Sister Bay, Wis. (June 21, 2021) – Midsummer’s Music’s resident string quartet, the Griffon String Quartet, has chosen a new violinist: Ji-Yeon Lee, an award-winning chamber musician and educator will join the quartet for the first time in a special summer concert on June 25.
Ms. Lee was awarded the title of laureate of the II Oleh Krysa International Violin Competition in Lviv, Ukraine. Her solo appearances include performances on the Millennium Stage at the Kennedy Center, Kodak Hall at the Eastman Theater, and Lviv Philharmonic Hall in Lviv, Ukraine. She has held associate positions with several orchestras including the Rochester Philharmonic, Buffalo Philharmonic, and Columbus Symphony. As an avid chamber musician, she has received numerous awards and has had opportunities to perform in Carnegie Weill Recital Hall and Seiji Ozawa Hall. Ji-Yeon is also a dedicated teacher and has been invited to teach and coach chamber music for various private studios and chamber music programs including Cord Studios in Gettysburg, City Strings, and Chamber Music Connection in Columbus, Ohio. Ji-Yeon received her bachelors and masters degrees at the Eastman School of Music under Oleh Krysa and a Professional Studies Diploma at the Cleveland Institute of Music under Stephen Rose.
Ms. Lee replaces Roy Meyer, who left the quartet in 2020 to pursue other opportunities. Griffon violinist Vinicius Sant’Ana, who is very pleased with the selection, said, “Playing with Ji-Yeon is amazing! When I play by her side, I feel like I become a better violinist.” Violist Blakeley Menghini expressed her delight, “Finding the right person was suddenly so easy when we played our first few notes with Ji-Yeon. Her personality and musicianship instantly drew us in and excited us for our future together!”
Ryan Louie, the Griffon’s cellist, summed it up for the group: “We are so happy that Ji-Yeon will be joining the Griffon String Quartet and Midsummer’s Music this year. Her beautiful playing and natural musicality will truly help us enrich our community. We are truly excited for what’s in store in the near future.”
As a Griffon String Quartet member, Ji-Yeon will participate in the group’s programs throughout Northeast Wisconsin: the Einstein Series of highly interactive programs for school-age children, including private or group lessons and educational outreach; the B Double Sharp program presenting mini concerts for the aging and disabled, targeting people with Alzheimer’s and dementia; and Community-Embedded programs that strengthen the musical infrastructure by demystifying chamber music and creating an experiential bridge from short presentations to full classical concerts.
Ji-Yeon’s premiere performance with the Griffon String Quartet will be at the Donald & Carol Kress Pavilion in Egg Harbor, Wisc., at 7:00pm on Friday, June 25. The concert repertoire includes Joseph Haydn’s String Quartet No. 53 in G Major, Op., 64/5, “the Lark,” Jessie Montgomery’s Strum, and Antonín Dvořák’s String Quartet No. 12 in F Major, Op. 96, “American.”
Tickets for all Midsummer’s Music concerts are $30 for adults and can be ordered at www.midsummersmusic.com or by phone at 920-854-7088. All programs are subject to change.
Reservations for all concerts must be made at least 24 hours in advance. Before making concert plans or purchasing tickets, concertgoers should review Midsummer’s COVID-19 policy at midsummersmusic.com.
One of the most vibrant and engaging quartets of their generation, the Griffon String Quartet was formed in the fall of 2018 as a collaboration between Midsummer’s Music, the Fine Arts Institute at East High in Green Bay, and St. Norbert College in De Pere. The quartet is a groundbreaking project to enrich the lives of children and adults throughout northeast Wisconsin through concerts, workshops, and music education outreach. Extraordinary musicians who have performed with orchestras and ensembles around the globe in the finest halls from Carnegie Hall and Brazil’s Teatro Municipal de São Paulo to Japan’s Suntory Hall, and won prestigious music competitions and awards, they are equally dedicated to music education and inspiring the next generation of music lovers. Each member of the Griffon String Quartet has advanced degrees and significant professional experience, both as educators and performers, and the ensemble has been recognized for “their youthful vigor, which is absolutely infectious!”
Midsummer’s Music was co-founded in 1990 by Jim and Jean Berkenstock, long-time Door County summer residents and principal orchestral players with the Lyric Opera of Chicago. What began as two concerts among friends has become one of the Midwest’s most anticipated chamber music series, bringing thousands of chamber music enthusiasts from around the globe to the magical Door County Peninsula.