Four Seasons, Three Composers
Salon Concert: December 8, 2025 @ 7:30 PM
Private Home (TX 76109)
Address will be sent to you upon reservation.
Private Home (TX 76109)
Address will be sent to you upon reservation.
A Baroque masterpiece, Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons has for centuries inspired musicians, including modern composers who use aesthetics and ideas from the original to express their own, individualistic versions. Experience a unique performance that blends Astor Piazzolla’s tango-flavored version, Max Richter’s minimalistic reimagining, and Vivaldi’s original work. Brand new transitions, written by composer Alexander Timofeev, will help bind these versions together and unify these distinct compositions.
Experience our Salon Concert on Monday, December 8th at 7:30 PM, in the setting of a beautiful private home in Fort Worth. The evening includes a complimentary pre-concert reception with refreshments and hors d’oeuvres, as well as valet parking. Enjoy outstanding artists performing chamber music in an intimate, private atmosphere, and share the moment with fellow music lovers. Tickets are $70 per person.
A Baroque masterpiece, Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons has for centuries inspired musicians, including modern composers who use aesthetics and ideas from the original to express their own, individualistic versions. Experience a unique performance that blends Astor Piazzolla’s tango-flavored version, Max Richter’s minimalistic reimagining, and Vivaldi’s original work. Brand new transitions, written by composer Alexander Timofeev, will help bind these versions together and unify these distinct compositions.
Experience our Salon Concert on Monday, December 8th at 7:30 PM, in the setting of a beautiful private home in Fort Worth. The evening includes a complimentary pre-concert reception with refreshments and hors d’oeuvres, as well as valet parking. Enjoy outstanding artists performing chamber music in an intimate, private atmosphere, and share the moment with fellow music lovers. Tickets are $70 per person.
Program
Astor Piazzolla: The Four Seasons of Buenos Aires
Max Richter: The New Four Seasons (selections)
Antonio Vivaldi: The Four Seasons (selections)
Max Richter: The New Four Seasons (selections)
Antonio Vivaldi: The Four Seasons (selections)
Musicians
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Ke Mai (a.k.a. MaiKe) is originally from China and began violin study at age four under his father’s influence.
Before he joined the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra in 2018, he was violinist of Dallas Opera Orchestra and the second violin principal of Des Moines Metro Opera. MaiKe studied the art of violin playing with former Concertmaster of the Dallas Symphony, Emanuel Borok and received the Performance Diploma from SMU, Meadows School of Art in 2014. After Maike acquired Masters and Bachelor degrees in Violin performance in the National Music Academy of Ukraine in 2007, he won the position of the first violin of the National Philharmonic Orchestra of Ukraine. In 2011, after a global online audition, MaiKe was selected as Principal Second Violinist for the 2011 YouTube Symphony Orchestra in Sydney, Australia. As an active chamber music musician, Maike is the founding member of Cezanne Quartet, which was awarded the Peak chamber music fellowship in Meadows school in SMU in 2014 and won the second prize in the Coltman chamber music competition in Austin in 2015. Maike plays a rare fine violin made by Carl Becker in 1919. |
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Molly Baer joined the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra in 2012. Before moving to Texas, Molly was a violin fellow at the New World Symphony in Miami Beach. She graduated from the New England Conservatory in Boston as a student of Miriam Fried, and received her Master’s degree from Carnegie Mellon University’s School of Music, where she studied with Andrés Cárdenes.
Since moving to Fort Worth, Molly has participated in frequent chamber music performances with local ensembles and festivals. She has performed with Spectrum Chamber Music Society, Hall Ensemble, the Basically Beethoven Festival, Opus Nova, and Sedici Strings, a string quartet made up of colleagues in the Fort Worth Symphony. She also teaches a private studio of violin students and has enjoyed coaching young chamber musicians for the Fort Worth Youth Orchestra. |
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DJ Cheek joined the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra as Principal Viola in August 2021, and made his solo debut with the orchestra in 2023 performing the Bartók Viola Concerto. Prior to his current appointment, DJ played Principal Viola in the Jacksonville Symphony. In recent years he appeared as guest Principal with the Indianapolis Symphony and IRIS Orchestra in Tennessee, and as a substitute with the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra and Minnesota Orchestra. DJ plays Principal Viola at the Colorado Music Festival in Boulder, and he teaches at the Texas Chamber Music Institute and the Interlochen Adult Chamber Music Camp. He previously taught viola and chamber music at the University of North Florida and the National Music Festival. He has appeared at festivals such as Music@Menlo, the Perlman Music Program, Lucerne, Sarasota, Olympic, and Yellow Barn. DJ performed as a guest artist with Donald Weilerstein and Kim Kashkashian in support of Music for Food, and he continues to perform with the Music for Food chapter in Fort Worth. DJ earned a master’s degree under the tutelage of Kim Kashkashian at New England Conservatory and he holds bachelor’s degree from Oberlin College-Conservatory, where he studied with Peter Slowik. He was further mentored by Beth Guterman Chu.
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Cellist Bree Ahern is a versatile performing artist committed to building community through performing, teaching, and collaborating across art forms. A passionate solo and chamber musician, she has dedicated herself to presenting innovative programs to diverse audiences and using music to serve and enrich her community.
Chamber music is central to Bree’s career and spans the expanse of standard to contemporary repertoire. She currently performs as a member of Kinetic Ensemble, an artist-led ensemble committed to showcasing diverse, underrepresented, and newly composed classical music, and Monarch Chamber Players, a flexible chamber ensemble dedicated to taking classical music out of the concert hall and into accessible community spaces. From 2019-2022, she was a Young Artist with Da Camera of Houston, a chamber music fellowship program dedicated to developing citizen artistry through proactive community engagement with underserved audiences. Bree is keen on interdisciplinary collaborations and has worked with dancers, artists, folk musicians, scientists, and more, most recently presenting programs with MUSIQA Houston and Hoppa Project at the Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts and the Kennedy Center. As an orchestral player, Bree performs as a substitute with the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra and has appeared with the Oklahoma City Philharmonic, Tulsa Symphony, and Symphony of Northwest Arkansas. Her festival appearances include the Louis Moreau Institute for Contemporary Music, Cabrillo Festival for Contemporary Music, Round Top Festival Institute, Hot Springs Music Festival, and Green Mountain Chamber Music Festival, with select performances featured on WQXR and New Music USA. Equally dedicated to pedagogy, Bree has served as Visiting Assistant Professor of Cello at Oklahoma State University and been on cello faculty at San Jacinto College, Houston Youth Symphony’s Melody Program and AFA’s Chamber Music Academy and Summer Music Festival. In addition, she has extensive clinic and masterclass experience, presenting classes at Sam Houston State University, Kinder High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, and Opus One Chamber Music School, among others. She now maintains a private studio in Fort Worth. Bree is a graduate of Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music, where she studied under Norman Fischer on a full scholarship. |
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Pianist Mikhail Berestnev has been described as having “...flawless technique and constant inspiration...superb sonority...” (Belgian La Libre Magazine) and “... an astonishingly gifted pianist...equally at home as a soloist and collaborative pianist” (Theater Jones, U.S.).
He has been featured as a soloist with the Sydney Symphony, Brazilian Symphony, Royal Chamber Orchestra of Wallonia, Fort Worth, San Angelo, Irving, Plano, Corpus Christi Symphonies among others. Mikhail has performed as a soloist and collaborative pianist at the Grand Hall of the Moscow Conservatory named after Tchaikovsky, Moscow`s International Music House, English Hall at the Saint-Petersburg Music House, National Concert Hall in Dublin, Flagey Theater in Brussels, Sydney Opera House, Palau de la Musica in Barcelona, Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center, Winspear Opera House, Moody Performance Hall and Charles W. Eisemann Center for Performing Arts in Dallas, US. Frequently performs with violinist Grace Kang Wollet and clarinetist Danny Goldman as a member of MAKE, classical music ensemble based in Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. Has collaborated with the Dallas Opera, Avant Chamber Ballet, Texas Ballet Theater, Van Cliburn Foundation, and members of the Fort Worth and Dallas Symphony Orchestras. Was featured as a guest artist at the Piano Texas International Academy & Festival, Basically Beethoven Festival, International Keyboard Odyssiad & Festival, among others. He is a prize-winner of the Sydney International Piano Competition of Australia, Rio de Janeiro International Piano Competition (BNDES), Stanislav Neuhaus International Piano Competition, International Competition named after Gnessins, Washington International Piano Festival. Graduated from the Russian Academy of Music named after Gnessins in Moscow, Texas Christian University College of Fine Arts in Fort Worth, TX, Meadows School of Arts at the Southern Methodist University in Dallas, TX. He studied piano with Irina Grebyonkina, Andrei Khitruk, Alexei Skavronski, Vladimir Tropp, Tamas Ungar and Joaquin Achucarro. In addition to his performance career Mikhail is a guest artist and collaborative pianist at the "Musica Nova" chamber orchestra and advanced chamber ensemble at the School of Arts and Technology at the University of Texas at Dallas, music director renowned American composer Dr Robert Xavier Rodriguez. |
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An "eloquent" clarinetist with "incredible artistry” Russian-born Stas Chernyshev has established a versatile career as an orchestral musician, soloist, chamber musician, and educator (Dallas Morning News, Theater Jones). Principal clarinetist of the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra, Mr. Chernyshev has performed at such prestigious venues as Carnegie Hall in New York, Kimmel Center in Philadelphia, Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., as well as in Switzerland, Spain, Germany, Russia, South Korea and Japan. A devoted chamber musician, Mr. Chernyshev has collaborated with Grammy-winning ensembles Eighth Blackbird and Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, commissioned new works for his instrument. He has been featured on WQXR -New York’s classical music station and WHYY’s television program - On Stage at Curtis. He is the founder and artistic director of Fort Worth Performances for Autism, and a co-founder of Opus Nova Chamber Music Series. Mr. Chernyshev holds a Bachelor’s degree from the Curtis Institute of Music, and a Master’s degree from St. Petersburg Conservatory.
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Ann Hung, born in Taipei, Taiwan, began her musical studies at a young age, starting with piano at age five and clarinet at age nine. Dr. Hung is an active performer in the Dallas and Fort Worth area who regularly performs in the realms of both the orchestral and chamber music. She has shared the stage with the Fort Worth Symphony, the Cleveland Orchestra, the members of the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra and the faculty of the Juilliard School. Dr. Hung is always pushing the boundaries of her repertoire and skills, such as collaborating with jazz musicians and commissioning new composers. As a proponent of new music, she has avidlycommissioned new works including a wind quintet with her quintet Opus Now premiering in Symphony Space in NYC. One of the new works that Dr. Hung commissioned is included in a recently released album “Stained Glass Story” by Eldad Tarmu. Dr. Hung is currently teaching in Lewisville ISD, Burleson ISD as private lesson instructor and often plays with the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra. She is the associate director of the Fort Worth Performances for Autism and co- founder of Opus Nova Chamber Music Series.
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