SOUNDFORMS CHAMBER SERIES MUSICIANS

Brian Hong

Violinist

With a growing reputation for passionate and powerful performances, Korean-American violinist and coffee addict Brian Hong is forging a career as a soloist and chamber musician. Known for his commanding stage presence and honest interpretations, Mr. Hong has performed with such orchestras as the Juilliard Orchestra, Fairfax Symphony, American Youth Philharmonic, Chesapeake Orchestra, US Army Orchestra, National Philharmonic, and the Springfield Symphony. A dedicated chamber musician, Mr. Hong’s festival credits include Marlboro, Yellow Barn, Bowdoin International Music Festival, Music Academy of the West, the Taos School of Music, Kneisel Hall, and the Perlman Music Program.

Mr. Hong is a co-Artistic Director of NEXUS Chamber Music Chicago in Illinois, a collective of vibrant and dynamic musicians committed to providing classical music with the tools necessary to meet the demands of the 21s t century by combining unique programming and high production-value video assets with performances in both conventional and unconventional venues.

Mr. Hong is a graduate of Juilliard’s Artist Diploma program under the guidance of Laurie Smukler and Catherine Cho. As a Fellow of Carnegie Hall’s Ensemble Connect, he performed in a variety of venues in New York City and abroad, as well as maintaining a two-year teaching-artist partnership with Celia Cruz High School for Music in the Bronx. Mr. Hong also holds a Master’s degree from the Juilliard School, where he was awarded a prestigious Kovner Fellowship. In his spare time, Mr. Hong can be found brewing espresso or single-origin pour-overs at his home coffee bar.

Rannveig Marta Sarc

Violinist

Icelandic-Slovenian violinist, Rannveig Marta Sarc, is increasingly recognized as a versatile and dynamic musician. Born into a musical family, she has performed as soloist and chamber musician throughout Europe, North America and Asia.

Rannveig made her solo debut at age 14 with the Iceland Symphony Orchestra. She has since appeared as soloist with the Slovene Philharmonic, Iceland Youth Symphony and Reykjavik College of Music orchestras, among others.

As a chamber musician, Rannveig has performed with Jupiter Symphony Chamber Players and attended festivals in Ravinia, Taos, Prussia Cove and Kneisel Hall. She was invited into Juilliard’s selective Honors Chamber Music Program as a member of the Kahlo Quartet. She has collaborated with artists such as pianist, Inon Barnatan, soprano, Renée Fleming, cellists Natasha Brofsky and Frans Helmerson. She is a recipient of numerous awards, including the Rotary Scholarship and the American Scandinavian Society Cultural Grant.

An avid performer of contemporary music, Rannveig recently commissioned six duos for violin and viola with her mother, Svava Bernharðsdóttir, by six Icelandic women. They premiered the works at the Dark Music Days contemporary music festival in Iceland in 2020, which was broadcast at RÚV - Icelandic National Broadcasting Service.

Rannveig holds Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from The Juilliard School, where she was a proud recipient of a Kovner Fellowship. Her teachers include Catherine Cho, Laurie Smukler and Donald Weilerstein, as well as Robert Mealy on baroque violin.

Caeli Smith

Violinist and Violist

Called “intense, precise, and full of personality,” after performing the Penderecki Viola Concerto with The Juilliard Orchestra (OperaClick), Caeli Smith is a violinist and violist who has dedicated her career to chamber music, education, and social impact.

Caeli is on the viola and chamber music faculty of HeifetzPEG (a program of the Heifetz International Music Institute) and since 2016, she has been a New York Philharmonic Teaching Artist, working with children in public schools across New York City. Caeli was a fellow with Carnegie Hall’s Ensemble Connect for the 2018-2020 seasons. She is a teaching assistant for the ACHT Viola Studio at The Juilliard School, where she works with undergraduate and graduate students.

She is also a member of Noree Chamber Soloists and the New York Classical Players, and the hip-hop collective Shouthouse. She has performed internationally with ensembles such as the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, the Sejong Soloists, and the Verbier Chamber Orchestra.

Caeli has written for radio, TV, and print, and her articles have appeared in The Philadelphia Inquirer, as well as Strings and Symphony magazines. Caeli holds two degrees from The Juilliard School: a bachelor’s degree in violin performance and a master’s degree in viola performance. She was a principal violist of the Juilliard Orchestra, and received the William Schuman Prize for Outstanding Achievement and Leadership in Music.

In 2020, Caeli founded MusicAlly, an online platform that provides the highest quality music lessons to students from backgrounds underrepresented in classical music.

JULIAN MÜLLER

Cellist

American German cellist Julian Müller, performs as soloist, chamber musician and orchestral player in the United States and Europe. Hailed as “...haunting and mesmerizing...” by USA Today, Julian appeared as soloist with the Louisville Orchestra, giving world premiere performances of the ballet How They Fade, composed by him and art-pop band, YASSOU, on a commission from the Louisville Ballet Company. Julian has been presented on NPR Live, with Sergei Babayan. Other recent chamber music collaborations include performances with Simone Dinnerstein, Matt Haimovitz, Peter Salaff, and members of the Cleveland Orchestra. Julian appears frequently with the Orchestra of St. Luke’s and is a member of the Montclair Orchestra. Additionally, he has served as principal cellist of the Cleveland Institute of Music Orchestra, Mannes Orchestra, was a member of the New York String Orchestra Seminar, and was section cello with the Berkshire Symphony. Julian holds a Bachelor of Music degree from the Cleveland Institute of Music and a Master of Music and Professional Studies Diploma from the Mannes School of Music. Julian is currently pursuing a Doctorate of Musical Arts at Rutgers University studying with Jonathan Spitz. Other principal teachers include Timothy Eddy, Georg Faust, Ronald Feldman, and Sharon Robinson.