FRISSON
“a shiver or a thrill, a sudden feeling of excitement”
September 5th | 7:30pm | ASO Morgan Hall
Stella Boyle Smith Music Center
1101 E. 3rd St., Little Rock, AR 72202
Hailed as “the classical group that does it all” Frisson melds technical tradition and genre-bending innovation to create just what their French eponym inspires: “a shiver or a thrill, a sudden feeling of excitement.” Joining Patrick Hopkins (cello), Avi Nagin (violin) and Chieh-Fan Yiu (viola) are virtuoso oboist Tom Gallant and pianist Marika Bournaki who The Huffington Post described as “the Celine Dion of Classical” for her dazzling vivacity. www.frissonensemble.com
Marika Bournaki, piano
Avi Nagin, violin
Chieh-Fan Yiu, viola
Patrick Hopkins, cello
Tom Gallant, oboe
Mozart, Faure, Bernstein & Schumann
“An evening of musical perfection” -The Royal Gazette
Frisson features the best and brightest stars of classical music and, in just a few
seasons, has emerged as one of the most popular chamber music groups in America.
The ensemble showcases both emerging young artists and seasoned professionals.
Many members have performed at prestigious festivals such as Marlboro, Verbier,
Spoleto, and Mostly Mozart, as well as at Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall. Several
members of Frisson have been selected for Carnegie Hall’s prestigious Ensemble
Connect program, with many going on to hold principal positions in ensembles like
the Cleveland Orchestra and the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra.
Frisson has been hailed as “the classical group that does it all,” delivering engaging
programs that span a variety of ensemble configurations, including winds, piano trios,
piano quartets, octets, and nonets. They also offer popular programs featuring music
by composers such as Gershwin, Cole Porter, John Williams, and Astor Piazzolla. The
ensemble performs in over 25 cities annually, with recent and upcoming appearances
at diverse venues, including the Morgan Library and Museum in New York City, the
Da Camera Society in Los Angeles, the Detroit Institute of Arts, and the Bermuda
Festival.
TOM GALLANT
OBOE
Considered by many to be the most difficult of all musical instruments, the oboe is often called the “ill wind that no one blows good.” Tom Gallant is a First Prize Winner of the Concert Artists Guild International New York Competition and one of very few musicians ever to win this competition as an oboe soloist. His solo and chamber music performances have taken him to David Geffen Hall, Weill Recital Hall, and the Frick Collection in New York City, as well as to Washington, DC, Los Angeles, Chicago, the Spoleto Festival in Italy, and the Mostly Mozart Festival at Lincoln Center. He has appeared as a guest soloist with the Kronos Quartet at the Ravinia Festival and has collaborated with flutist Jean-Pierre Rampal, Cuarteto Casals from Spain, the Calder, Tesla, and Lark Quartets, Cuarteto Latinoamericano from Mexico, and the Adaskin String Trio. Tom has appeared in over 500 venues around the world.
Tom Gallant has always worn many hats as a professional musician, concert producer, host, and artist
manager. Over the years, he has been involved in managing several summer music festivals and
producing concerts in a wide variety of venues, from Carnegie Hall in New York City to Queen Elizabeth
Hall in London. Tom produced his first concerts in his backyard as a child at the age of 12. He lives in New
York City and keeps busy with stand-up comedy, fly fishing, waiting in line at airport security, and
traveling to exotic places.
PATRICK HOPKINS
CELLO
Cellist and conductor Patrick Hopkins is an active soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral player having performed nationally and internationally in venues such as Alice Tully Hall, David Geffen Hall, Carnegie Hall, The Kennedy Center, Merkin Hall, The New World Center, and Suntory Hall. He made his Lincoln Center debut in 2008 as soloist with the Juilliard Pre-College Orchestra and has appeared three times as soloist with the Fairbanks Symphony. In July 2015, he was soloist/principal cellist with the National Repertory Orchestra and recently appeared as soloist with the New Amsterdam Orchestra of New York. In 2011, Dr. Hopkins was the Grand Prize winner of the Music Teachers National Association Young Artist Competition. He was the recipient of the 2010 Young Alaskan Artist Award which led to his Anchorage recital debut. Dr. Hopkins is also a Yamaha Young Performing Artist. He was a member of the Wichita (Kansas) Symphony Orchestra, served as a lecturer at Rutgers University, and was a faculty member at South Texas College, where he taught cello, bass, chamber music, and conducted string ensembles.
Dr. Hopkins has appeared as a member of The Juilliard Orchestra and the New World Symphony, and has served as principal cellist of the Aspen Opera Theater Company Orchestra, The Juilliard Orchestra, the Manhattan School of Music Symphony Orchestra, and the Rutgers Symphony Orchestra. He has worked with conductors such as Alan Gilbert, Bernard Haitink, Robert Spano, and Yannick Nezet-Seguin.
A versatile chamber musician as well as an experienced soloist and orchestral leader, Dr. Hopkins is performing across the United States with the New York-based chamber ensemble Frisson. He has studied chamber music with members of the American, Cleveland, Emerson, Juilliard, and Orion Quartets as well as Toby Appel, Joseph Kalichstein, Seymour Lipkin, and Sylvia Rosenberg. Dr. Hopkins has performed in master classes with Zuill Bailey, Colin Carr, Timothy Eddy, Pamela Frank, and Franz Helmerson, and has performed with members of the Harlem and Orion Quartets.
Dr. Hopkins began cello studies at age four in Fairbanks, Alaska, and is a graduate of Juilliard’s Pre-College Division. He received his Bachelor of Music degree from The Juilliard School as a scholarship student of Bonnie Hampton and Richard Aaron, his Master of Music degree from the Manhattan School of Music in the Orchestral Performance program as a full scholarship student of Alan Stepansky, and his Doctor of Musical Arts degree from Rutgers University as a full scholarship student of Jonathan Spitz. Other teachers with whom he has worked extensively include Amy Barston, Hans Jørgen-Jensen, Melissa Kraut, and Minna Rose Chung. He attended the Meadowmount School of Music and received summer fellowships from the National Repertory Orchestra, Spoleto Music Festival, Aspen Music Festival, and the Music Academy of the West. Dr. Hopkins currently serves as Assistant Professor of Cello and Bass at Southeast Missouri State University and Artistic Director and Conductor of the Southeast Missouri Symphony Orchestra.
MARIKA BOURNAKI
PIANO
Described as “the Celine Dion of classical” by The Huffington Post, Mariki Bournaki is at once a world-class performer, dazzling pianist, vivacious young woman and one of the freshest faces on the classical music scene. Ms. Bournaki not only brings distinctive interpretations to favorite standards, but extends her passion for music by commissioning works from younger composers and collaborating with artists from various fields.
Marika Bournaki’s recent seasons are highlighted by a return to Michigan’s Jackson Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Music Director Matthew Aubin, her debut with Robert Austin and the Las Colinas Symphony Orchestra, and a solo recital at Pittsburgh’s Carnegie Mellon University, presented by The Steinway Society of Western Pennsylvania.
Marika – and her husband, the noted cellist Julian Schwarz, have been nominated for a 67th GRAMMY Award for their collaboration on soprano Fotina Naumenko’s “Bespoke Songs,” a multi-artist cycle released by New Focus Recordings.
Marika Bournaki has appeared as guest soloist with the symphony orchestras of Bozeman, Duluth Superior, Longmont, Richmond, Roanoke, Springfield (MO), Topeka, Montréal and St. Petersburg (Russia), along with Maryland’s Chesapeake Orchestra, The SYMPHONIA (FL), Romania’s Timisoara Filharmonica, Switzerland’s Verbier Chamber Orchestra and Canada’s Orchestre Métropolitain and Sinfonia Toronto. In addition to a benefit recital for the Glenn Gould Foundation at New York City’s Carnegie Hall, she has been presented in solo recitals and chamber music collaborations throughout the United States, Canada and the world, including Belgium, England, Germany, Greece, Italy, Romania, Switzerland and South Korea. Of special note was her survey of Beethoven’s complete 32-work piano sonata cycle, presented by the distinguished Bargemusic in Brooklyn.
The award-winning documentary “I am Not a Rock Star,” featuring Marika Bounaki and directed by Bobbi Jo Hart, has captivated international audiences of all ages. The feature-length film chronicles Ms. Bournaki’s evolution as an artist from the age of 12 to 20. A runaway success at multiple film festivals throughout the world, screenings of “I am Not a Rock Star” and solo performances were recently presented in Chicago, Dallas, Memphis, Miami, Napa Valley, Palm Springs, Toronto and Vancouver, as well as in Greece, México and Spain. The film has also been seen in Greece (ERT), The Netherlands (NTS), Norway (NRK), Sweden (SVT) the United Kingdom (BBC4), Australia (SBS) and New Zealand (Sky). The documentary is the recipient of awards for Best Arts Documentary and Best Editing from the 2014 Canadian Screen Awards.
AVI NAGIN
VIOLIN
A native New Yorker, Avi Nagin joined the Amernet String Quartet as Second Violin in August 2019. Nagin has also joined the faculty of Florida International University, where the quartet serves as Ensemble-in-Residence. An active recitalist, chamber musician, orchestral player, and educator, Nagin has performed in collaboration with members of the Ebène and Orion Quartets, as well as with Paul Coletti, Benny and Eric Kim, Ronald Leonard, Julian Schwarz, Ole Okahoshi, J.Y. Song, Kathryn Lockwood, and Gil Morgenstern. In 2019, Nagin served as Associate Concertmaster of the Sarasota Opera, also leading the orchestra as Concertmaster in the company’s production of Mozart’s The Magic Flute. Prior to joining the Amernet, Nagin was Principal 2nd Violin of the Princeton Symphony Orchestra, Principal 2nd Violin of Symphony in C, section violin with the New Haven Symphony Orchestra, and regularly performed with the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra. Nagin’s 2019 summer festival appearances included a return engagement performing chamber music at An Appalachian Summer Festival (NC), the Artosphere Festival (AR), Maverick Concerts (NY), Bargemusic (NY), and he was on faculty at East Tennessee State University’s inaugural chamber music festival. Additionally, Nagin performed with the renowned Orpheus Chamber Orchestra in NYC. In past summers, Nagin has served as Concertmaster of the Lake George Music Festival (NY) and Principal 2nd Violin of the Manchester Music Festival (VT).
As an educator in the NY area, Nagin was faculty assistant to Dr. Ann Setzer at The Juilliard School’s Pre-College Division, violin faculty and chamber music coordinator at the JCC Thurnauer School of Music (NJ), chamber music faculty for the New York Youth Symphony, and a “Teaching Artist” with Yale University’s Music in Schools Initiative. During his time as a student, Nagin attended prestigious masterclasses and festivals around the world, including appearing twice at the International Musicians Seminar at Prussia Cove (UK), where he performed in masterclasses for Philippe Graffin, András Keller, and legendary violinist Ivry Gitlis. At Carnegie Hall, Nagin was the youngest participant invited to appear in Leon Fleisher’s Brahms Chamber Music Workshop, where he worked with Mr. Fleisher, Yo-Yo Ma, and Pamela Frank as well as performing at Carnegie’s Weill Recital Hall. Nagin held leadership positions in the orchestras of Tanglewood and Aspen, and also attended Kneisel Hall, the Heifetz Institute, and the Meadowmount School of Music. Nagin holds a Master of Music from the Yale School of Music and a Bachelor of Music from The Colburn School. Nagin’s principal teachers include Ani Kavafian, Robert Lispett, Daniel Phillips, and Ann Setzer, as well as violin and chamber music studies with Arnold Steinhardt of the Guarneri Quartet.
CHIEH-FAN YIU
VIOLA
Triple-prized winner of the Lionel Tertis Competition, including Yuri Bashmet’s President Of The Jury Prize, Taiwanese-born Canadian Chieh-Fan Yiu has established himself as one of the most exciting violists on the international stage today.
Dr. Yiu performs regularly with Brooklyn Art Song Society, Frisson Ensemble, PhiloSonia Music, New York Classical Players, Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia, and Los Angeles-based ensemble Delirium Musicum. His performances have taken him around the world in festivals such as Carbondale Arts, Chamber Music Society of the Carolinas, Málaga Clásica, Music@Menlo, Moritzburg, Verbier, Aspen, and Sarasota Music Festivals. He is also a founding member of Ben Feng Music Festival in Taiwan, now in its ninth season. His solo engagements have included Aspen Festival Orchestra, New York Classical Players, Vancouver Academy Symphony, Vancouver Metropolitan Orchestra, Stony Brook Symphony, and UBC Chamber Orchestra. He also regularly appears with Experiential Orchestra and Metropolis Ensemble. He has collaborated with, Colin Carr, David Cohen, Nicholas Cords, Pedro R. Díaz, Chad Hoopes, Alan Kay, Tessa Lark, Matthew Lipman, Frank Morelli, Daniel Phillips, Sasha Sitkovetsky, Josu De Solaun, Carol Wincenc, as well as the Volta Piano Trio and the Emerson, Formosa, and Tesla Quartets.
As a violist of Ensemble For The Romantic Century, an acting/music ensemble that combine fully staged plays with live chamber music and elaborate visual designs, Dr. Yiu has starred in ‘The Dreyfus Affair’, ‘Because I Could Not Stop: An Encounter With Emily Dickinson’, and ‘Van Gogh’s Ear’, and has played more than 70 performances to date.
Dr. Yiu has served as artist-in-residence at the State University of New York Rockefeller Institute of Government, SUNY Schenectady, Empire State Youth Orchestra’s CHIME program, as well as Moores School of Music in University of Houston.
As a recipient of the coveted Jerome L. Greene Fellowship, Dr. Yiu completed his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from The Juilliard School, followed by Doctorate of Music degree from Stony Brook University, having been under the tutelage of mentors like Toby Appel, Heidi Castleman, Hsin-Yun Huang, Kim Kashkashian, as well as the Emerson Quartet.
Media coverage of Dr. Yiu’s performances and interviews include Music@Menlo Live, medici.tv broadcast from Switzerland, and BBC News in the UK. Dr. Yiu’s live recording of Nataliya Medvedovskaya’s Fantasy for Viola and Piano can be heard on WQXR Radio and ArkivMusic. He is also featured on Nataliya Medvedovskaya’s “Barcarolle” and New York Classical Players’ “Samuel Adler, Works For Chamber Orchestra.” His recording as a member of Delirium Musicum in their debut album with Warner Classics, titled “Seasons”, was released in spring of 2023 with worldwide acclaim.