San Francisco's Home for Great Concerts since 1970

Mellon International Chamber Players – Friday, May 3 at 8 pm

Stephanie Zyzak, violin; Eunghee Cho, cello; Roger Xiapiano

Borrowers

Pēteris Vasks Castillo Interior
Johannes Brahms “Double” Concerto in A minor, Op. 102, I. Allegro
Antonín Dvořák Piano Trio No. 4 in E minor, Op. 90, ‘Dumky’

Born in 1994, Stephanie Zyzak began playing the violin at 4 years old. She studied with Miriam Fried at New England Conservatory where she received her Bachelors and Masters degrees, and is currently completing her doctorate degree at City University of New York, The Graduate Center with Mark Steinberg. At the age seven, Stephanie made her first solo appearance with the Starling Chamber Orchestra in the Aspen Music School and became the youngest recipient ever to be awarded the Aspen Music School New Horizon Fellowship. The following year, she performed in Germany as an invited guest of the Internationale Kunst – Akademie Liechtenstein (IKAL). Over the years, she has had the opportunity to solo and tour with orchestras and various groups in Germany, Russia, Austria, Sweden, Spain, Italy, and France. In 2004, Stephanie made her debut with the Louisville Orchestra, and has performed with orchestras such as the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Dayton Philharmonic, and Southeast Missouri Symphony. Other notable performances include an appearance on Praire Home Companion with Garrison Keillor and an invitation to perform as an honored guest at the Lotus Festival for His Holiness, the Dalai Lama. Stephanie has received top prizes in various competitions and was most recently named a finalist at the 2018 Naumburg International Violin Competition. She has been invited to participate in renowned international competitions including: International Violin Competition of Indianapolis (2018), Joseph Joachim Hannover International Violin Competition (2018), Shanghai International Isaac Stern Competition (2016), International Ima Hogg Competition (2016 semifinalist), Seoul International Music Competition (2015), and Zhuhai International Mozart Competition (2015 semifinalist). A passionate chamber musician, she has collaborated with Ralph Kirshbaum, Steven Tenenbom, Hsin-Yun Huang, Colin Carr, Michael Kannen, and Robert McDonald. She has performed at festivals such as the Taos School of Music, Ravinia’s Steans Music Institute, Four Seasons Chamber Music Festival, and has also been invited to the Marlboro Music Festival this coming summer. Stephanie performs on a 1778 Joseph and Antonio Gagliano violin, generously on loan from Ravinia’s Steans Music Institute.

Born in Davis, California, Korean-American cellist Eunghee Cho was awarded Second Prize and the special award for Outstanding Chinese New Piece Performance at the Alice & Eleonore Schoenfeld International String Competition in Harbin, China. He has also earned First Prize in the USC Solo Bach Competition, the Borromeo String Quartet Guest Artist Award, New England Conservatory’s Honors Ensemble Competition, Sacramento Philharmonic League JAMMIES Concerto Competition, and was awarded top prize in the Classical Soloist category by Downbeat Student Music Awards. He has appeared as soloist with numerous orchestras around the country including the Sacramento Philharmonic, Cape Symphony, Atlantic Symphony, Symphony by the Sea, and Sacramento State Symphony Orchestras. He currently holds the Joyce & Donald Steele Chair as Principal Cello of the Atlantic Symphony Orchestra, and frequently performs as Principal Cello with Cape Symphony, Unitas Ensemble, and Symphony by the Sea. As an avid chamber musician, Eunghee has collaborated in performances with artists such as Midori Goto, David Shifrin, Elton John, François Salque, and the Borromeo String Quartet, and has performed as a guest artist with A Far Cry, Da Camera Society, and the Chamber Music Society of Sacramento. Previous festival engagements include the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival, Piatigorsky International Cello Festival, Taos School of Music, Académie Musicale de Villecroze in France, Bowdoin International Music Festival, and Rencontres Franco Américaines de Musique Chambre in Missillac, France. He is Artistic Director and Founder of the Mellon Music Festival in Davis, CA. Eunghee graduated magna cum laude and as a Steven & Kathryn Sample Renaissance Scholar from the University of Southern California with a Bachelor of Music in Cello Performance and a Minor in Biology. Following his completion of a Master’s degree at the New England Conservatory of Music he is currently enrolled in the conservatory’s Doctor of Musical Arts Program under the tutelage of distinguished pedagogue Laurence Lesser and Paul Katz. He plays on a 1930 Anselmo Gotti cello on generous loan by Colburn Foundation.

Roger Xia, age 16, a junior at Davis Senior High School (DSHS), is also enrolled as a scholarship student in San Francisco Conservatory of Music (SFCM) Pre-College Division. Roger started piano studies at age 5 with Ms. Linda Beaulieu and continues with Dr. Natsuki Fukasawa since 2009. He took violin lessons at age 7 with Mr. Dong Ho and continues with Mr. William Barbini since 2012. At age 10, Roger made his Carnegie Hall debut as first prize winner of the American Fine Arts Festival (AFAF) Golden Era of Romantic Music International Competition and the American Protégé International Music Talent Competition. He won top prizes in Pacific Musical Society (PMS), Music Teacher Association of California (MTAC), United States Open Music Competition (USOMC), CMTANC/USIMC International Youth Music Competition, Diablo Valley College Competition (DVC), Sylvia Ghiglieri Piano Competition, and Classical Masters Music Competition. Roger has also performed at the Junior Bach Festival, Bear Valley Music Festival, Orfeo International Music Festival, InterHarmony International Music Festival, and will join the National Youth Orchestra (NYO-USA) in the summer of 2019. Roger won the 2015 Mondavi YAC Pianist and Bouchaine Young Artists Prizes and was featured on the 2016 From the Top show 322. He is also the 2017 National Young Arts Foundation merit winner of Classical Music. Roger played as a soloist with the Merced Symphony Orchestra (2010), Sacramento Youth Symphony (SYS) Premier Orchestra and Central Valley Youth Symphony (CVYS) Orchestra (2014), UCD Symphony Orchestra (2016), as well as the Palo Alto Philharmonic and Camellia Symphony Orchestra (2017). He will play with the San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra as a piano soloist in the fall of 2019. His chamber music groups in the Davis-Sacramento area won top prizes at USOMC (2013), Classical Masters Music Festival (2013), and VOCE competition of MTAC (2013 and 2015). Roger is the current concertmaster of the San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra and DSHS Symphony Orchestra.

Old First Concerts has volunteer opportunities available!

Our concerts rely on the generosity of volunteers to assist with simple tasks like:

ushering

distributing programs

box office

set-up and clean-up

Scheduling is flexible — you choose when to work! We especially need helping hands for our Friday and Saturday night performances.

An excellent opportunity for students, seniors, or anyone who possesses a love for music!

If you’d like to consider volunteering with Old First Concerts, please contact curtishuth@oldfirstconcerts.org for more information.

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