DONGMIN KIM music director/conductor
DAXUN ZHANG leader/double bass
ROBIN SCOTT concertmaster/violin
DAVID SOUTHORN violin
EMILY SMITH violin
SIWOO KIM violin
KATIE HYUN violin
JINA CHOI violin
MARIE-EVE POUPART violin
ANDY LIN viola
BRENTON CALDWELL viola
SUNGHEE CHOI viola
BROOK SPLETZ cello
PETR SPACEK cello
SE-DOO PARK cello
KRIS SAEBO double bass
Brook Speltz, born in Los Angeles, graduated from the Curtis Institute of Music in 2009, following studies with Peter Wiley and Carter Brey.
As a soloist, Speltz has performed with the Curtis Chamber Orchestra, the Music Academy of the West Festival Orchestra, and the Mozart Orchestra of Laguna Beach, among others. He has appeared as recitalist at the Montecito Music Festival, Pacific Serenades, the New Music New Haven series and the Idyllwild Arts Festival.
Speltz has received top prizes in the Houston Symphony’s Ima Hogg Competition, ASTA National Competition and the LA Philharmonic Bronislaw Kaper Awards. He has performed at the Music Academy of the West, ENCORE Music and the Oregon Bach festivals. As a member of the Vuilliaume String and Ares String quartets, Speltz has participated in the BRAVO Vail Valley Music Festival, Music From Angel Fire as part of a quartet in residence, and the Marlboro Festival.
A regular performer with the Philadelphia Orchestra and San Diego Symphony, Brook is currently pursuing a diploma at the Juilliard School, studying with Joel Krosnick.
Wei-Yang Andy Lin, recognized as one of the most promising young violists of today, born in Taiwan, is currently a Doctoral Candidate at the Stony Brook University.
He holds his Bachelor and Master’s Degree from The Juilliard School. He has won numerous competitions including the Taiwan National Viola Competition, the Idyllwild Concerto Competition, Top Prize in the 2008 Juilliard Viola Concerto Competition and subsequently made his Avery Fisher Hall solo debut with the Juilliard Orchestra. He also won the 2009 Stony Brook University Concerto Competition.
Mr. Lin is currently a member of the award winning string quartet, the Amphion String Quartet and currently serves as principal violist of the Carnegie Ensemble and the New York Classical Players. He is also the artistic director of the New Asia Chamber Music Society.
BRENTON CALDWELL viola
Since beginning viola studies at the age of twelve, Brenton Caldwell has performed throughout the US, Canada, Europe, and Japan.
Brenton has received numerous awards including top prizes in the 2009 National Young Artist in Texas and the Watson Forbes International Viola Competition in Scotland. As a soloist he has performed with the Curtis and Banff chamber ensembles, and the East Texas Symphony Orchestra.
A dedicated chamber musician, he has appeared at the Amelia Island Chamber Music Festival, Music@Menlo, Banff, Ravinia, Verbier, Tanglewood, and the PMF. Brenton regularly performs with Roberto Díaz, Gary Graffman, Ida Kavafian, Menahem Pressler, and Eugenia Zukerman. He served as teaching assistant to Karen Tuttle, and has studied chamber music with Pam Frank, Joseph Silverstein, members of the Beaux Arts Trio and the Cavani, Cleveland, Guarneri, and Orion string quartets. He has worked with Kim Kashkashian and Nobuko Imai, and Tabea Zimmermann. Brenton is alum of the Academy, a program of Carnegie Hall, The Juilliard School, and the Weill Music Institute.
He earned his BM at the Cleveland Institute of Music with Jeffrey Irvine and Lynne Ramsey and an Artist Diploma from the Curtis Institute of Music with Roberto Díaz and Misha Amory.
New York City based violinist David Southorn is pursuing a versatile career as a soloist, chamber musician, and Concertmaster.
As a member of the Amphion String Quartet he will be performing this season at the MET and on the New School’s Schneider Concert Series in NYC. As soloist he has performed with the Fremont, Nova Vista and Portland Festival Symphonies. A passionate orchestra leader, Southorn will be Concertmaster in performances with the Delaware Symphony this November and will serve as guest Principal Second of the Miami Symphony this season.
He has appeared at numerous festivals, including the Banff Centre, Spoleto USA, Kneisel Hall, Tanglewood, Music@Menlo and most recently at the OK Mozart Festival and Chamber Music Northwest with the Amphion Quartet. David holds degrees from the Manhattan School of Music, Yale University and the San Francisco Conservatory.
Violinist Emily Daggett Smith is rapidly emerging as one of the most compelling artists of her generation.
In 2009, Ms. Smith won first place in the Juilliard concerto competition and made her New York concerto debut in Alice Tully Hall, with the Juilliard Orchestra.
As an active chamber musician, Ms. Smith has performed in venues around the world with such artists as Andrés Diaz, Claude Frank, Joseph Kalichstein, Orion Weiss and Eugenia Zukerman. Ms. Smith has performed at various festivals including the Seattle Chamber Music Society, Steans Institute, Banff Masterclasses, Kneisel Hall, and the NY String Orchestra Seminar. All of her performances from the Seattle Chamber Music Society have been broadcast live on Classical King FM. She has also appeared on PBS's national broadcast, Live from Lincoln Center, as well as twice on NPR's From the Top. As violist, she performed Mozart’s Sinfonia Concertante with violinist Stefan Jackiw and the New York Classical Players.
Ms. Smith received her Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from The Juilliard School. Ms. Smith has performed as Concertmaster of the Juilliard Orchestra under the direction of DePreist, Slatkin, and Tilson-Thomas. Her teachers have included Ronald Copes, Nick Eanet, Joel Smirnoff, Laurie Smukler, Masuko Ushioda, and Donald Weilerstein.
Siwoo Kim is a multifaceted artist active in solo, chamber and orchestral settings.
In 2011, Kim won the Juilliard Concert Competition and has appeared as solo violinist with the Juilliard Orchestra at the Stern Auditorium in Carnegie Hall. He also took first prize at the Sejong Music and Columbus Symphony Young Musician competitions; was awarded the Elaine Louise Lagerstorm Violin Award at the WAMSO Young Artist Competition; and placed second at the Corpus Christi International Competition, where he was awarded special prizes for the Best Performance of Bach and Best Violin Performance. He also won the Crescendo Music Awards, the Hellam Young Artist Competition, and the Ima Hogg Young Artist Competition among others. Additionally, he has received scholarships from the National Federation of Music Clubs, the Korean-American Scholarship Foundation, the Rachel Barton-Pine Foundation and the NFAA Young ARTS Awards.
His concerto engagements included with the Columbus and Westerville, Tulsa and Springfield symphony orchestras. He also has appeared on the popular NPR’s From The Top.
As a full scholarship recipient, he is currently an undergraduate student at the Juilliard School where he studies under Donald Weilerstein and Ronald Copes. Previous teachers include Robert Mann and Roland & Almita Vamos. Kim performs on a G. B. Guadagnini, on generous loan from The Juilliard Collection.
Violinist Katie started violin at the age of five and made her recital debut in 1994. She has performed as a soloist with the Houston Symphony, Dallas Chamber orchestra, Concerto Soloists Orchestra in Philadelphia, the Philadelphia Orchestra, and "Up Close and Musical," a string orchestra composed of members of the Colorado Symphony.
Winner of the Philadelphia Orchestra Albert M. Greenfield Student Competition, she has also won the Stony Brook Concerto Competition, Aspen Academy Orchestra Concerto Competition, and Houston Symphony League Competition among many others. Katie has appeared on the television program "Good Morning Texas," and "Prairie Home Companion", NPR, with bassist Nathan Farrington. In 2006, she was invited by bassist Edgar Meyer to collaborate with him at the Laguna Beach Chamber Music Festival and she also participated in his Carnegie Hall Workshop. During the summers, she has attended Encore School for Strings, Kneisel Hall, Music Academy of the West, Aspen, Taos Festival of Music, Music@Menlo, Yellow Barn, and Masterclass at Apeldoorn.
Bassist Kris Saebo is chamber musician, recording artist, and teaching artist. Kris enjoys playing in a variety of musical forms: classical, contemporary, folk, and funk.
He is a member of Ensemble ACJW, SONYC, The Carnegie Ensemble, The Chris Norman Ensemble, and performs regularly with Wordless Music Orchestra, Argento Chamber Ensemble, and Grammy Award-Winner Paul Halley.
In 2008, Kris Saebofinished a two year residency teaching and playing chamber music with The Academy-a program of Carnegie Hall, The Juilliard School, and The Weill Music Institute. He teaches bass privately and in Manhattan at Bloomingdale School of Music.
Kris Saebo received his Master and Bachelor of Music Degrees from the Juilliard School in 2006 as a student of Orin O'Brien and in 2004 as a student of Homer Mensch.
Jina Choi is internationally active as an orchestral musician, chamber player, and soloist. She has appeared as a soloist with the Budapest Chamber Orchestra, the Pucheon Philharmonic, the Greater Newburgh Symphony Orchestra and the Hwaum Chamber Orchestra, and has given numerous solo and chamber music recitals across the United States. She is one of the solo violinists of the Sonata da Chiesa, a chamber group based in the Tri-State area.
Jina has held several concertmaster positions including in the Ridgewood Symphony Orchestra, New York Symphony Orchestra, Pucheon Philharmonic, the PMF Orchestra (Japan), the Mannes Orchestra, and the Greater Newburgh Symphony.
She has won numerous competitions in Ewha-Kyunghyang, Korean Music Festival for Youth, Yeum Chamber Music and Mannes Chamber Music Competition, and was invited to join the Honolulu Symphony Orchestra as a competition winner for the season in 2006-2007.
Jina Choi completed her undergraduate study and Masters degree at Seoul National University, and the Professional Study Diploma at the Mannes College of Music. Her past instructors include Michelle Kim, Namyoon Kim, Jong-Sook Lee, Ik-Hwan Bae. She is currently pursuing her doctoral study with Arnold Steinhardt at Rutgers University under a full scholarship.
Petr Spacek began playing the cello at the age of six. From 2003-2008, he studied in the Prague Conservatory with Vladan Koci. Petr has also studied with Rafael Walfish, Richard Aaron, Miroslav Petras, Josef Spacek, Jana Rostecka, Renata Strasrybkova, Vaclav Horak and William Grub. Currently, he is a student of Laurence Lesser at the New England Conservatory in Boston.
Petr has extensive performance experience as a chamber musician. He recorded a CD for NHK and toured Japan in the fall of 2007 with his brother, Josef Spacek, and pianist, Marek Sedivy. Petr also regularly plays in a piano trio with his brother and pianist, Lukas Vondracek. In addition, he frequently performs duets with pianist Nataliya Marfynets. Petr is a founding member of the Starling Quartet and the Prague Cello Quartet. In February 2006, he was accepted into the European Union Youth Orchestra, which toured Europe under the direction of Vladimir Ashkenazy.
Petr has also won several competitions and scholarships. Most recently, he received the grand prize at the International Radio Competition Concertino Praga. As a result, he was invited to perform as a soloist with the Czech Radio Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Vladimír Válek. Additionally, in spring 2008, Petr performed with Bohuslav Martinů Philharmonic Orchestra at the Talentinum festival in Czech Republic. In 2006 and 2007, he received a scholarship to attend the International Music Academy in Pilsen. Past summer, Petr received a full scholarship and fellowship to participate in the Aspen Music Festival.
Violinist Robin Scott has competed internationally, winning 1st prizes in the California International Young Artists Competition and the WAMSO Young Artist Competition, and 2nd Prizes in the Yehudi Menuhin International Violin Competition, the Irving M Klein International String Competition, and the Stulberg International String Competition.
As a soloist he has appeared with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, the Orchestre National de Lille (France), the Springfield (OH) Symphony Orchestra, and the Carmel Symphony Orchestra and others. He has performed extensively with Indiana University's (IU) "Violin Virtuosi," past performances including two French tours and one in Carnegie's Weill Hall. He has given numerous recitals and performances throughout the United States and France, in such venues as Weill Hall and the Schubert Club in Minneapolis.
Also an avid chamber musician, he has performed at the Kennedy Center, the Library of Congress, Jordan Hall in Boston, and has attended the Marlboro Music Festival, Ravinia Festival's Steans Institute for Young Artists, the Yellow Barn Festival, the Maine Chamber Music Festival and others.
Scott is currently a student of Donald Weilerstein, Kim Kashkashian, and Garth Knox at the New England Conservatory (NEC) in Boston. He recently received his Bachelor's Degree with Prof. Miriam Fried at NEC, where he was the recipient of the Presidential Award. In 2006, he completed an Artist Diploma at IU, also under the tutelage of Prof. Miriam Fried. Previously he was a student of Mimi Zweig at IU's preparatory program.
Scott plays on a Vuillaume violin generously lent to him by the Marlboro Festival.
Grand prize winner of the National Music Competition of Korea, the Korean TV-Radio Competition, Kiwanis Music Competition, Academy Symphony Orchestra Competition, and Indiana University Cello Competition, Se-Doo Park's performances have been nationally broadcasted in Canada. Having made her orchestral debut with In-Eum Symphony of Seoul, Korea at age 15, Ms. Park has also appeared as a soloist with Indiana University Concert Orchestra, Academy Symphony Orchestra, and Oakwood Symphony Orchestra.
Ms. Park has appeared at numerous music festivals including Sarasota, Aspen, Banff, Meadowmount, Centre d'arts Orford, and Le Domaine Forget, all on scholarhsip.
An avid Chamber musician, Ms. Park has collaborated with violinist Espen Lilleslatten, Renata Arado, Wen-Lei Gu, and clarinetist Bil Jackson. She has premiered numerous chamber music, and continues to perform actively in and out of Canada and USA. Ms. Park's mentors include Bryan Epperson, Miriam Fried, Charles Neidich, Menahem Pressler, Sharon Robinson, and Tsuyoshi Tsutsumi.
Born in Monterey, California, Ms. Park grew up in both Korea and Canada, and started playing the cello at age 8. She has been educated at Indiana University, Royal Conservatory of Music of Canada, Seoul Arts High School. Ms. Park is currently pursuing her master's degree at The Juilliard School under the tutelage of cellist Timothy Eddy on scholarship where she obtained her bachelor from with full scholarship.
In this coming summer, Ms. Park will partake in the Ravinia Festival in Illinois and will be giving chamber concerts in New York, London, and Berlin.
A native of South Korea, Sunghee Choi made her solo debut with the Seoul Symphony Orchestra at the age of 12. She also soloed with the Sunhwa Symphony Orchestra in 1996. After graduated from Seoul National University in 2002, and continued her studies at New England Conservatory where she holds a Master of Music and Graduate Diploma. She is currently pursuing her doctoral degree from Rutgers University where she is the recipient of the Arnold Steinhardt Scholarship, and served as concertmaster of the Rutgers Symphony Orchestra. Choi has won numerous honors while studying in the US, including the Rutgers Symphony Concerto Competition, Plowman Chamber music Competition, Kumho Young Artists Award, Korean-American Young Artists Competition, and Nanpa Awards for Strings.
Most recently, Choi won a position at Grant Park Music Festival Orchestra, and also coveted substitute position with the Philadelphia Orchestra and the Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia. Choi performed at the Boston Philharmonic, Atlantic Symphony Orchestra in Boston and New York Asian Symphony Orchestra, the New World Symphony Orchestra, Princeton Symphony Orchestra, Symphony in C orchestra, and Philharmonic of the Americas.
She has participated in a number of music festivals such as Beethoven Institute at New School, Sarasota Chamber Music Festival, Heifetz Institute, Spoleto Music Festival, Kuhmo(Finland) Chamber music Festival, and Music Alps(France). She has participated for the master classes with Pinchas Zukerman, Josef Silverstein, Ani Kavafian, Pamela Frank, and Mauricio Fuks. She has studied with Arnold Steinhardt, CJ Chang, James Buswell, Lisa Kim, Ik-Hwan Bae, and Min Kim.
Marie-Ève Poupart is regarded as one of Canada’s most promising young violinists. She began studying the violin at the age of four and went on to work with Angèle Dubeau, Anne Robert and Johanne Arel. She has also taken lessons from Maxim Vengerov, Pinchas Zukerman, Igor Oistrakh, Maurcio Fuks, and Aaron Rosand. In 2007, she received her diploma with honors from the Conservatoire de musique in Montréal.
Ms Poupart has also won numerous prizes and awards, including the Canadian Music Competition, the Orchestre symphonique de Trois- Rivières competition, the Repentigny Music Competition and the Joseph McAbbie Foundation. Marie-Ève Poupart is also the recipient of the 2008 Peter Mendell Prize by the Jeunesses Musicales of Canada Foundation.
She has appeared as soloist with the Amati Ensemble, the Montreal Symphony, and the Metropolitan Orchestra of Greater Montreal among others. As concertmistress, she performed the opening concert of the Montreal Symphony’s 2007-2008 season conducted by Kent Nagano. Currently she is on the Artist diploma program studying Pamela Frank at the Peabody Institute.
Yoo-Jin Cho currently is continuing her Master’s studies at the Juilliard School under Donald Weilerstein, and also Naoko Tanaka. She has been nominated to serve the Juilliard Orchestra as a concertmaster in the year of 2009.