BIO:
Hailed as "exacting and exciting musicians" by the LA Times, the three sisters of the Ahn Trio (Lucia on the piano, Angella on the violin, and Maria on the cello) have earned a distinguished reputation for embracing 21st century classical music with their unique style and innovative collaborations.
In 2011, President Obama invited the Ahn Trio to perform at the White House for a State Dinner honoring South Korea.
The Ahn sisters were born in Seoul, Korea, and educated at the Juilliard School in New York City. Reflecting the two cultures they grew up in, the Trio brings a new energy and excitement to the chamber music world. Such luminary composers as Michael Nyman, Maurice Jarre, Pat Metheny, Paul Schoenfield, Mark O' Connor, Kenji Bunch, Nikolai Kapustin, and Paul Chihara have written works for them. The trio's latest CD, “Lullaby for My Favorite Insomniac” (released by Sony) is a showcase of their fearless creativity, which made No. 8 on the Billboard Charts for 26 weeks in the Classical album category.
In over ten years of touring, the Trio has performed in all 50 states and in over 30 countries, and has recorded six albums. The first, a recording of Ravel and Villa-Lobos trios brought rave reviews, with Audio Magazine praising "this is one of Ravel's best and never better played". The next EMI recording of trios by Dvorak, Suk, and Shostakovich, won Germany's prestigious ECHO Award. An MTV appearance on Bryan Adams' "Unplugged" inspired the trio to make "Ahn-Plugged" (EMI), and “Groovebox” (EMI) soon followed. The Trio recently formed LAMP (Lucia Angella Maria Productions), producing “Lullaby For My Favorite Insomniac”. This album led to a fruitful relationship with Sony. Meanwhile, the sisters made a joint album “Smetana” (Warner) with the Czech Grammy-winning rock group Tata Bojs.
Maria, Lucia and Angella thrive on dissolving the barriers between art forms. They have fused their work with a range of artists and musical genres, from dancers and lighting designers to DJ's. The Trio enjoyed their successful collaboration with the David Parsons Dance Company, touring extensively to critical acclaim. More recently, they performed in the Czech Republic with the Tata Bojs to sold-out shows. This season, the Trio is thrilled to add “March of the Gypsy Fiddler”, a Triple Concerto written for them by Mark O'Connor. They are also excited to be adding a collaborative project with the Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company. The Ahns frequently enjoy having guest artists join them on stage. Recent favorites include the Kin, a two-brother rock band from Australia, as well as electronic music artist Juno a.k.a Superdrive from Berlin. It is precisely this vitality and commitment to innovation that has the Ahn Trio continually drawing new audiences to classical music.
Possessing an enviable combination of talent and style, they have long been natural subjects for the press. The Ahns made their magazine debut early on, in Time Magazine's cover story 'Asian American Whiz Kids'. They have since gone on to frequent fashion pages of the likes of Vogue and GQ, photographed by such photographers as Arthur Elgort, Ellen von Unwerth, and Patrick Demarchelier. They have been featured in ad campaigns for GAP, Anne Klein and Bodyshop, among others. They have been named three of People Magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People and most recently made a one-page appearance in Glamour Magazine.
Dedicated to educating and inspiring the next generation of musicians, the Ahns hold master classes and workshops across the United States and around the world. Whether they are performing in Vienna's Musikverein, New York's Lincoln Center, Leipzig's Gewandhaus, Beijing's Concert Hall, or Istanbul's Aya Irini in Topkapi Palace, they share their innovative spirit and ever-evolving vision of music.
Here is what their favorite composers say about them:
PAT METHENY “Their willingness to play new music at such a high level is an inspiring and exciting quality that will continue to define the unique spot that they are carving for themselves in the music world.”
MICHAEL NYMAN “My all-time favorite piano trio with a rare passion for new music.”
MAURICE JARRE “Their choice and their taste make the repertoire of trio more interesting.”
NIKOLAI KAPUSTIN “I became somewhat tired of 19th century music, preferable are either Sebastian Bach or Ahn Trio.”
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