2024 Artist Bios (scroll down)

Amadi Azikiwe, Viola/Outreach Artist

Amadi Azikiwe, violist, violinist, and conductor, has been heard in recital in major cities throughout the United States, such as New York, Boston, Cleveland, Chicago, San Francisco, Pittsburgh, Houston, Baltimore, and Washington, DC, including an appearance at the US Supreme Court. Mr. Azikiwe has also been a guest of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center at the Alice Tully Hall and the Kennedy Center. Abroad, he has performed throughout Israel, Canada, South America, Central America, Nigeria, India, Japan, and Hong Kong. As a soloist, Mr. Azikiwe has appeared with the Prince George’s Philharmonic, Delaware Symphony, Virginia Symphony, North Carolina Symphony, Fort Collins Symphony, Virginia Beach Symphony, Roanoke Symphony, Winston-Salem Symphony, Western Piedmont Symphony, Salisbury Symphony, the Gateways Music Festival Orchestra, the City Island Baroque Ensemble of New York, the National Symphony of Ecuador, and at the Costa Rica International Music Festival. Currently, Mr. Azikiwe is Music Director of the Harlem Symphony Orchestra. He is also Community Engagement Director of the Harlem Chamber Players and a member of the Pressenda Chamber Players. As an orchestral musician, he has appeared with the New York Philharmonic and Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, and as guest principal violist of Canada’s National Arts Centre Orchestra. A native of New York City, Mr. Azikiwe first studied music with his mother, after which he began training at the North Carolina School of the Arts as a student of Sally Peck. His studies continued at the New England Conservatory with Marcus Thompson and at Indiana University as a student of Atar Arad.

Lavell Blackwell, Composer

Amadi Azikiwe, Viola/Outreach Artist

Lavell Blackwell is a composer, teacher and singer whose work is performed all over the United States. His music combines diverse musical influences and techniques to create a singularly piquant and energizing sound. He currently serves on the faculty of the Berklee College of Music in Boston, MA as part of their Composition department, having previously taught at the University of New Hampshire and the New England Conservatory of Music. He earned his Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Composition from New England Conservatory in May 2021, studying with Dr. Kati Agócs. His dissertation, The Long Walk for orchestra with found objects, received the Graduate Music Award from the Presser Foundation for the purposes of a professional recording. His most recent works include 2023's On the Impulse to Move, a co-commission led by Winsor Music, Inc., which included the following chamber groups: the Radius Ensemble, the Apple Hill Chamber Players, the Boston Chamber Music Society, Music from Salem, Castle of Our Skins, and the Boston Public Quartet, the Sphinx Organization, and the Coastal Carolina Music Festival. Other recent pieces include the piano trio Prelude and Counterpoint, written for by James Vaughen, Mekhi Gladden and Jenny Chen and premiered at the Curtis Institute of Music in 2022, the solo oboe work Locrian Ambulations, which was commissioned by Nicholas Tisherman, Assistant Principal Oboist in the Colorado Symphony in Denver, and the suite for saxophone duet Biosongs commissioned by the Jamaica Plain Saxophone Quartet which received a world premiere as part of the Boston New Music Festival in November 2020.

Calyx Piano Trio

Amadi Azikiwe, Viola/Outreach Artist

Melvin Chen, Piano and Violin

Each member of the Calyx Piano Trio has been described as “a shining star in her own right.” Through concerts and recordings, the trio has been exciting listeners with expressive, detailed ensemble playing and brilliant virtuosity since 2001. Performance highlights include those on the Tanglewood Prelude and Linde Center series, Morrison Artist Series (San Francisco); the Sheldon Concert Hall, Kranzberg Arts Center, and Washington University (St. Louis); and on series of the Brooklyn Friends of Chamber Music (NY), Collage New Music (Boston), Pamlico Musical Society (NC), The Music House (NC), Newton Free Library (MA), Curtisville Consortium (MA) and James Library Center for the Arts (MA). Multi-year festival residencies include those at the Carolina Chamber Music Festival and Missouri Chamber Music Festival. Calyx has also presented educational programs at Washington University and Webster University (St. Louis), East Carolina University (Greenville, NC) and San Fransisco State University. With a repertoire combining classical masterworks with original pieces by living composers, the group’s commitment to expanding the trio repertoire includes commission funding from the Barlow Foundation and Chamber Music America and new works by Derek Bermel, Beth Denisch, Amy Beth Kirsten, James Lee III, Lansing McLoskey, and Christopher Stark.

Melvin Chen, Piano and Violin

A native of Tennessee, Dr. Melvin Chen has received acclaim for solo and chamber performances throughout the United States, Canada, and Asia. Chen’s performances have been featured on radio and television stations around the world, including KBS television and radio in Korea, NHK television in Japan, and NPR in the United States. As a Professor in the Practice of Piano, Chen teaches a studio of graduate and undergraduate piano students. In addition, he is the Deputy Dean at the Yale School of Music, a role that involves overseeing academic affairs and general institutional management, and also serves as Director of the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival–Yale Summer School of Music, where he also performs. Previously, Chen was Associate Director and on the piano faculty at the Bard College Conservatory of Music and served as Artistic Director of the chamber music program at the Hotchkiss School Summer Portals.Chen earned a doctorate in chemistry from Harvard University and holds a double master’s degree from The Juilliard School in piano and violin. He received his bachelor of science degree in chemistry and physics from Yale University, where he studied with Boris Berman, Paul Kantor, and Ida Kavafian. Chen’s notable solo recordings include Beethoven’s “Diabelli” Variations (Bridge Records), which the American Record Guide described as “a classic,” piano music by Joan Tower (Naxos Records), and sonatas and other pianos works by Shostakovich (Bridge Records), among others.

Nancy Dimock, Oboe

Melvin Chen, Piano and Violin

Nina Ferrigno, Piano

Nancy Dimock is the principal oboist of the Boston Ballet Orchestra, the Boston Lyric Opera, the Springfield and Vermont Symphonies, and the Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra, and is oboist and English horn player with the Glimmerglass Opera Orchestra. She has been featured as a soloist with the Albany Symphony, the Vermont Symphony, the Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra, and the Indian Hill Symphony, and has performed the Bach Concerto for Violin and Oboe on tour with renowned violinist Jaime Laredo. She is a member of the Chameleon Arts Ensemble, has collaborated with such artists as the Jacques Thibaud Trio and the Lydian String Quartet, and performs frequently as a guest with ensembles in Boston and throughout New England, including the Portland Symphony, Rhode Island Philharmonic, BMOP, and Odyssey Opera. During her tenure as principal oboist of the Honolulu Symphony Orchestra, she performed on the Grammy nominated recording Rosemary Clooney: The Final Concert. Ms. Dimock has also appeared on the Prairie Home Companion radio show, NPR’s Performance Today, and PBS’s Great Performances, and she frequently performs live on WGBH. She has recorded for Concord, Albany and Chandos records, and BMOP/Sound.

Nina Ferrigno, Piano

Melvin Chen, Piano and Violin

Nina Ferrigno, Piano

Nina Ferrigno, described by the St. Louis Post Dispatch as “a magnificent pianist,” is a collaborative artist at home in a multitude of diverse musical settings. Her playing is said to be, “...always precise with superb accentuation and warmth of feeling...”. Nina is a founding member of the Boston-based Calyx Piano Trio and has appeared in major concert venues throughout North America. She has appeared as soloist with the St. Louis Symphony, Boston Modern Orchestra Project (BMOP), the Boston Pops, and the Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra. Her collaborative large ensemble appearances include those as principal keyboardist with the St. Louis Symphony, Boston Symphony, Boston Pops, Chicago Symphony and the Boston Modern Orchestra Project (BMOP). Recent festival appearances include those at Tanglewood and Summerfest (KC). She has appeared at the Banff, Norfolk, and Skaneateles festivals and is Director and Co-founder of the Missouri Chamber Music Festival. Nina is frequently heard with Chamber Project St. Louis, on the St. Louis Symphony’s ‘Live at the Pulitzer’ series, and on the Boston Symphony Orchestra’s ‘Prelude’ and ‘Community Chamber Concert’ series. Ms. Ferrigno is a graduate of New England Conservatory of Music, where she received degrees with distinction in performance as a student of Wha Kyung Byun. Nina is committed to bringing classical music to new audiences and expanding the repertoire through commissioning. The New Music Connoisseur has said of her, “pianist Nina Ferrigno [brings] out the inherent horizontal logic...all the while imparting sonic beauty from end to end.” Her discography includes chamber music of Lansing McLoskey on Albany Records, Bernard Rands “Canti Triology” on Arsis Audio and a recent release on Bridge Records of “This is Not a Story” by Christopher Stark. Her 2010 recording of Elliott Schwartz’s Chamber Concerto III: Another View for the BMOP Sound label was described as “wonderfully musical” by Fanfare magazine. Nina is Assistant Professor of Piano and Director of Keyboard Studies at Webster University and is on faculty at Washington University (St. Louis). She lives in St. Louis with her two musical children Ava and Zach and one mouse.

Catherine French, Violin

Rachel Harmatuk Pino, Violin

Catherine French, Violin

Canadian violinist Catherine French, a member of the Boston Symphony Orchestra since 1994, has established herself as a versatile and accomplished soloist and chamber musician in addition to her distinguished orchestral career. Ms. French garnered the grand prize at the Canadian Music Competition, the C.B.C. Radio Competition and the National Competitive Festival of Music, Canada’s three major music competitions. She has performed as soloist with many leading Canadian orchestras and given recitals throughout North America and Argentina. Ms. French was featured with the Juilliard Orchestra and James dePreist, the Boston Pops and John Williams, and at Carnegie Hall in her debut with David Gilbert. Lauded for her “superbly lyric” playing and her “amazing level of artistry” by Strad Magazine, Ms. French is a dedicated member of the Calyx Piano Trio and Collage New Music. Her avid interest in chamber music has led to performances at the Marlboro, Banff, Portland, Missouri and Carolina chamber music festivals, quartet tours of Germany and China, and annual concerts as part of the Prelude series at Tanglewood and the Curtisville Consortium. Ms. French has recorded for Albany Records and is featured in Donald Sur’s Berceuse for Violin and Piano with pianist Christopher Oldfather. Ms. French began Suzuki violin at age four then continued her studies under esteemed Canadian pedagogue Dr. Lise Elson. Ms. French graduated from Indiana University with a Bachelor’s of Music degree and a Performer’s Certificate, then earned a Master’s degree from the Juilliard School. Her teachers were Miriam Fried, Felix Galimir and Joel Smirnoff.

Jennifer Lucht, Cello

Rachel Harmatuk Pino, Violin

Catherine French, Violin

Jennifer Lucht, cellist and CCMF Director, is a native of Greenville, NC. After musical training on violin as a student of Joanne Bath beginning at age three, she switched to cello at age eleven under the tutelage of NC Symphony cellist Leonid Zilper. As a chamber musician, she has performed at the Kennedy Center, Weill Recital Hall, New York’s 92nd Street Y, and Tanglewood; the Ravinia, Portland (ME), and Bravo! Vail Festivals; and on the Greater Philadelphia Performing Artists Series, Prairie Home Companion, and NPR’s live broadcast “Performance Today.” Praised for “superb” playing by the Boston Globe and “beautiful, finely detailed sound” by the Boston Herald, she has been concerto soloist with orchestras including the Metamorphosen Chamber Orchestra, Vermont Symphony, and the Winston-Salem and Raleigh Symphonies. Ms. Lucht is a member of the Calyx Piano Trio and performs with the Boston Pops Esplanade Orchestra in concerts throughout the US, Canada, and Japan. She can be heard in chamber music recordings on the Albany, Archetype, Bridge, and New World labels. She received her Bachelor and Master of music degrees with a Performer’s Certificate at Indiana University with post-graduate studies at New England Conservatory. Her former teachers include Janos Starker, Tsuyoshi Tsutsumi, Laurence Lesser, Colin Carr, and Carter Brey. Ms. Lucht is also an Orientation and Mobility Specialist with the Carroll Center for the Blind.

Rachel Harmatuk Pino, Violin

Rachel Pino is a professional concert violinist and violin teacher. She actively performs as a soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral musician. Rachel is Principal 2nd Violinist for the Long Bay Symphony (Myrtle Beach, SC), Executive Director & Concertmaster of the Trent River Chamber Orchestra, and Concertmaster/Associate Director of New Bern Civic Strings. Rachel was President of the North Carolina Suzuki Association (2015) and now serves on the board for the NC Suzuki Association and Greenville Suzuki Association (NC). Rachel appears as a clinician at the NC Suzuki Institute at East Carolina University, the STAHR Workshop (VA), Wilmington Suzuki Workshop (NC), and the Greenville Suzuki Saturdays (NC), and has taught at Craven Community College. Rachel performs annually as a guest artist at the Carolina Chamber Music Festival and serves on the CCMF Education Committee. She performed as Principal 2nd Violin with the Amman Symphony Orchestra (Jordan), performed as a soloist in Sweden, played with the Fayetteville Symphony Orchestra (NC), Opera Carolina (NC) and has shared the stage with some really fun artists like The Moody Blues, The Tams, The Association, Ben Vereen, Joan Hess (Leggy Blonde, Flight of the Conchords), and Jodi Benson (Ariel, The Little Mermaid). Rachel’s ever-growing social media following has led her to collaborate with well-known and developing brands in the music industry. She was recently named a Beaumont Artist, alongside some of the top classical musicians in the online community. She is a social media consultant and manager for individual artists and groups in the music industry. Born in New Bern, NC, Rachel’s primary teacher was Joanne Bath (NC), and she also studied at the UNC School of the Arts. She earned her undergraduate degree in Violin Performance with Lucy Chapmann at The Boston Conservatory, where her quartet won first place in the 2002 Chamber Music Competition.

Cara Pogossian, Viola

Elizabeth Ivy Wilson, Violin

Rachel Harmatuk Pino, Violin

Armenian-American violist Cara Pogossian is an avid chamber musician having attended numerous summer festivals, including the Marlboro Festival, Ravinia Steans Music Institute, and Taos School of Music. In 2022, Cara was the winner of the Borromeo String Quartet Guest Artist Award, and, more recently, her quartet was selected as a 2022-2023 Honors Ensemble at the New England Conservatory. She has also toured with the Curtis Institute on multiple occasions, performing Schubert’s Cello Quintet, as well as with the Curtis Symphony Orchestra as principal violist. Cara has had the privilege of collaborating and performing with many of the leading figures in classical music, such as Mitsuko Uchida, Don Weilerstein, Ida Kavafian, Joseph Lin, Marcy Rosen, Peter Wiley, Daniel Phillips, Kim Kashkashian, and the Borromeo String Quartet.
Cara is the Principal Violist of the Portland Symphony Orchestra, and has appeared as a guest musician with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, and Boston Pops Orchestra. She has performed at several high-profile concerts as an AGBU (Armenian General Benevolent Union) Scholarship recipient, and is a 2024 recipient of the St. Botolph Club Foundation Emerging Artist Award. Earlier this year, Cara was named the winner of the NEC Concerto Competition, culminating in a performance of Bartók’s Viola Concerto with the NEC Philharmonia.
Cara recently completed her graduate studies with Kim Kashkashian at the New England Conservatory of Music, as the recipient of the Abraham Skernick Memorial Presidential Scholarship. She had previously studied with Hsin-Yun Huang and Misha Amory at the Curtis Institute of Music.

Anna Reinersman, Harp

Elizabeth Ivy Wilson, Violin

Anna Reinersman, harpist, began her harp studies at the age of 7, holding her first position as Principal Harp for the Rocky Mountain Symphony in Utah, in the United States, at the age of 14. Praised by The New York Times as “an elegant harpist”, she performed extensively throughout New York and Boston before relocating to London. She has played the complete Ring Cycle with the Royal Opera House, London, and with the Metropolitan Opera, New York on their Grammy winning recording, as well as touring Japan with the Metropolitan Opera, playing “La Boheme”. UK adventures included "Sleeping Beauty" on tour with the Birmingham Royal Ballet and her 6-month-old daughter, and "Tosca" with Placido Domingo conducting at Covent Garden. Before that Ms. Reinersman was in the Broadway pit for the revival of “On A Clear Day You Can See Forever” starring Harry Connick, Jr., and was the harpist for the entire run of the Broadway smash hit “The Producers”. She has toured the United States with the Boston Pops Esplanade Orchestra and maintains an active career as a chamber musician. Comfortable in a variety of musical settings, she has performed with such contemporary pop artists as Joni Mitchell, Diana Krall, Alicia Keyes, and the indie band Hem. Ms. Reinersman is also cofounder of the Carolina Chamber Music Festival and served as codirector for 11 years. She can be heard on the soundtrack of the“The Producers” movie musical, the cast album for the Broadway revival of “Finian’s Rainbow”, and various other commercial recordings. She currently lives Basel, Switzerland, although as the Principal Harpist for the New York Pops, she regularly returns to New York City.

Elizabeth Ivy Wilson, Violin

Elizabeth Ivy Wilson is a distinguished violinist known for her dynamic performances as both a chamber and orchestral musician. She began studying the violin at the age of four at the Cleveland Institute of Music using the Suzuki Method. Throughout her career, she has performed with various orchestras across New England and toured with the renowned Philharmonie der Nationen, based in Hamburg, Germany. Ms. Ivy Wilson earned a Bachelor of Music degree from the New England Conservatory of Music and further specialized with double certificates in Violin Performance and Suzuki Pedagogy from East Carolina University. As an active freelance artist, Elizabeth enjoys performing with the Carolina Chamber Music Festival, the Trent River Chamber Players, and Greenville’s New Carolina Sinfonia. Known for her versatility, she also plays fiddle with Riggsbee Road, a Raleigh-based all-female country and “new grass” band, and occasionally records and performs with the Americana band Hank Pattie & The Current, which is featured on Robust Records. In addition to her vibrant performing career, she is a dedicated educator, leading the Ivy School for Violin & Viola and serving as a clinician for the North Carolina Suzuki Institute, the STAHR Workshop in Norfolk, VA, and other notable educational programs.