Sunday, March 3, 2024, at 4:00 p.m.

ERIC GINSBERG TRIO

Renowned clarinetist Eric Ginsberg will be joined by
Kenny Lee, cello, and Jeffrey Brown, piano,
from Western Illinois University to perform
Beethoven‘s Trio in E flat, op.38, and
Robert Muczynski’s Fantasy Trio, op.26.

ERIC GINSBERG

Eric Ginsberg is a Professor of Clarinet and Clarinetist in the Camerata Woodwind Quintet, in residence at Western Illinois University. He performs with the Knox-Galesburg Symphony and the Peoria Symphony and was a faculty member at the Brevard Music Center in Brevard, North Carolina, and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. He was also a member of the Oklahoma Symphony, the Chamber Orchestra of Oklahoma City, the Lincoln (NE) Symphony, the Omaha Symphony, and the Pittsburgh Opera Orchestra, and participated in the Aspen Festival and Spoleto Festival of Two Worlds. He studied at the Juilliard School, studying with Stanley Drucker, and received both his bachelor’s and master of music degrees. He studied as a youngster with Stanley Hammer, a noted pedagogue in New Rochelle, New York, and with Ben Armato while in high school. He studied with David Glazer at SUNY Stony Brook; his work over many years with Kalmen Opperman remains a continuing inspiration.

JEFFREY BROWN

Jeffrey Brown is Director of the School of Music and Professor of Piano at Western Illinois University, where he has served on the faculty since 2009. He has performed throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia as a solo recitalist, chamber musician, and soloist with orchestras. Performance highlights include appearances at the Dame Myra Hess Series in Chicago, the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C., and summer festivals in France, Germany, Italy, Austria, and China.

He is a graduate of the Eastman School of Music, where he earned the Performer’s Certificate, the Master of Music, and the Doctor of Musical Arts degrees. He studied with Natalya Antonova and served as her teaching assistant, and he studied accompanying with Jean Barr. His early training was with Jane Allen at the University of Missouri. He has been a prizewinner in the Kosciuszko Chopin Competition, the Iowa International Piano Competition, the Eastman Concerto Competition, and the Kneisel German Lieder Competition, and he was a recipient of the Artist Presentation Society Award of St. Louis.

He is an active member of the Music Teachers National Association and other organizations committed to community engagement and education, and he has presented masterclasses and lectures at universities and conservatories throughout the United States. He currently serves as the National Coordinator for the MTNA Chamber Music Competitions.

KENNY LEE

Kenny Lee has established himself as an outstanding artist and leader both on the podium and as a cellist. Praised for his “lyricism, drive, tenderness, and passion” (The Times Argus), he has performed as a conductor, recitalist, and chamber musician throughout North America, Europe, and Asia.

Recent conducting highlights include collaborations with the Czech Chamber Philharmonic, Jerusalem Symphony, Moravská Filharmonie Olomouc, Lviv National Philharmonic, Midcoast Symphony Orchestra, and Gwinnett Chamber Orchestra. For the past three years, he has successfully led the Western Illinois University’s Symphony Orchestra and Chamber Orchestra with thrilling performances. Additionally, Lee is the conductor of the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra’s Philharmonic Orchestra.

Recent cello performance highlights include solo and concerto appearances in venues such as Carnegie Hall, Boston’s Jordan Hall, and Eastman Kodak Hall. He recently performed concerti by Dvorak, Haydn, and Gulda and has appeared as a soloist with the Atlanta Sinfonia, Eastman Philharmonia, and Jordan Winds. As a recording artist, he has recorded for Klavier Records and is in the process of releasing his debut CD of unaccompanied works for cello.

Lee’s musical journeys have led him to collaborations with several esteemed artists, including principal players of the Berlin Philharmonic, members of the Juilliard, Cleveland, Borromeo, and Ying Quartets. Festival appearances have included the Rockport Chamber Music Festival, Thy Chamber Music Festival in Denmark, Kneisel Hall Chamber Music Festival, and Taos Chamber Music Festival. Lee is also the co-founder and artistic director of the Flatirons Chamber Music Festival, a non-profit organization in Boulder, Colorado.

Born in Seoul, South Korea, Lee grew up in Oregon and began studying music at the age of 10. Lee’s musical mentors have included Laurence Lesser, Paul Katz, Steven Doane, and Steven Pologe. He has also worked with Hans Jensen, Pieter Wispelwey, Lluis Claret, Ralph Kirshbaum, and Frans Helmerson. He has studied conducting with Steven Sloane, Catherine Larsen-Maguire, Carl St. Clair, and Charles Peltz. Lee has a bachelor’s degree from the Eastman School of Music, and Masters and Doctorate degrees from the New England Conservatory.

Lee is currently the cello professor and orchestra director at Western Illinois University.

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