As the close of the Lyceum Series draws near, the Ahn Trio is just getting warmed up. Hailing from Seoul, South Korea, the Ahn sisters blend their unique classical training with contemporary stylings, bringing new meaning to “Seoul Sisters.”
The ensemble consists of Maria on cello, Lucia on piano and Angella on violin.
Shortly after their first public ensemble appearance on Korean television in 1979, the Ahn sisters, twins Maria and Lucia and younger sister Angella, were brought to America by their parents. The culture shock would prove too much for some people, but not these sisters. The twins were 12 and Angella was 10, so they were wide-eyed and curious.
“I’m sure it was harder for our parents than for us,” Angella said. “For my sisters and I, we were just extremely excited about being in a new culture. We couldn’t wait.”
Having grown up around music all their young lives, the veritable prodigies wasted no time honing their skills in the States.
All three were enrolled in the famous Juilliard Pre-College program while also attending regular schools. Soon afterward they were enrolled in Juilliard full-time and were well on their way to becoming contemporary masters.
They first came to the attention of the American public in the 1987 Time article “Asian American Whiz Kids.”
Since then they’ve released four CDs on labels including EMI Classics and are awaiting their fifth release on their newly-formed label Lamp. They’ve been featured in Vogue, GQ and were in People’s 2003 “50 Most Beautiful People.”
“Younger generations are not always comfortable with classical music,” Angella said. “It’s almost like they’re afraid of it. But being in People and Vogue helps us with our mission of bringing classical music to the mainstream.”
“It’s amazing that people so young can be so passionate about a style of music that most kids in our generation don’t know a lot about,” Sarah Tipton, graduate assistant to the Lyceum Series, said.
In 1997 the sisters appeared on Bryan Adams’ “Unplugged” concert. Their innovative fuse of pop and classical gave birth to what they deem “Ahn-Plugged,” a way to present classical music in a modern, alternative format.
“We’re classically trained,” Angella said. “But we’re modern-classical. We like to play with living composers. For us it’s all about the beauty and the rhythm. Everything is very immediate and tells a story.”
Their talents have even garnered the attention of such composers as the Academy Award-winning Maurice Jarre who, along with various other composers, have written pieces just for the Ahn sisters.
One of the biggest challenges of the Ahn sisters isn’t musical at all. Anyone with siblings might say that constantly being around each other can be just as stressful as any career.
“There are so many things that are incredible about being around my sisters,” Angella said. “But some things can be stressful. We just know each other too intimately I think.”
However, as Angella explained, they’re very respectful of each other and know when to give each other space.
The Ahn Trio will perform Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. in the McComas Hall Theatre. The performance is free.
More info on the trio, including samples of their music, can be found at www.ahntrio.com.