Biography
The Ahn Trio comprises three Korean-American siblings—Angella Ahn, Lucia Ahn, and Maria Ahn—who perform together as a classical ensemble. Born in Seoul, South Korea, the twins Maria and Lucia arrived first, followed two years afterward by Angella. Although all three began studying piano during childhood, Lucia remained on that instrument while Angella switched to violin and Maria chose cello. Their initial public performances occurred in 1979, after which the family relocated to the United States and the sisters entered Juilliard in 1981. National visibility arrived in 1987 when Time magazine profiled them in its “Asian-American Whiz Kids” feature, prompting television spots and further press attention. Chesky Records began documenting their work in 1995 with the release of Paris Rio, an album devoted to Villa-Lobos and Ravel, while the trio also maintained an active concert schedule that, by 1998, often featured the free-ranging, genre-blending programs they called “Ahn-Plugged.” After signing with EMI they issued Dvorak: Piano Trios in 1999, pairing works by Dvorák with pieces by Shostakovich and Josef Suk. Their next project, Ahn-Plugged, appeared in June 2000 and contained compositions by Kenji Bunch, Astor Piazzolla, Leonard Bernstein, Eric Ewazen, and Michael Nyman before closing with a rendition of the David Bowie/Pat Metheny song “This Is Not America.” Groovebox, their fourth album, arrived on 22 October 2002 and opened with the Doors’ “Riders on the Storm,” followed by additional selections from Nyman, Piazzolla, Bunch, and Maurice Jarre. Their fifth release, Lullaby for My Favorite Insomniac, marked a shift to the Sony BMG Masterworks imprint when it surfaced on the RCA Red Seal label on 1 April 2008.
Albums
