OAK Trio (Baltimore Debut)

The OAK Trio makes its Baltimore debut with a chamber music program centered on the shared humanity expressed through cultural songs and dances. The ensemble features pianist Evren Ozel, violinist Nathan Amaral, and cellist Leland Ko, three young soloists whose contrasting musical personalities come together in works by Haydn, Gabriela Lena Frank, Paul Schoenfeld, and Dvořák.

Founded in Boston in fall 2024, the trio takes its name from the initials in the musicians’ surnames. Its oak symbolism reflects strength, endurance, and the cultural connections shared across different communities. The program moves from Haydn’s Classical balance and wit through Frank’s Peruvian-inspired folk imagery and Schoenfeld’s energetic blend of café, jazz, Roma, honky-tonk, and Broadway influences, concluding with Dvořák’s folk-inflected “Dumky” Trio.

When: October 24

Venue: Baltimore Museum of Art

Tickets: Suggested donation of $10

Seating: General seating

Lineup: Evren Ozel, piano; Nathan Amaral, violin; Leland Ko, cello

Program: Franz Joseph Haydn, Piano Trio in A major, Hob. XV/18; Gabriela Lena Frank, Four Folk Songs for Piano Trio; Paul Schoenfeld, Café Music; Antonín Dvořák, Piano Trio in E minor, Op. 90, “Dumky”

Program notes: Haydn’s A-major Trio reflects the composer’s characteristic blend of clarity, elegance, playfulness, and dramatic contrast. The work’s demanding piano writing and shifts between lyrical delicacy, minor-key intensity, and lively syncopation were crafted for accomplished performers rather than casual amateurs.

Frank’s Four Folk Songs for Piano Trio draws loosely on the melodies and rhythms of Peru, the composer’s mother’s homeland. Its four movements evoke the María Angola church, children playing with Peruvian toys, the guitar-and-charango traditions of social gatherings, and the imagined sounds of the pre-Inca culture associated with Chavín de Huantar.

Schoenfeld’s Café Music was conceived as sophisticated dinner music that might also find a place in the concert hall. Its three movements combine classical chamber writing with Roma music, honky-tonk, Broadway, jazz, and other vernacular styles. The music alternates between a restless, jazzy opening, a languid ballad, and a virtuosic finale that suggests controlled musical pandemonium.

Dvořák’s “Dumky” Trio is built almost entirely from variations on the dumka, a Slavic folk lament that alternates melancholy passages with livelier, often dance-like sections. Written in 1890–91, the six-movement work combines rhapsodic folk expression with sophisticated chamber technique and became one of Dvořák’s most popular compositions.

Performers: Pianist Evren Ozel is a Bronze Medalist and Mozart Concerto Prize winner from the 2025 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition and has received Avery Fisher and Salon de Virtuosi career grants. He has performed with the Cleveland Orchestra, Fort Worth Symphony, and Jacksonville Symphony, as well as in recitals for La Jolla Music Society, Capital Region Classical, and Cal Performances.

Violinist Nathan Amaral won the 2024 Sphinx Competition and was named a Classic FM 30 Under 30 Rising Star. Praised by Yo-Yo Ma, he has appeared with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Philadelphia Orchestra, and Philharmonia Orchestra, and has performed at Royal Albert Hall, Wigmore Hall, the Lucerne Festival’s KKL, and Boston’s Symphony Hall.

Cellist Leland Ko, a Chinese-Canadian musician, won first prize in the 2024 Naumburg Cello Competition. His performances have included Merkin Hall, Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall, Symphony Hall, Jordan Hall, and Sanders Theatre, along with appearances as a soloist with the Montreal Symphony, Roswell Symphony, Apollo Ensemble, Hong Kong Generation Next Arts Festival Youth Orchestra, and Boston Philharmonic Youth Orchestra.

Ensemble background: The trio formed from the musicians’ shared enthusiasm for chamber music and for the personal exchange that the genre encourages. Its members describe the group as the combination of three distinct artistic personalities into a single musical entity.

Showtimes: Not listed.

Run time: Not listed.

Ages: Not specified.

Accessibility: No accessibility information is provided.

Program note: The program is subject to change without notice.

Contact: Shriver Hall Concert Series, 3400 N. Charles St., Shriver Hall, Suite 14, Baltimore, MD 21218-2698; 410-516-7164; info@shriverconcerts.org.