northwest, Brooklyn Chamber Music Society, Angel Fire, and Art in Avila in Curaçao. In 2013, Oliver made his debuts with the New York Philharmonic as the narrator for Britten’s Young Persons Guide to the Orchestra, and at Lincoln Center with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center’s Young Ensembles Concert. Outside of music, Oliver has competed in dozens of national chess tournaments. ~ www.oliverneubauer.com Photo by Jiyang Chen |  |
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| Julian Rhee is fast gaining recognition as an outstanding musician and performer in the U.S. Already a seasoned soloist, he made his debut with the Milwaukee Symphony at the age of 8, and has since performed with orchestras such as the Pittsburgh Symphony, Aspen Philharmonic, San Diego Symphony, Eugene Symphony, Madison Symphony, Wisconsin Philharmonic, and Avanti Symphony, among others. In June 2017, he toured across Argentina and Uruguay performing the Brahms Concerto. Venues where he has played include the Kennedy Center, Teatro El Círculo in Argentina, the Musikverein in Vienna, and Bartok Hall in Hungary. Julian has also appeared on NPR’s From The Top and WFMT’s Introductions. A laureate as well, he won First Prize at the 2020 Elmar Oliveira International Violin Competition, First Prize at the 2018 Johansen Competition; 2018 Aspen Violin Concerto Competition; 2nd Prize at the Irving Klein competition; and a 2018 Presidential Scholars in the Arts medal (received at the White House). An avid chamber musician, Julian’s performances on violin and viola earned him and his String Quartet First Prize at the 2018 Barnett and 2018 Rembrandt chamber music competitions, and Gold Medals at the Fischoff and M-Prize competitions. He is currently studying with Miriam Fried at the New England Conservatory. ~ www.julianrhee.com |  |
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| Josef Spacek, winner of the 2009 Michael Hill Violin Competition, was recently appointed Concertmaster of the Czech Philharmonic. As soloist he has appeared with numerous orchestras, including the Philadelphia Orchestra, Czech Philharmonic, Prague Philharmonia, Auckland Philharmonic, and the Russian Chamber Philharmonic. Also an avid chamber musician, Josef has performed with various ensembles and is a regular at music festivals, such as Bravo in Vail, Angel Fire, and the Moravian Autumn festivals. His recordings include the complete Ysaÿe sonatas for solo violin and works of H.W. Ernst. Josef was born in the Czech Republic. ~ www.josefspacek.com |  |
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| Danbi Um, a native of Seoul, Korea, captivates audiences with her virtuosity, individual sound, and interpretive sensitivity. She has been described as “utterly dazzling” by The Strad, and the New York Classical Review has noted her “superb technique” and “mesmerizing grace.” A Menuhin competition Silver Medalist, winner of the 2018 Salon de Virtuosi Career Grant, a top prizewinner of the 2018 Naumburg, and a winner of the 2015 Astral Artists Auditions, she showcases her artistry in concertos, recitals, and in collaboration with distinguished chamber musicians. As soloist, she has appeared with the Israel Symphony, Auckland Philharmonic, and the Vermont and Dartmouth Symphonies, among others. And she has performed at such venues as the Kennedy Center, Philadelphia’s Kimmel Center, Harris Theater in Chicago, and Tel Aviv Museum of Art. An avid chamber musician, Danbi is an artist member of Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center and violinist with the Escher String Quartet. She has also participated at such festivals as Moritzburg in Dresden, Marlboro, Ravinia, and Yellow Barn. A graduate of Curtis and Indiana University, Danbi started playing the violin at age 3, then moved to the U.S. in 2000 to continue her studies. She plays on a 1683 “ex-Petschek” Nicolo Amati on loan from a private collection. ~ www.danbium.com |  |
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| Keila Wakao has been praised for her “crystalline sound” by the Boston Globe and “special energy she brings to the stage,” captivating audiences with her exceptional musicality, technical command, and expressive depth. Her numerous honors include the 2026 Avery Fisher Career Grant, 2026 Schadt, 2023 Salon de Virtuosi, and the Gold Medal and Bach Prize at the 2021 Stulberg Competition. In 2017, she was invited to speak and perform at TEDxBoston. Keila’s major appearances include her Boston Symphony Orchestra debut at the 2024 Season Opening Night Gala and Tanglewood Festival debut in 2026 with the BSO, performing the Barber Violin Concerto. In the fall of 2026, she toured with Yo-Yo Ma in Taiwan and Japan, performing the Shostakovich Piano Trio No. 2. Keila was also the sole performer at the unveiling of Seiji Ozawa’s sculpture in Ozawa Hall at Tanglewood, and she premiered Bobby Ge’s Violin Concerto with the Albany Symphony, both in 2025. She made her solo debut with orchestra at age 9 and has since performed with orchestras in the U.S. and abroad. Born in Boston, Keila began playing the violin at age 3, followed by studies with Joseph Silverstein and Donald Weilerstein. She participated in the Perlman Music Program from 2018 to 2022, and is currently studying with Miriam Fried at the New England Conservatory on scholarship. Keila performs on the 1690 Cremona “Theodor” Stradivarius violin, on loan from the Ryuji Ueno Foundation and Rare Violins in Consortium.. ~ www.keilawakao.com | ||
| Hao Zhou from Southern California has been captivating audiences worldwide with his unique exuberance and unbridled enthusiasm. Described as “dynamic” and “striking” by the Los Angeles Times, he was the Grand Laureate of the 2019 Montreal competition. As a member of the Viano String Quartet, which he cofounded, he has also won First Prize at the 2019 Banff, Grand Prize at the ENKOR, and Third Prize at the Wigmore Hall competitions. An accomplished soloist and chamber musician, Hao made his debut with the Four Seasons Symphony performing Vivaldi’s Double Concerto at age 9. More recently, he has performed with the Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal, Colburn Orchestra, and Downey Symphony. Future engagements will feature a debut in Florence, Italy with the New Generations Festival, a recital debut in Switzerland, and an artist residency at Banff. During the pandemic, Hao was active with Viano (Ensemble-in-Residence at Colburn in 2019-2021), presenting numerous virtual concerts with various organizations. Dedicated to drawing audiences from outside of classical music, Viano has collaborated with actors and scriptwriters in a comedy theater show called “Over The Top,” and performed for thousands of elementary school children. Hao’s festival participation includes Kronberg, Ravinia, Norfolk, and Kneisel Hall, among others. A graduate of Colburn, he studied with Martin Beaver. Hao plays on a violin made in 1783 by Giuseppe and Antonio Gagliano, on generous loan from the Aftergood Family. ~ www.haozhouviolin.com |  |
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| Itamar Zorman, winner of the 2011 Tchaikovsky Competition and the 2010 Freiburg Violin Competition, has been cited by the press as a “virtuoso of emotions.” He has performed as soloist with conductor Valery Gergiev and the Mariinsky Orchestra, Philharmonie Baden-Baden and Jerusalem Symphony, among others; and has been featured on WQXR’s “Young Artist Showcase” and performed a solo recital broadcast by Radio France at the Festival de Radio France in Montpellier. Itamar plays on a 1737 Pietro Guarneri violin from the private collection of Yehuda Zisapel. ~ www.itamarzorman.com |  |
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| VIOLA | ||
| Violist Paul Neubauer’s exceptional musicality and effortless playing led the New York Times to call him “a master musician.” He recently made his Chicago Symphony subscription debut with conductor Riccardo Muti and his Mariinsky Orchestra debut with conductor Valery Gergiev. He also gave the U.S. Premiere of the newly discovered Impromptu for viola and piano by Shostakovich with pianist Wu Han. In addition, his recording of the Aaron Kernis Viola Concerto with the Royal Northern Sinfonia was released on Signum Records, and his recording of the complete viola and piano music by Ernest Bloch with pianist Margo Garrett was released on Delos. Appointed principal violist of the New York Philharmonic at age 21, he has appeared as soloist with over 100 orchestras including the New York, Los Angeles, and Helsinki Philharmonic orchestras; the National, St. Louis, Detroit, Dallas, San Francisco, and Bournemouth symphonies; and Santa Cecilia, English Chamber, and Beethovenhalle orchestras. He has premiered viola concertos by Bartók (revised version of the Viola Concerto), Friedman, Glière, Jacob, Kernis, Lazarof, Müller-Siemens, Ott, Penderecki, Picker, Suter, and Tower and has been featured on CBS’s Sunday Morning, A Prairie Home Companion, and in Strad, Strings, and People magazines. A two-time Grammy nominee, he has recorded on numerous labels including Decca, Deutsche Grammophon, RCA Red Seal, and Sony Classical. Mr. Neubauer performs with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center and is the artistic director of the Mostly Music series in New Jersey. He is on the faculty of The Juilliard School and Mannes College. ~ www.paulneubauer.com Photo by Rosalie O՚Connor |  |
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| SOPRANO | ||
| Korean-born soprano Hyunah Yu was a prizewinner at the 1999 Naumburg Competition and a finalist in both the Dutch International Vocal and Concert Artist Guild competitions. She also received the coveted Borletti-Buitoni Trust Award upon the nomination of pianist Mitsuko Uchida. Known particularly for her performances of the music of Bach, Hyunah appears regularly with esteemed conductors such as Valery Gergiev, David Zinman, Jaime Laredo, and Blanche Moyse; at well-known opera houses and festivals, and with orchestras throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia. A highlight of her career has been her title role in Mozart’s Zaide in New York, London, and Vienna under the direction of Peter Sellars, conducted by Louis Langrée. She is also an avid chamber musician and recitalist. Her debut CD on EMI was released in 2007, and of her two solo recitals recorded and broadcast for the BBC Voices program, one was named Radio 3’s Best of 2004. The Washington Post wrote that she was “absolutely captivating...with exceptional style and effortless lyrical grace. The audience, to judge by the general swooning, was helplessly in love by the end.” |  |
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