CLASSICAL MUSIC ARTISTS
Pianist Christopher Weldon appears regularly throughout the United States as a soloist and chamber musician. Among Mr. Weldon's honors include first prize at the Kosciuszko Foundation National Chopin Competition and first prize in the Juilliard School Gina Bachauer International Piano Competition. He has concertized in the U.S. and Europe including solo appearances at the Aspen Music Festival and the International Chopin Festival in Poland. He has appeared as soloist with the Buffalo Philharmonic, Brno Chamber Orchestra and the Evanston Symphony and performed chamber music recitals in Alice Tully Hall and the Phillips Collection. He has also been featured on WNYC's The Listening Room, and on WQXR's McGraw-Hill Young Artists Showcase. Mr. Weldon completed his doctor of musical arts degree from the Juilliard School, choosing the published piano music of York Bowen as his thesis topic. He currently lives in Los Angeles where he balances a busy career as a soloist, collaborative artist, and teacher.
Violinist Johnny Lee joined the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the start of the 2005-2006 season. Previously, he was Assistant Concertmaster of the Charlotte Symphony, and Concertmaster of the Canton Symphony. A native of Cleveland, Lee began playing violin at the age of five. After graduating from Harvard University with a cum laude degree in Economics, he attended the Cleveland Institute of Music, where he received his master's in 2003. His principal instructors have included Linda Cerone, Lynn Chang, and William Preucil. Lee has attended various chamber music festivals, including the Taos, Sarasota, and Yellow Barn chamber music festivals, as well as Spoleto USA, the Colorado Music Festival, and the Grant Park Music Festival.
Cellist Maksim Velichkin, a native of Uzbekistan, has appeared as soloist with numerous orchestras in Europe and the US. He earned his Bachelor's Degree from Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, and his Master's Degree from USC, where he studied with the late renowned cellist Eleonore Shoenfeld. A member of the prestigious Verbier Chamber and Verbier Festival Symphony Orchestras, he has toured with such conductors as James Levine, Kurt Masur, Charles Dutoit, Yuri Temirkanov, Christoph Von Dohnanyi, to name a few. Future engagements include a performance with Dmitry Sitkovetsky in Monaco, a recording project with Maxim Vengerov for EMI, an international tour with Verbier Festival Orchestra, where he also will perform Saint-Saens' Carnival of the Animals as a pianist, as well as numerous local recitals and chamber-music concerts.
Violinist Hana Hwon Kim, most recently holding the position of Assistant Principal Second Violin of the Charleston Symphony Orchestra, has performance and educational experiences from around the world. Originally from South Korea, she moved to London, England to study with Simon Fischer and Yfrah Neaman at The Purcell School of Music at the age of thirteen. From London she continued her professional education at The Juilliard School in New York City where she earned both her Bachelor of Music and her Master of Music under the guidance of Ron Copes, Earl Carlyss and Robert Mann. Hana has also studied with Robert Lipsett earning a Professional Studies Certificate from the Colburn Conservatory. She has participated in music festivals including Aspen Music Festival, Music Academy of the West, Tanglewood Music Festival, Spoleto Festival in Italy, and has performed with many prominent musicians and conductors. Hana is a member of Strada Piano Trio based in Los Angeles, California.