ARTIST PROFILE
Johannes String Quartet
SAINT PAUL SUNDAY APPEARANCES
BIOGRAPHY
The Johannes Quartet consists of four outstanding musicians who take time away from their busy careers to pursue their love of the string quartet literature. This quartet brings together the Principal cello of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Associate Principal viola of the Philadelphia Orchestra, the first American to win the Paganini Violin Competition in 24 years, and an Avery Fisher Career Grant winner, and has been praised by listeners and critics alike for its special combination of passion, warmth, elegance and poetry. Each member has spent numerous summers at the celebrated Marlboro Music Festival in Vermont, birthplace of many of the world's renowned ensembles. New York appearances include their recent Carnegie Hall debut as well as frequent performances on the Schneider Series at the New School and the Peoples' Symphony Concerts at Town Hall.
Since the Johannes made its acclaimed debut there in 1998, the Chamber Music Society of Philadelphia has played a major role in launching the Quartet, presenting them regularly each season, including a two-concert series of the complete Beethoven opus 18 quartets. Their debut was described by the Philadelphia Inquirer as having "accurate intonation, vigorous interaction and careful regard for the details in the score...the passion and attack that characterize the best of quartet playing." The 2004-05 season includes their Kennedy Center debut as well as appearances in New York, Philadelphia, Schenectady(NY), Norfolk(VA) and Storrs(CT). Recent highlights include performances in Chicago, Los Angeles, Phoenix, the Santa Fe Chamber Music and Brightstar festivals, and other performances throughout the mid-Atlantic states supported by the Pennsylvania Performing Arts on Tour program.
SOOVIN KIM, violin
Soovin Kim is a violinist who performs around the world, in demand as a soloist and chamber musician. He captured first prize at the 1996 Paganini International Violin Competition and was also awarded the Henryk Szeryng Foundation Career Award in 1997, leading to performance and recording engagements across Europe. He has also been honored with the Avery Fisher Career Grant. Mr. Kim's various activities display his wide range of musical interests. He has appeared in recent seasons with the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Orchestra of St. Luke's, and the Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra, among many others. He has performed the 24 Paganini Caprices to critical acclaim in both the U.S. and Europe, and next season will perform the 6 Bach Sonatas and Partitas for solo violin. He also received critical praise on his first CD performing duo works by Schubert, Bartok, and Strauss with pianist Jeremy Denk. Upcoming highlights include performances with the San Francisco Symphony and Hong Kong Philharmonic, and a debut recital tour of Korea.
CATHERINE CHO, violin
Catherine Cho is recognized for her remarkable virtuosity, combining technical mastery of her instrument with an extraordinary and distinctive musicality. Praised by the New York Times for her "sublime tone", she has appeared worldwide as soloist and performing chamber music. Catherine Cho's orchestral engagements have included performances with the Detroit, Montreal and National Symphony orchestras, National Arts Centre Orchestra in Canada, and throughout Europe and Asia. Ms. Cho's concert performance of Vivaldi's Four Seasons was broadcast nationwide on PBS Television and a live recording of the Four Seasons will be released this year. As a recitalist and chamber musician, Catherine Cho has performed on the prestigious stages of Alice Tully Hall, the Salzburg Mozarteum, Tokyo's Casals Hall and the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. Ms. Cho has been a participant in the Marlboro Music Festival since 1993. She is a founding member of the newly formed chamber ensemble, La Fenice. Ms. Cho is a member of the violin faculty at the Juilliard School and teaches masterclasses worldwide. Ms. Cho is represented as a soloist by Columbia Artists Management, Inc. She currently resides in Brooklyn, NY.
CHOONG-JIN CHANG, viola
Choong-Jin (C.J.) Chang joined The Philadelphia Orchestra as Associate Principal Viola in 1994. He was a double major in violin and viola at the Curtis Institute of Music, studying with the late Jascha Brodsky and Joseph dePasquale. C.J. was born in Korea, and immigrated with his family to the Philadelphia area when he was thirteen. His solo appearances have included those with the Curtis Symphony and with the KBS Symphony Orchestra at the Seoul Arts Center. An avid chamber musician, he has participated in the festivals of Caramoor, Evian, Las Vegas, Marlboro, Moritzburg (Germany), and Mostly Mozart. He has toured throughout the United States with the Musicians from Marlboro program. C.J. devotes much of his time to teaching younger violinists and violists as a faculty member of the Temple University's Esther Boyer College of Music and Preparatory Division. Recently married, he resides in Philadelphia with his wife, Jeweon, and their children Jakob and Abigail.
PETER STUMPF, cello
Peter Stumpf has enjoyed a multi-faceted musical life incorporating several different kinds of careers into one. He was the First Prize winner of the 1991 Washington International Competition and has appeared as soloist with the Boston Symphony, Philadelphia Orchestra, Virginia Symphony, and the Aspen Music Festival orchestra. In recital he has appeared at the Philips Collection in Washington D.C. and Jordan Hall in Boston. In 1999, he performed the complete works of Beethoven for cello and piano on the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society series where he is often featured. He is often a chamber music partner of such eminent musicians as Emanuel Ax, Wolfgang Sawallisch, Mitsuko Uchida, and the Emerson String Quartet. He has had a long-standing relationship with the Marlboro Music Festival, and is also a trustee of the Yellow Barn Festival. Formerly the Associate Principal Cello of the Philadelphia Orchestra, and professor of cello at New England Conservatory of Music, Peter has recently been appointed Principal Cellist of the Los Angeles Philharmonic.
