AYA Youth Presents Prize-Winning Violinist Ria Kang in Manhattan on October 16 at American Young Artists Association

With pianist Song Eun Lee in a recital of Bach, Sarasate, Bruch, and Bartók

NEW YORK, October 11, 2026 - The American Young Artists Association will present violinist Ria Kang and pianist Song Eun Lee on Friday, October 16, at 7:30 p.m. at 213 East 82nd Street on Manhattan's Upper East Side. Part of AYA Youth's Manhattan Solo Recital Series, the evening moves from Bach's intimate musical dialogue to Sarasate's Spanish dance idiom and the broad Romantic sweep of Bruch's First Violin Concerto.

A first-prize winner in Category I of the 2024 Arthur Grumiaux International Violin Competition, Kang studies with Catherine Cho at The Juilliard School's Pre-College program, where she was admitted at age seven. She has performed at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, and Merkin Hall. In May 2026, she was one of four young violinists invited to appear in the Concours musical international de Montréal's Mini Violini concert at Bourgie Hall.

The recital opens with Bach's Sonata No. 2 in A Major, BWV 1015, whose interwoven lines give violin and keyboard an equal voice. Sarasate's Malagueña, Op. 21, No. 1, follows with a richly ornamented melody shaped by the song and dance traditions of southern Spain.

After intermission, Kang and Lee perform Bruch's complete Violin Concerto No. 1 in G Minor, Op. 26, with the orchestral part played on piano. Its rhapsodic opening, lyrical Adagio, and spirited finale form the centerpiece of the evening. Bartók's Romanian Folk Dances, Sz. 56, in Zoltán Székely's arrangement for violin and piano, is planned as the encore.

Song Eun Lee is a New York-based pianist and music educator who performs as a recitalist and chamber musician. A native of South Korea, she studied at the Curtis Institute of Music and Mannes and earned her Bachelor of Music from Manhattan School of Music. She made her New York recital debut at Merkin Hall in 2003 after winning the Artists International Auditions.

Tickets and recital details | Friday, October 16, 2026, at 7:30 p.m.