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Friends of Chamber Music Welcomes New Artistic Directors

Cellist Dmitiri Atapine and Pianist Hyeyeon Park (photos by DH Kim)

The Friends of Chamber Music Kansas City has changed artistic leadership for the first time in the organization’s 45-year history.

Pianist Hyeyeon Park and cellist Dmitri Atapine, both professors of music at the University of Nevada, Reno, will take over the artistic vision and planning for Friends of Chamber Music, tapping into their extensive personal experiences as chamber musicians and arts administrators, with a wealth of international connections.

In the announcement, Park cited the “revered traditions” of the organization in their commitment to continuing the Friends’ mission of bringing the world’s best interpreters of chamber music to Kansas City.

They are founders and artistic directors of Apex Concerts, a chamber music series based in Reno, Nevada, as well as co-directors of the Young Performers Program at Music@Menlo Festival.

Park and Atapine have performed separately and as a duo, championing works by living composers. The two have collaborated on numerous recordings, including the world-premiere recording of Lowell Liebermann’s cello sonatas. They’ve performed internationally and nationally, including at Lincoln Center, Kennedy Center and Carnegie Hall, are frequent collaborators with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, Music@Menlo Festival and Chamber Music Northwest, and have been featured on American Public Media and PBS Live from Lincoln Center.

In addition to planning for the Friends’ future concert seasons, Park and Atapine will be involved in expanding the organization’s community engagement and educational initiatives. Learn more at www.chambermusic.org.

CategoriesPerforming
Libby Hanssen

Originally from Indiana, Libby Hanssen covers the performing arts in Kansas City. She is the author of States of Swing: The History of the Kansas City Jazz Orchestra, 2003-2023. Along with degrees in trombone performance, Libby was a Fellow for the NEA Arts Journalism Institute at Columbia University. She maintains the culture bog "Proust Eats a Sandwich."

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