The Ahn Trio is a classical

piano A piano is a keyboard instrument that produces sound when its keys are depressed, activating an Action (music), action mechanism where hammers strike String (music), strings. Modern pianos have a row of 88 black and white keys, tuned to a c ...

trio composed of three sisters: Angella (violin), Lucia (piano), and Maria (cello) Ahn; Lucia and Maria are twins. Born in Seoul, Korea, they moved to New York City in 1981, and began their training at the

Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a Private university, private performing arts music school, conservatory in New York City. Founded by Frank Damrosch as the Institute of Musical Art in 1905, the school later added dance and drama programs and became ...

. The sisters formed a trio while they were earning their master's degrees at Juilliard. The Ahn Trio is known for its performance of new classical music, genre-crossing programming, and collaborations with other artists.

Media recognition

The trio achieved widespread recognition in the United States in 1987, when ''

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'' magazine featured them in a cover story about Asian-American "Whiz Kids". Since then, the trio has appeared in magazines multiple times, acknowledging that they seek to "get in the mainstream magazines as classical artists" in order to promote classical music's image. In 2003, they were selected by ''

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'' magazine as three of the "50 Most Beautiful People" and have been featured in ''

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'', '' GQ,'' and in ads for Gap and Anne Klein. They have been photographed by photographers

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, Ellen von Unwerth, and Walter Chin. The trio is often noted for their attractive appearance and fashion choices.

Repertoire and collaborations

The Ahn Trio performs a diverse set of genres, ranging from new classical music to arrangements of popular songs. In addition to recognized works of the classical piano trio repertoire, such as that found on their first two albums (one of which, ''Dvořák, Suk, Shostakovich: Piano Trios'', earned them a German

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award) the sisters have performed arrangements of popular music (including songs by

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and

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) and have commissioned works by composers including

Michael Nyman Michael Laurence Nyman, Order of the British Empire, CBE (born 23 March 1944) is an English composer, pianist, libretto, librettist, musicologist, and filmmaker. He is known for numerous film soundtrack, scores (many written during his lengthy ...

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, and Ronn Yedidia. The Ahn Trio's collaborations include an acoustic project with alternative rock band Tata Bojs, with whom they performed live at the Czech Grammys and recorded an album, ''smetana'', and performances with the David Parsons Dance Company. They appeared on MTV's "

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" with

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, which inspired the title of their album ''Ahn-Plugged''. "Ahn-Plugged" has also been used by the trio as a term for their commissioning and performing new works. ''Lullaby For My Favorite Insomniac'' features collaborations with vocalists Susie Suh and Ema Brabcová and with DJs Tao of Sound,

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, and Ra.D. for four remix tracks on the album.

Performances and appearances

The Ahn Trio performs frequently throughout the United States, and also gives workshops and master classes at middle schools, high schools, and colleges, seeking to bring new audiences to classical music. Their performances often include visually appealing staging and programs that are announced and discussed from the stage by the trio. Maria Ahn recorded guest cello parts for the album ''

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'' by Dutch symphonic metal band Delain. The record came out in March 2009. In December 2010, the Ahn Trio appeared in the TED Conference as part of the TEDWomen series, performing ''Skylife'' by David Balakrishnan and ''Oblivion'' by

Astor Piazzolla Astor Pantaleón Piazzolla (, ; March 11, 1921 – July 4, 1992) was an Argentine tango composer, bandoneon player, and arranger. His works revolutionized the traditional tango into a new style termed '' nuevo tango'', incorporating elements fr ...

. Their recording of "The Heart Asks Pleasure First" by Michael Nyman, from their album ''Lullaby For My Favorite Insomniac,'' appeared in ''

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'' in the show's final episode of season 8 on August 10, 2011. The Ahn Trio performed at the White House State Dinner honoring South Korean President Lee Myung-bak on October 13, 2011.

Discography

References

External links

Official website
{{Authority control American classical musicians of Korean descent Chesky Records artists EMI Classics and Virgin Classics artists Piano trios South Korean emigrants to the United States American twins South Korean twins Musical groups established in 1989 Sibling musical trios