The Zodiac trio Plays Merkin Concert Hall, 2/28

On Sunday, February 28th, 2010 at 8:00PM, the Zodiac Trio - an acclaimed Paris-based violin-clarinet-piano ensemble - will present a recital titled "THE INFINITE WONDERS OF THE SOUND IMAGINARIUM" at the newly-renovatEd Kaufman Center's Merkin Concert Hall (129 West 67th Street in Manhattan).

The program explores the intriguing influence of storytelling and images in classical music, presenting some of the masterpieces of the violin-clarinet-piano literature, including Béla Bartók's famous Contrasts and Stravinsky's devilish A Soldier's Tale.

The evening will also feature the New York premiere of Andrew List's visually-inspired Noa Noa, A Gauguin Tableau, inspired by painter Paul Gauguin's monumental work, Where do we come from? What are we? Where are we going?

Comprised of French violinist Vanessa Mollard, Russian clarinetist Kliment Krylovskiy and Japanese pianist Riko Higuma, the Zodiac Trio is the winner of multiple international competitions in France, Italy and the U.S., and has presented performances across the globe from California to Japan. Trained at the Manhattan School of Music and at the Paris Superior Conservatory, where the ensemble was the protégé of the famed Ysaÿe Quartet, the Zodiac Trio was featured in the international MUSO magazine as one of the most exciting new ensembles to emerge on the contemporary music stage.

This concert is supported in part by the American Composers Forum's Encore Grant, which was awarded to the Zodiac Trio to help foster a collaboration with composer Andrew List on his work Noa Noa, A Gauguin Tableau.

Single tickets are $20 for general admission ($14 for students and senior citizens) and are available for purchase at the Merkin Concert Hall box office, online at kaufman-center.org/merkin-concert-hall/buy-tickets, by sending an e-mail to tickets@kaufman-center.org, or by calling (212) 501-3330.

Featured in the London-based international MUSO magazine as one of the leading chamber groups of its generation, the Zodiac Trio has been praised by critics for their "truly exceptional talent" (Nice-Matin, France) and "musicality of rare intensity" (La Tribune de Lyon, France), as well as being declared "excellent, talented and committed" by the New York Concert Review and "awe-inspiring" by NYC.com.

The young ensemble has been welcomed on many leading stages throughout the U.S., Europe and Japan. The Zodiac Trio members met in New York in 2005. Since its formation, the Zodiac Trio has been awarded prizes at a number of national and international competitions including the Yellow Springs Chamber Music Competition, FNAPEC Ensemble Competition (Paris), International Chamber Music Competition of Duchi D'Aqcuaviva (Italy), Val Tidone International Music Competition (Italy), the Cziffra Foundation (France), Joyce Dutka Foundation for the Arts (New York), International Peninsula Young Artist Festival in California and the ProMusica Ensemble Competition (France), among others. The ensemble has also received a Recording Grant and Commission Grant from Co-Op press, is a laureate of the 6th International Osaka Chamber Music Competition in Japan, and was recently awarded the Encore Grant from the American Composers Forum to support the collaboration with composer Andrew List.

Individually and collectively, the trio members have performed throughout the United States, South America, Western and Eastern Europe, Russia, China and Japan. As soloists, members of the Zodiac Trio have appeared with the Ghent Symphony Orchestra, Geneva Symphony, Marseille Symphony Orchestra, Cannes Philharmonic Orchestra, Couer d'Alene Symphony, Fort Worth Symphony, Monte Carlo Philharmonic, and others, collaborating with such legendary musicians as Mstislav Rostropovich, Pierre Boulez, Paquito D'Rivera, Kurt Masur, and many others. Performing in many of the leading concert halls such as Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Kennedy Center, Merkin Hall, Bellas Artes de Mexico, Boston's Symphony Hall and the Acropolis in Nice, France, they have also appeared multiple times on WQXR's Young Artist Showcase as well as on live broadcasts for National Public Radio. France's Council General of the Alpes-Maritimes region sponsored the trio's recent tours of the south of France, prompting the Nice-Matin to write, "The superior level of the performance foreshadows their great success in the future."

Highlights of past seasons include performances at the Acropolis in Nice, France; Bruno Walter Auditorium at Lincoln Center; the French festivals Musique a Flaine, Estival de St. Jeannet, and Val D'Isere; Izumi Hall in Osaka, Japan; Teatro Casale Monferato; and the Teatro de Atri in Italy. Notably, the trio continues to collaborate with Yovan Markovich, cellist of the famed Ysaÿe Quartet.

2009-10 season highlights include performances on the Festival Radio France Montpellier, Lincoln Friends of Chamber Music in Nebraska, Preston Bradley Hall at the Chicago Cultural Center, Merkin Concert Hall in New York, Berklee College of Music in Boston, Mount Allison University in Canada, Pro-Musica Festival, Festival Autour d'une Piano and broadcasts on Radio France, as well as an extensive two-week tour of China, performing in some of the country's leading venues.

As strong advocates of new music, the trio has commissioned new works in order to expand the clarinet-violin-piano trio repertoire, and strives to serve as a platform of exposure for up-and-coming composers. Their debut commercial recording, which received nationwide airplay as well as critical acclaim, included two works written for the ensemble. Currently the Zodiac Trio is involved in a number of collaborative projects with emerging composers both in the United States and France, bridging the two countries and fueling an exciting cultural exchange. Aside from trios, the ensemble often presents sonatas and solo works to bring variety to its audiences in the scope of a single concert.

In 2007, the Zodiac Trio made Paris their headquarters, where they are on the artist roster of the Cziffra Foundation, an organization dedicated to promoting Europe's top young artists. The ensemble was chosen by Culture France to receive moral and financial support from the « Declic » Program, partner with the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and the Mecenat Musical Societe General. The Zodiac Trio also enjoys the generous support of the Swiss Global Artistic Foundation.

For further information, please visit: www.ZodiacTrio.com or www.KanonArtists.com.