Avery Gagliano, 2022 Bravo! Vail Piano Fellow

Having just made her Carnegie Hall debut and released her debut album “Reflections” on the Steinway & Sons label, 20-year-old pianist Avery Gagliano captures audiences with her sensitivity, emotional depth, and musical expression.  Avery gained international attention as the First Prize and Best Concerto Prize winner of the 2020 10th National Chopin Piano Competition, and was the only American semifinalist at the 18th International Chopin Competition in 2021. Most recently, she was selected as one of this year’s two Bravo!Vail Piano Fellows.

Avery’s success has taken her to world-renown stages such as the Warsaw Philharmonic, Verbier Festival, Gilmore Festival, Ravinia Festival, Aspen Music Festival, WQXR Greene Space, WRTI Performance Studio, the GRAMMY Salute to Classical Music at Carnegie Hall, and the Louis Vuitton Foundation and the Salle Cortot in Paris.

This spring, Avery will perform with the Bravura Philharmonic Orchestra and Symphony in C. She has collaborated with several other symphonies in the United States, including the Aspen Philharmonic Orchestra, Tuscarawas Philharmonic, MostArts Festival Orchestra, Capital City Symphony, and most recently, the Oregon Mozart Players. Avery is also an avid chamber musician. She frequently performs as a guest artist with the Jupiter Symphony Chamber Players, and will collaborate with the Balourdet Quartet this summer at the Bravo!Vail Music Festival.

Avery received the Audience Prize at the 2019 Cliburn International Junior Piano Competition, and was the winner of the Aspen Music Festival Concerto Competition, MostArts Festival Piano Competition, and 2019 National YoungArts Competition.  She is an alumna of the Verbier Festival & Academy and the Lang Lang International Music Foundation’s Young Scholars Program, a four-year winner of the US Chopin Foundation Scholarship, and has made several appearances on Philadelphia’s WRTI classical radio and National Public Radio’s (NPR) From The Top. 

Avery is originally from Washington, D.C., where she studied with Marina Alekseyeva.  Avery currently resides in Philadelphia and studies at the Curtis Institute of Music with Robert McDonald.  She has also studied with Gary Graffman and Jonathan Biss while at Curtis.

Zhu Wang, 2022 Bravo! Vail Piano Fellow

Praised for his “technical mastery and deep sense of lyricism,” (The Durango Herald), pianist Zhu Wang was
awarded First Prize in the 2020 Young Concert Artists International Auditions. He is also the first prize winner
of the 2nd Zhuhai International Mozart Competition for Young Musicians, 4th Manhattan International Music
Competition, Hilton Head Young Artist Piano Competition, and the Juilliard Gina Bachauer International
Scholarship Piano Competition, and was a recipient of the Juilliard Mieczyslaw Munz Scholarship. In 2019, Zhu
was one of three finalists in the Clara Haskil International Piano Competition, and he has been a featured soloist
on WQXR’s Young Artist Showcase and WFMT’s Dame Myra Hess Memorial Concerts. The world -renowned
pianist Fou T’song recognized Zhu as an “excellent pianist with a natural sense of harmony and imagination,”
whose sensitive and engaging performances exhibit a remarkable depth of musicianship and poise beyond his age.
This season, Zhu will make his New York debut at Carnegie Hall’s Zankel Hall, and in Washington, DC at the
Kennedy Center’s Terrace Theater. He will also perform recitals at Hayden’s Ferry Chamber Music Series, Salon
de Virtuosi, and the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston.

Zhu has performed all over the world in China, Italy, Poland, Japan, and across the U.S. at prestigious venues
including the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall, Kammermusiksaal of
Berliner Philharmonie, Warsaw Philharmonic Concert Hall, Shanghai Concert Hall, Chicago Cultural Center and
The Morgan Library. Since his orchestral debut at age 14 with the Hilton Head Symphony Orchestra, where he
performed Mozart Piano Concerto No. 21, Zhu has soloed with Salzburg Chamber Soloists, Zermatt Music
Festival Orchestra, Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra, Brunensis Virtuosi Orchestra, and the Xiamen
Philharmonic.

An active chamber musician and champion of new music, Zhu performed the world premiere of American
composer Timo Andres’s Moving Etúdes on his national tour. His festival appearances include the Music
Academy of the West, Four Seasons Winter Workshop, Kneisel Hall Chamber Music Festival, International
Piano Academy Lake Como, PianoTexas International Festival & Academy, Shanghai International Music Festival,
Music Fest Perugia, and Amalfi Coast Music and Arts Festival in Italy.

Zhu has been honored to study with and perform for many influential pianists, including Gary Graffman, Arie
Vardi, Fou T’song, Stephen Hough, Murray Perahia, Jerome Lowenthal, Robert Levin, Matti Raekallio, and Jeremy
Denk. He is also the recipient of special prizes for the best Waltz, Preludes, and Mazurka in the 5th International
Chopin Young Artist Piano Competition and the 16th Asian Chopin International Piano Competition in Japan.

A native of Hunan, China, Zhu started learning piano at the age of five. He is a graduate of the Music Middle
School Affiliated to the Shanghai Conservatory of Music, where he studied with Zhe Tang, and Fou Ts'ong. He
received a Bachelor of Music degree from The Juilliard School, where he was also the recipient of the Gina
Bachauer and Mieczyslaw Munz Scholarship. Zhu is currently pursuing his post-baccalaureate diploma at Curtis
Institute of Music, under the tutelage of Robert McDonald. He gratefully acknowledges the support of the Bagby
Foundation for the Musical Arts.

Balourdet Quartet, 2022 Bravo! Vail Chamber Musicians in Residence

The Balourdet Quartet, based in Boston, Massachusetts, is currently in residence at the New England Conservatory’s Professional String Quartet Program. The quartet received the Grand Prize at the 2021 Concert Artists Guild Victor Elmaleh Competition as well as the top prize in the 2021 Premio Paolo Borciani in Reggio Emilia, Italy. The group also received the Gold Medal in the 2020 Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition, the Gold Medal and Audience Award at the 2021 Chamber Music Yellow Springs Competition, and the Second Prize in the 2019 Carl Nielsen International Chamber Music Competition.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Balourdet appeared in numerous virtual performances for institutions such as the Schneider Concert Series, the New England Conservatory’s First Mondays Series, Music For Food, and Massachusetts Peace Action. The group also curated and performed an educational program for over 500 children in schools across the Michiana region, as well as gave masterclasses through the Fischoff Chamber Music Academy. They have also conducted workshops and masterclasses for NEC’s Preparatory Division, Upper Valley Chamber Music Center, and string students in the Dallas area.

Highlights of the 2021-2022 season include Accademia Musicale Chigiana, La Jolla Summerfest, an in-person return to the Schneider Concert Series, and a recital in NEC’s Jordan Hall.

The Balourdet has shared the stage with renowned artists including Cho-Liang Lin, as well as members of the Dover Quartet. It has studied and performed at festivals including the Amelia Island Chamber Music Festival, Aspen Music Festival, Robert Mann String Quartet Institute, and Accademia Musicale Chigiana. The Balourdet String Quartet works primarily with Paul Katz at the New England Conservatory, as well as members of the Cleveland and Borromeo Quartets. The quartet was formed in 2018 at Rice University in Houston, Texas under the tutelage of James Dunham, Norman Fischer, and Cho-Liang Lin.

The Balourdet Quartet gets its name from Antoine Balourdet, chef extraordinaire at the Hotel St. Bernard and beloved member of the Taos School of
Music community.

Angela Bae, violin

Born in Seoul, Korea, Angela Bae began her musical aspirations at the age of three. She studied with Phillip Levy in Los Angeles, California and graduated in 2020 with her Bachelor’s degree with Paul Kantor at Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music. 

Angela has won awards in Korea and the United States, including the The Korea Times Competition, Alexander and Buono International Competition, Music Center Spotlight, and Mika Hasler Competition. She has appeared as soloist in venues such as Weill Hall, Disney Hall, and Sydney Town Hall. When she was 16, she became the youngest Concertmaster of the American Youth Symphony in LA.

As a chamber musician, she performed and worked with artists including James Dunham, Norman Fischer, Kenneth Goldsmith, and Gil Shaham. In 2018, she attended the Taos School of Music, working with pianists Robert McDonald and Thomas Sauer, as well as the Borromeo, Miro, and Brentano Quartets. From the friendship and musical companionship built during Taos the Balourdet Quartet, of which she is a violinist, was born.

She is currently pursuing her Master’s degree with Don Weilerstein at the New England Conservatory of Music Professional String Quartet Program. 

Justin DeFilippis, violin

Justin DeFilippis is a violinist of the Balourdet Quartet, currently in residence in the Professional String Quartet Program at the New England Conservatory. Previously, he completed his Master’s Degree at Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music under the tutelage of Cho-Liang Lin, and Bachelor’s at New England Conservatory working with Donald Weilerstein. He currently studies with Nicholas Kitchen of the Borromeo String Quartet. He completed a minor in music theory along with his performance degree from NEC. In high school, he attended the Juilliard School Pre-College Division, studying with Elizabeth Chang and graduating with the Commencement Award. An avid chamber musician, he has coached and played with members of the Brentano, Pacifica, Miro, Shanghai, Cleveland, Dover, and Ying Quartets as well as the Peabody Trio, and has participated in numerous solo and chamber masterclasses with such artists as Leonidas Kavakos, Augustin Hadelich, Ida Kavafian, and members of the Emerson and Juilliard Quartets. He was a two-time participant of the Taos School of Music, and has also attended the New York String Orchestra Seminar, the Yellow Barn Young Artist Program, the Aspen Center for Advanced Quartet Studies, and received the Kaplan Fellowship at the Bowdoin International Music Festival. He also was a National Finalist of the MTNA Competition Junior Division. Recently, he has also performed alongside Cho-Liang Lin and Jon Kimura Parker, members of Silkroad, and served as concertmaster of the Shepherd School Symphony on a number of occasions.

Benjamin Zannoni, viola

Benjamin Zannoni is the violist of the Balourdet Quartet, currently in residence in the Professional String Quartet Program at the New England Conservatory, where he studies with Martha Katz. He has received degrees from the Manhattan School of Music’s Pinchas Zukerman Performance Program and Orchestral Performance Program, as well as the Juilliard School and Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music. In the past, Ben has studied under Karen Dreyfus, Pinchas Zukerman, Patinka Kopec, Heidi Castleman, Robert Vernon, and James Dunham and has played in masterclasses for Koichiro Harada, Kazuhide Isomura, Roberto Diaz, Lawrence Dutton, Richard O’Neil, Richie Hawley, and Jutta Puchhammer-Sédillot. He has attended festivals such as the Young Artists Program at the National Arts Center in Ottawa Canada, Music Academy of the West, Sejong International Music Festival, and the Heifetz International Music Institute.

Russell Houston, cello

Russell Houston is the cellist of the Balourdet Quartet, currently in residence at the Professional String Quartet Program at the New England Conservatory. 

Russell is the recipient of top prizes at the Lynn Harrell Concerto Competition, Lennox International Young Artist Competition, Mondavi National Young Artists Competition, Sorantin International Competition, and the Samuel and Elinore Thaviu Competition. He has also performed as a soloist with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra and Plano Symphony Orchestra.

His festival appearances include the Aspen Music Festival, Kneisel Hall, New York String Orchestra, Sarasota Music Festival, Piatigorsky International Cello Festival, Pyongchang Music Festival, and Taos School of Music. Houston has had the privilege of sharing the stage with renowned artists such as Denis Bouriakov, Cho-Liang Lin, Brinton Smith, and members of the Cleveland and Dover Quartets.

Russell is currently pursuing a Graduate Diploma under the tutelage of Paul Katz at the New England Conservatory. Houston holds degrees from the Colburn Conservatory, Northwestern University, and Rice University. His primary teachers include Clive Greensmith, Hans Jensen, and Brinton Smith.