The Nancy Frampton
Rising Artists Series
2022 INAUGURAL SEASON
An Evening with Colombian Tenor David Rivera Bozón
April 2, 2022 at 7:00 p.m.
International Colombian tenor David Rivera Bozón brings more than sixteen years of experience in music performing to Atlanta in April 2022. A veteran of both operatic and stage works, Bozón’s favorite performances include Puccini’s Madama Butterfly, Mozart´s Die Zauberflöte, Beethoven´s 9th Symphony, and Einhorn´s Voices of Light. He focuses his varied career on sharing his voice and joy of singing with different latitudes and communities – from big theaters, to intimate gatherings, to flash mobs in public spaces.
With a passion for Spanish chamber works, Bozón’s repertoire includes Ramirez’ La Misa Criolla, Falla’s Siete Canciones Populares Españolas, Ginastera´s Cantos del Tucumán and Cinco Canciones Populares Argentinas.A graduate of both the New England Conservatory of Music and the National University of Colombia Conservatory, Bozón won the 2021 Latin American and Iberian Art Song Challenge and was a two-time finalist in the Talents of the World, Inc. Voice Competition.
An Evening with Nashville-based Zimri Quartet
July 23, 2022 at 7:00 p.m.
The Nashville-based Zimri Quartet brings together the versatile talent of internationally recognized solo and chamber musicians: violinists Sarah Page and Charissa Leung, violist Tim Richardson, and cellist MaryGrace Bender. The quartet of old and new friends formed when violinists Sarah and Charissa recently relocated to Nashville to perform with the Nashville Symphony. MaryGrace, Charissa, and Tim reconnected, all alumni of the Robert McDuffie Center at Mercer University. They eagerly welcomed Sarah and chose the name Zimri that means “my music, my praise” in Hebrew. Resident quartet of the Nashville Chamber Music Society, the four young artists seek to perform captivating programming with premier artistry.
Soprano Jasmine Habersham
October 29, 2022 at 7:00 p.m.
American soprano and Georgia native Jasmine Habersham is a versatile and dynamic performing artist whose most recent performances include The Atlanta Opera’s productions of Der Kaiser von Atlantis and The Threepenny Carmen, Madison Opera’s Opera in the Park Online and the Seattle Opera’s filmed version of Don Giovanni. In addition to performing with opera companies across the country, Habersham has served as a featured soloist in numerous concert productions including Szymanowski’s Stabat Mater, Schubert’s Mass in G, Handel's Messiah and Duke Ellington’s Concert of Sacred Music.
A graduate of the master’s program at the University of Cincinnati’s College-Conservatory of Music, Habersham received her bachelor’s degree in Vocal Performance at Shorter College in Rome, Georgia. She has won numerous awards including the Silver Medal for the 2020 American Traditions Competition, Special Award winner for the Lotte Lenya Competition, The Strauss Award (National Orpheus Competition) and the Young Artist Guild Award (Central City Opera).
2023 SEASON
Min Kwon, piano
January 28, 2023 at 7:30 p.m.
Dr. Min Kwon made her debut at twelve as piano soloist with the Korean Symphony and Seoul Philharmonic. She has performed over 25 concertos around the world under James Conlon, Alan Gilbert, Stanislaw Skrowaczewski, Xian Zhang, and Gerhardt Zimmerman, among others. Her many solo and chamber music appearances include critically acclaimed, sold-out recitals at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall and in Paris, Rome, Vienna, Prague, Madrid, Copenhagen, Seoul, Singapore, Sydney, and more.
Winner of the Gina Bachauer International Award, Kwon holds a D.M.A. and M.M. from The Juilliard School, where she served on the council (the first alumnus to be invited to join). She is Founder and Director of Center for Musical Excellence, a non-profit dedicated to mentoring and providing financial and professional opportunities to young artists.
Gabrielle Beteag, mezzo-soprano
March 18, 2023 at 7:00 p.m.
A native of Lawrenceville, Georgia, Gabrielle Beteag is a rising American mezzo-soprano praised for her “choice voice” (OperaWire) and “dramatically vivid” performances (Broadway World). A participant in the 2021 class of the Merola Opera Program, she joined San Francisco Opera’s Adler Fellowship Program in 2022.
Beteag was a Studio Player at the Atlanta Opera during the 2020–21 season, where she performed Mercedes in the Big Tent production of The Threepenny Carmen. Her other role credits include Woman in a Hat/Duchess (The Ghosts of Versailles), Lady Billows (Albert Herring), Mme. De Croissy (Dialogues des Carmélites) and Secretary (The Consul).
An accomplished competitive singer, Beteag was a Grand Finals Winner of the 2020 Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions and has received accolades from other competitions, including the Shreveport Opera Mary Jacobs Singer of the Year Competition (Runner Up, 2020), the Opera Birmingham Vocal Competition (Finalist, 2019) and the Kristin Lewis Vocal Scholarship Competition (Grand Prize Winner, 2018).
The Schubert Piano Trio
April 15, 2023 at 7:00 p.m.
The Schubert Piano Trio features violinist Dae Hee Ahn, cellist Samuel DeCaprio, and pianist Min Kwon.
Atlanta is now home to Ahn, who joined the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra in 2020. She has soloed with multiple orchestras including the New Jersey Philharmonic, Livingston Symphony, and the High Mountain Symphony. A graduate of Juilliard, Ahn is currently pursuing a DMA at the Yale School of Music.
A doctoral fellow at Julliard, DeCaprio is quickly establishing himself as one of today's most creative artists and collaborators. With performances taking place from the jungles of Bali to the meditative depths of an underground New York City crypt to Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall, he recently made his Lincoln Center concerto debut presenting the United States premiere of Grażyna Bacewicz’s Cello Concerto No. 2 with the Juilliard Orchestra.
Kwon’s many solo and chamber music appearances include critically acclaimed, sold-out recitals at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall and in Paris, Rome, Vienna, Prague, Madrid, Copenhagen, Seoul, Singapore, Sydney, and more. She is the winner of the Gina Bachauer International Award and is the Founder and Director of Center for Musical Excellence, a non-profit dedicated to mentoring and providing financial and professional opportunities to young artists.
Nina Bernat, double bass
October 21, 2023 at 7:00 p.m.
Double bassist Nina Bernat makes her Atlanta debut at Morningside Presbyterian Church. She is a first prize winner at the 2019 International Society of Bassists Solo Competition as well as first and grand prize winner of the 2022 Minnesota Orchestra Young Artist Competition. At the age of 19, she performed as guest principal of the Israel Philharmonic under Adrás Schiff and Osmo Vänskä as well as with the New York Philharmonic under Gustavo Dudamel. As a recipient of the 2019 Keston MAX Fellowship, she performed with the London Symphony Orchestra on a subscription series concert at the Barbican Centre and in a chamber music concert for LSO Discovery Day at LSO St. Lukes.
Nina began studying under the instruction of her father and former member of the Israel Philharmonic, Mark Bernat. She has continued her studies with Tim Cobb and cellist Astrid Schween at the Juilliard School as a proud recipient of the Kovner Fellowship. She has been an invited participant of festivals such as the Verbier Festival Orchestra, Music Academy of the West, Bowdoin International Music Festival, Yellowbarn Young Artists Program, and the New York String Orchestra Seminar.
2024 SEASON
SPELMAN COLLEGE GLEE CLUB
February 3, 7:00 p.m., Sanctuary
The famous Spelman Glee Club, under the direction of Dr. Kevin Johnson, will perform for free as part of a fund raising campaign for the Nancy Frampton Rising Artist Series. The women’s Glee Club is the premier performance organization for the College and sings for most campus events. It has had the unique opportunity to perform with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, with world-renowned opera singer Jessye Norman, and as a part of the annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. celebration. Spelman College is celebrating their 100th anniversary in 2024.
CELLIST YUNWEN CHEN & PIANIST XIYU DENG
September 21, 7:00 p.m., Sanctuary
A native of China, Yunwen Chen is establishing her career as an active solo and chamber performer. Yunwen received her Master’s degree from New England Conservatory, studying with Paul Katz. She was a founding member of the Y. trio at Shanghai Conservatory of Music, who won the silver prize at the Fischoff Chamber Music Competition. Two of her chamber music groups received Honors Ensemble at NEC. She is a member of the New England Conservatory Teaching and Performance Fellowship. Yunwen completed her undergraduate studies at Eastman School of Music under the guidance of Alan Harris. She is currently pursuing a Graduate Diploma at New England Conservatory.
Pianist Xiyu Deng began studying the piano at the age of five. She has performed as a soloist throughout Europe, Asia, Australia and the United States at the internationally notable concert halls such as Carnegie’s Zankel Hall, Merkin Concert Hall at Kaufman Music Center in New York City, New England Conservatory’s Jordan Hall in Boston, and Forbidden City Concert Hall in Beijing. She was awarded top prizes at the BNP Paribas ‘Rising Star’ Piano Festival in 2013, New England Conservatory Honors Competition in 2016 and the second prize in Open Class at the 17th Hong Kong-Asia Piano Open Competition in 2012. She pursued her Bachelor of Music degree at the Central Conservatory of Music as a student of Dr. Bo Tong, and Master of Music degree with Mr. Gabriel Chodos at the New England Conservatory. She is finishing her Doctorate of Musical Arts degree under Dr. Joanne Polk at Manhattan School of Music, and is a teaching assistant there in piano.
SOPRANO CHELSEA LEHNEA
October 20, 5:00 p.m., Sanctuary
Soprano Chelsea Lehnea, hails from Ringgold, Georgia, and is known for her powerful artistry, fearless personality, and unique sense of style. She has established herself as a rising opera star, studying with some of the world's best opera programs, including the internationally renowned Santa Fe Opera's Apprentice Singer Program and the prestigious Merola Opera Program in San Francisco. Critics have praised her “mercurial colored, highly responsive instrument that flies seamlessly through its registers.” Lehnea has secured top honors around the globe, claiming First Place at the Loren L. Zachary Vocal Competition, Premiere Opera Foundation Live Vocal Competition, Opera at Florham Vocal Competition, and the Camille Coloratura Awards Vocal Competition.
Chelsea recently helped New York City's Teatro Nuevo bring to life an opera that had not been heard in almost 200 years when she took on the title role in Carolina Uccelli's Anna di Resburgo. Teatro Nuevo's resurfacing of this forgotten work received significant attention, garnering coverage from outlets like the The New York Times and the Wall Street Journal, and leading Chelsea to be named OperaWire's "Artist of the Week." In fact, The New Yorker described Chelsea's performance in the piece as "a soprano with a gleaming upper register, radiated righteous force in the title role." Chelsea will actually be performing two pieces from this unique work during her October concert, making Atlanta audiences one of the lucky few to hear songs from Anna di Resburgo since 1835.
DUO HARPISTS JUAN RIVEROS & SAGE HARRISON
November 2, 7:00 p.m., Sanctuary
This November, the Nancy Frampton Rising Artists Series is excited to welcome two young harpists who are redefining what it means to play the instrument – international award-winning “harp nerd” Juan Riveros and Atlanta native Sage Harrison.
Juan epitomizes the concept of a rising star in classical music – he has won multiple competitions, performed as a guest principal harpist with various orchestras (including the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra), and composed his own works for the harp. Recently, he became Instructor of Harp at Michigan State University, where he is helping to nurture "a new generation of harpists bridging a variety of styles and artistic avenues" like himself. Juan's passion for the instrument also extends to fostering diversity in the harp community – he serves as the Diversity Coordinator for the American Harp Society and is Co-Chair of the organization's IDEA (Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility) Committee.
Sage is studying harp performance at Vanderbilt University after years of performing with Atlanta's Urban Youth Harp Ensemble and studying with Elisabeth Remy-Johnson, Principal Harp of the ASO. She joined the Atlanta Symphony Youth Orchestra in 2020, where she served as principal harpist for four years. A graduate of Charles R. Drew Charter School, Sage was one of only three students in the ASO Talent Development Program’s 2024 graduating class, and The Nancy Frampton Rising Artists Series is excited to help her progress in her professional performing career.
Juan and Sage have curated a compelling program of duets and solos that features several Latin American pieces, including the Venezuelan folk song "Las Tres Damas" and music by Paraguayan harpist Alfredo Rolando Ortiz, Argentinian composer Maria Suarez, and Mexican composer Mario Ruiz Armengol. Juan will also perform one of his original compositions, "Concert Fantasy on Pájaro Campana."