The Oltre Ponte Piano Trio will offer concerts in Easton on May 6 and in Chestertown on May 7.
The concerts will feature selections spanning several centuries from Bach, Chopin, Elgar, Haydn, Mendelssohn, and Vaughan Williams. The program will close with Dvorak’s Dumky trio, based on the Ukrainian dumka tradition that punctuates a lament of captive people with cheerful upbeat melodies.
Nevin Dawson (violin/viola) formed the group in 2022 with Wonhee Kim (cello) and Amy Morgan (piano) to fulfill a long-time dream to play chamber music on the Eastern Shore. “I’ve been playing around with chamber music since grade school and it’s always been one of my favorite ways to make music,” said Dawson. “It’s about telling a musical story with dialogue between three characters, each with their own personality: the bright and shiny violin, the rich and brooding cello, and the powerfully orchestral piano.”
Dawson studied viola at Penn State University and has played with Pennsylvania Centre Orchestra, Canberra Symphony Orchestra, and the Mid-Atlantic Symphony Orchestra. He currently teaches violin, viola, and cello at Music Life in Chestertown, MD. As a versatile player in many genres including classical, folk, and jazz, he also plays with Shore Strings, the Dover Symphony, Harp & Soul, Front Porch Orchestra, and is featured on eight studio albums. He also performs solo shows featuring original music for electric violin and looper pedal, including introductory programs for the National Music Festival’s Fiddlesticks grade school education program. He was a member of the Red Devil Moon ensemble, a new musical selected to participate in the 2017 NYC Fringe Festival. He also sings professionally with several local groups.
Kim, a native from Seoul, South Korea, made her debut at the age of 10, performing in a piano trio with her two sisters extending to 50 concert stages throughout major cities in Asia, Africa, and the United States. At thirteen, she performed with the Seoul National Symphony Orchestra. During her attendance at Seoul Art Middle & High School, she was the top-prize winner of the Ewha & Kyunghyang Competition and the Joongang Music Competition. As a freshman at the Seoul National University, Ms. Kim moved to Amsterdam, Holland to study with Dmitri Ferschtman at the Sweelinck Conservatory. Wonhee then moved to the United States and completed her B.A and M.A. at the New England Conservatory with Mr. Lawrence Lesser.
Ms. Kim served as a faculty member at the Peabody Preparatory Division of the Peabody Institute of Music at Johns Hopkins University until 2021. During that time, Wonhee was also a member of the Concert Artists of Baltimore, a chamber orchestra located in Baltimore, MD. Currently, Kim is a Co-Principal Cellist for the Washington Chamber Orchestra and a Chair member for the Maryland State Music Teachers Association Young Musicians Competition. She currently resides in Oxford, MD, where she continues to be a private instructor and an active performer in chamber orchestras in both the DC and Eastern Shore areas.
Morgan is an accomplished musician whose education includes a Bachelors degree in Piano Performance from Salisbury University and a Masters Degree in Choral Conducting from Messiah University. Amy is the founder and Artistic Director at Allegro Academy in Easton, MD where she is the conductor of the Allegra Women’s Chorus, Children’s Chorus, as well as piano and voice instructor. She served as the Director of Music at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral from 2014 to 2022 and has also served as music director of Gilbert and Sullivan operettas, Heart and Music Theatre Review, and accompanied many stage productions and concerts. Amy is a member of the American Choral Directors Association and is an active musician the Talbot County Area.
Dawson added, “We will serve up a variety of samples from different eras and composition styles, so there’s something that will please every palate.”
The trio will perform on May 6 at 7:30 pm at Trinity Cathedral (315 Goldsborough St, Easton, MD 21601) and on May 7 at 2:00 pm at the Presbyterian Church of Chestertown (905 Gateway Dr, Chestertown, MD 21620). A donation of $20 is suggested for both concerts. Visit here for more information: https://bit.ly/OltrePonte0523
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