ARTIST PROFILE

Ani Kavafian, violin and viola; David Shifrin, clarinet; André-Michel Schub, piano

BIOGRAPHY

After more than 25 years of friendship and music-making, Ani Kavafian, Andre-Michel Schub and David Shifrin - each a true virtuoso and a member of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center - come together as a trio with undeniable chemistry. "The spontaneity, the excitement and the fun we have playing together is beyond what we ever anticipated," they said. Combined they have performed with nearly every major orchestra around the world and in recital at the major concert halls. Violinist Ani Kavafian, a guest on the Curtis Alumni Recital Series, is in great demand as a soloist, chamber musician and teacher. Clarinetist David Shifrin has appeared in critically acclaimed recitals across the country and is a frequent orchestra soloist with major orchestras. As a piano recitalist, orchestra soloist and chamber musician, Andre-Michel Schub has been praised by critics and audiences since his career began almost three decades ago.

Ani Kavafian has performed with virtually all of America's leading orchestras including the New York Philharmonic, Philadelphia, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Minnesota, Los Angeles Chamber, St. Louis, Delaware, Detroit, San Francisco, Atlanta, Seattle, Minneapolis, Utah, and Rochester orchestras. Among the many premieres she has given are: Henri Lazarof's Concerto for Violin and String Orchestra, and Tod Machover's Concerto for Hyper Violin and Orchestra, both of which she has recorded, as well as premieres of Aaron Kernis' Double Concerto for Violin and Guitar, and Michelle Ekizian's Red Harvest Concerto. Her numerous recital engagements include performances at New York's Carnegie Hall and Alice Tully as well as in venues across the country.

Born in Istanbul, Turkey of Armenian decent, Ani Kavafian began her musical studies with piano lessons at the age of three. At age nine, shortly after her family moved to the United States, she began the study of the violin with Ara Zerounian and, at 16, won the first prize in both the piano and violin competitions at the National Music Camp in Interlochen, Michigan. Two years later, she began violin studies at the Juilliard School with Ivan Galamian, eventually receiving a Master's Degree with top honors. Ms. Kavafian resides in Northern Westchester, New York with her husband, artist Bernard Mindich, and their son, Matthew. She plays a 1736 Muir McKenzie Stadavarius violin.

As a recitalist, orchestral soloist and chamber musician, André-Michel Schub has been praised by critics and audiences around the world since his career began almost three decades ago. He has performed with many of the world's most prestigious orchestras, among them the Boston Symphony, Philadelphia Orchestra, Chicago Symphony, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Cleveland Orchestra, New York Philharmonic and the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra. The list of conductors with whom he has collaborated is equally impressive, including James Levine, Edo de Waart, JoAnn Falletta, Seiji Ozawa, Sergiu Comissiona, Eugene Ormandy and Mstislav Rostropovich, who invited him to join the National Symphony Orchestra for a nationally televised Fourth of July concert. His annual schedule includes recitals in major concert halls as well as appearances at the foremost music festivals, among them Mostly Mozart, Tanglewood, Ravinia, the Mann Music Center, the Blossom Festival, Wolf Trap, and the Casals Festival in Puerto Rico.

Born in France, André-Michel Schub came to the United States with his family when he was eight months old; New York City has been his home ever since. He began his piano studies with his mother when he was 4 and later continued his work with Jascha Zayde. Mr. Schub first attended Princeton University, and then transferred to the Curtis Institute, where he studied with Rudolf Serkin from l970 to 1973.

The San Francisco Chronicle calls David Shifrin's playing "a revelation in just how beautifully the clarinet can be played." One of only two wind players to have been awarded the Avery Fisher Prize since the award's inception in 1974, Mr. Shifrin is in constant demand as an orchestral soloist, recitalist and chamber music collaborator.

Orchestras with whom he has performed include the Dallas, Seattle, Houston, Milwaukee, Denver, and Memphis symphonies, the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, and the Philadelphia and Minnesota orchestras. Internationally, he has performed with orchestras in Italy, Switzerland, Germany, Korea and Taiwan. In addition, he has served as principal clarinetist with the Cleveland Orchestra and Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, as well as the American (under Stokowski), Honolulu, New York Chamber and Dallas symphonies. Shifrin has received critical acclaim as a recitalist, appearing at such a venues as Alice Tully Hall, Weill Recital Hall and Zankel Hall at Carnegie Hall, and the 92nd Street Y in New York City, the Library of Congress in Washington D.C, and throughout Germany. As a chamber musician, he as collaborated with artists such as the Guarneri, Tokyo, and Emerson String Quartets, trumpeter Wynton Marsalis, and pianists Emanuel Ax and André Watts.