Biography
CONTRASTS QUARTET
Ayako Oshima, clarinet
Lisa Kim, violin
Caroline Stinson, cello
Evelyne Luest, piano
Acclaimed for their exhilarating performances of old and new repertoire, the Contrasts Quartet is a group of four extraordinary virtuosi whose instruments include clarinet, violin, cello and piano.
The group chose its name to describe the contrasting timbres of their instruments, as well as the variety of their repertoire. The ensemble performs a mix of duos, trios and quartets, presenting a broad range of programs from the Baroque through today's repertoire. The Contrasts Quartet has worked with many living composers and has commissioned and premiered works of Aaron Jay Kernis, Michael Torke, Ned Rorem, Scott Johnson and Derek Bermel, among others. Their recent recording of Ned Rorem's Nine Episodes for Four Players was nominated for a 2006 Grammy Award.
The Quartet has been invited to perform in Europe and across the United States. Concert appearances have included performances at Carnegie's Weill Hall, Merkin Hall, Miller Theatre, Symphony Space and live appearances on New York's WNYC Radio and the nationally syndicated St. Paul Sunday radio program. Their concert tours have taken them from San Francisco to Spain. The ensemble has also been invited to participate in many residencies, including Norfolk Summer Festival in Connecticut, the Atlantic Center for the Arts in Florida, Music in the Park Series in St. Paul, Minnesota, Detroit Pro Musica, Penn State/Erie, Phillips Exeter Academy in New Hampshire, Bowdoin College in Maine and the Fitchburg Public Schools and Fitchburg State College in Massachusetts.
The group, on the Phoenix label, has recorded a CD of the works of Aaron Jay Kernis, all premiere recordings, and a CD of the works of Ned Rorem. The Ensemble has been honored with awards and grants from the American Composers Forum, Meet the Composer, the Fromm Foundation, the New York Foundation for the Arts, the Aaron Copland Fund for Music and Chamber Music America.
Ayako Oshima, clarinet
Lisa Kim, violin
Caroline Stinson, cello
Evelyne Luest, piano
Acclaimed for their exhilarating performances of old and new repertoire, the Contrasts Quartet is a group of four extraordinary virtuosi whose instruments include clarinet, violin, cello and piano.
The group chose its name to describe the contrasting timbres of their instruments, as well as the variety of their repertoire. The ensemble performs a mix of duos, trios and quartets, presenting a broad range of programs from the Baroque through today's repertoire. The Contrasts Quartet has worked with many living composers and has commissioned and premiered works of Aaron Jay Kernis, Michael Torke, Ned Rorem, Scott Johnson and Derek Bermel, among others. Their recent recording of Ned Rorem's Nine Episodes for Four Players was nominated for a 2006 Grammy Award.The Quartet has been invited to perform in Europe and across the United States. Concert appearances have included performances at Carnegie's Weill Hall, Merkin Hall, Miller Theatre, Symphony Space and live appearances on New York's WNYC Radio and the nationally syndicated St. Paul Sunday radio program. Their concert tours have taken them from San Francisco to Spain. The ensemble has also been invited to participate in many residencies, including Norfolk Summer Festival in Connecticut, the Atlantic Center for the Arts in Florida, Music in the Park Series in St. Paul, Minnesota, Detroit Pro Musica, Penn State/Erie, Phillips Exeter Academy in New Hampshire, Bowdoin College in Maine and the Fitchburg Public Schools and Fitchburg State College in Massachusetts.
The group, on the Phoenix label, has recorded a CD of the works of Aaron Jay Kernis, all premiere recordings, and a CD of the works of Ned Rorem. The Ensemble has been honored with awards and grants from the American Composers Forum, Meet the Composer, the Fromm Foundation, the New York Foundation for the Arts, the Aaron Copland Fund for Music and Chamber Music America.
Pianist Evelyne Luest,
Pianist Evelyne Luest, is an accomplished soloist and chamber musician and has performed and toured in Europe, South America, Asia and the United States. She has won several competitions, including the Artists International Competition in New York as a soloist, in addition to many awards with the Contrasts Quartet. Ms. Luest has performed as soloist in Weill Hall at Carnegie Hall, the Spoleto Festival of Two Worlds in Italy and on the St. Paul Sunday National Radio Show. Recent performances include festivals and concert venues in Norway, France, Japan, Spain, California and Minnesota. Her list of premieres includes compositions by Joan Tower, Jing Jing Luo, Aaron Jay Kernis and Ben Weber. Ms. Luest's recent CD releases include solo and chamber works on CRI, Phoenix Records, North/South Recordings, and North Pacific Music. She studied with Gilbert Kalish at SUNY/Stony Brook, where she received an M.M. and D.M.A. in piano performance. She lives in New York City with her husband, Aaron Jay Kernis, and their two children.Violinist Lisa Kim
Lisa GiHae Kim joined the New York Philharmonic’s violin section in February, 2003. As a soloist, Ms. Kim has appeared with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra of St. John’s Smith Square (under the direction of Lord Yehudi Menuhin), Santa Cruz Symphony Orchestra, San Angelo Symphony, Flint Symphony Orchestra, and other ensembles. An active chamber musician, Ms. Kim has participated in the Taos Chamber Music Festival, and the Aspen and Sarasota music festivals, and has toured with the American Chamber Players and the International Sejong Soloists.
Ms. Kim was awarded the top prize in the Yehudi Menuhin International Violin Competition, the Irving M. Klein International String Competition, and the Kingsville International Young Performer’s Competition. As a Presidential Scholar, Ms. Kim performed in recital at the Kennedy Center.
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Cellist,Caroline Stinson
Caroline Stinson, a native of Edmonton, Canada, has a B.M. from the
Cleveland Institute of Music and a Performance Diploma with distinction
from the Hochschule fur Musik Koln. She has performed throughout
Germany, France and Holland and was awarded first prize in the Hohnen
Foundation Cello Competition in 1999. Her collaborations here and
abroad have included performances with Lynn Harrell, Paul Katz, Pinchas
Zukerman and composers Peter Eötvös, Steven Stucky, Joan Tower and
George Rochberg. Caroline is a champion of living composers and is
building programs of new music for solo cello, one of which she will
present at the Winnipeg International New Music Festival in Canada this
year. In New York City she is a founding member of the Athabasca String
Trio and Open End, a new music and improvisation ensemble, a member of
the cello quartet, CELLO and a previous member of the Cassatt String
Quartet She has recorded solo and chamber works for Naxos, Koch
International and Albany Records. Caroline Stinson is an affiliate
artist at Syracuse University and performs on a cello made by Wolfgang Schnable in Germany in 1995.
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Clarinetist Ayako Oshima
Clarinetist Ayako Oshima has won numerous international competitions,
including the Japan Music Competition in Tokyo, the Winds and
Percussion Competition in Japan and the International Jeumesses
Musicales Competition in Belgrade, where she also received the "Golden
Harp" Award, given to the favorite of the audience and critics. She
has performed as soloist with the Hiroshima and Osaka Symphonies and
with the Jupiter Symphony in New York City. She has participated in
the Sarasota Summer Music Festival in Florida, the Festival Consonances
in France and the Kirishima Music Festival in Japan. Ms. Oshima
received clarinet training in France, from the Toho School of music,
and as a "special student" at the Eastman School of Music. She is on
the faculties of The Juilliard School and the State University of New
York at Purchase and is the director of the Kitakaruizawa Music Seminar in Japan. With her husband, Charles Neidich, she has written a
book on the basics of clarinet technique for the publisher, Toa Ongaku. top