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2027 FESTIVAL ARTISTS
Horszowski Trio
“The Horszowskis are power players.” (The Los Angeles Times)
Horszowski Trio
Jesse Mills, Violin | Ole Akahoshi, Cello | Rieko Aizawa, Piano
Giving performances that are “lithe, persuasive” (The New York Times), “eloquent and enthralling” (The Boston Globe), and described as “the most compelling American group to come on the scene” (The New Yorker), the Horszowski Trio has quickly become a vital force in the international chamber music world since their formation in 2011. In 2023, the “Horszowski Trio Prize” was created by the prestigious Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition, to award piano trio winners.
In 2019, the Horszowski Trio made its London debut in a sold-out concert presented by Wigmore Hall. Their success led to a 21-concert-tour in Germany in 2022, acclaimed by major critics: "This ensemble can play anything."; "With all the intensity of the expression that the three musicians achieve, they play in a finely tuned manner, span gripping musical arcs, work out surprising details, amaze with their interpretive imagination and stylistically confident sensitivity.”; "While listening to their Dvorak Dumky Trio, you couldn't believe that it was not a Czech but an American ensemble playing."
The Trio takes its inspiration from the musicianship, integrity, and humanity of the pre-eminent pianist Mieczysław Horszowski (1892–1993); the ensemble’s pianist, Rieko Aizawa, was Horszowski’s last pupil at the Curtis Institute in Philadelphia. Described as “power players” by the Los Angeles Times, the Horszowski Trio’s repertoire includes works by many of the composers with whom Mr. Horszowski had personal interaction, including Gabriel Fauré, Enrique Granados, Bohuslav Martinů, Maurice Ravel, Camille Saint-Saëns and Heitor Villa-Lobos.
The Horszowski Trio’s debut recording – an album of works by Gabriel Fauré, Camille Saint-Saëns, and Vincent d’Indy on the Bridge label – was released in 2014 and dedicated to the memory of Mieczysław Horszowski. Gramophone praised the “exemplary performance” of the “highly accomplished group,” concluding, “I long to hear more of the Horszowski Trio.” Their second recording, the complete piano trios of Robert Schumann on AVIE Records also received tremendous acclaim: “great care and affection” (BBC Radio); “intoxicating” (Gramophone); “exciting and deeply felt” (Strings); “fresh, supple and fantastic” (The Strad).
The Horszowski Trio is also a passionate advocate for the music of our time. Following their recording of the complete R. Schumann piano trios, they celebrated the 10th anniversary of their debut, presenting “Phantasiestücke Project – Homage to R. Schumann” with three new works by American composers from different generations: Derek Bermel, Paul Chihara and David Fulmer. In addition, the Trio’s violinist Jesse Mills, a two-time Grammy nominee who is also a composer and arranger, wrote “Painted Shadow” for the ensemble; the work was commissioned by and premiered at Bargemusic in Brooklyn, New York.
They worked closely with the legendary composer, Charles Wuorinen (1938-2020) when they performed his Trio No.1 in their debut concert at the 92nd Street Y in New York City. They aimed to continue their working relationship with the composer, but unfortunately Mr. Wuorinen passed away in 2020 unexpectedly. However, a year later, the score of his Trio No. 2 which had been written for the Horszowski Trio was discovered by his partner. The trio gave the world premiere of the work at the Library of Congress in 2025.
During the COVID pandemic, the trio managed to keep performing, including a special project of several performances of Morton Feldman's epic, two-hour-long Piano Trio -- an artistically rewarding and timely work which offered an opportunity for poignant reflection on the isolation of the times and a hopeful and spiritual oasis. That led to their recent repeat performance of the work in celebration of Feldman’s 100th Anniversary. They performed on his actual 100th birthday, January 12, 2026 at State University of New York in Buffalo, where he taught and composed the work.
The Horszowski Trio is based in New York City. They are also passionate about working with the next generation of musicians. In addition to giving masterclasses at major conservatories, they work with Horszowski Trio Prize winning groups every year at the Mimir Festival, they have been active as a visiting ensemble-in-residence at such schools as the Eastman School of Music, University of Michigan, and Longy School of Music. They also have a partnership with the Midori & Friends Foundation, working with the young musicians of New York City.
Photo Credit: Lisa-Marie Mazzucco
Two-time Grammy nominated violinist Jesse Mills enjoys performing music of many genres, from classical to contemporary, as well as composed and improvised music of his own invention.
Since his concerto debut at the Ravinia Festival in Chicago, Mr. Mills has performed throughout the U.S. and Canada. He has been a soloist with the Phoenix Symphony, the Colorado Symphony, the New Jersey Symphony, the Green Bay Symphony, Juilliard Chamber Orchestra, the Denver Philharmonic, the Teatro Argentino Orchestra (in Buenos Aires, Argentina), and the Aspen Music Festival's Sinfonia Orchestra.
As a chamber musician Jesse Mills has performed throughout the U.S. and Canada, including concerts at Lincoln Center's Alice Tully Hall, Carnegie Hall, the 92nd Street Y, the Metropolitan Museum, the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC, Boston's Gardener Museum, Chicago’s Ravinia Festival, and the Marlboro Music Festival. He has also appeared at prestigious venues in Europe, such as the Barbican Centre of London, La Cité de la Musique in Paris, Amsterdam’s Royal Carré Theatre, Teatro Arcimboldi in Milan, and the Palais des Beaux Arts in Brussels. Mills is co-founder of Horszowski Trio and Duo Prism, a violin-piano duo with Rieko Aizawa, which earned 1st Prize at the Salieri Zinetti International Competition in Italy in 2006. With Ms. Aizawa, Mills became co-artistic director of the Alpenglow Chamber Music Festival in Colorado in 2010.
Mills is also known as a pioneer of contemporary works, a renowned improvisational artist, as well as a composer. He earned Grammy nominations for his performances of Arnold Schoenberg's music, released by NAXOS in 2005 and 2010. He can also be heard on the Koch, Centaur, Tzadik, Max Jazz and Verve labels for various compositions of Webern, Schoenberg, Zorn, Wuorinen, and others. As a member of the FLUX Quartet from 2001-2003, Mills performed music composed during the last 50 years, in addition to frequent world premieres. As a composer and arranger, Mills has been commissioned by venues including Columbia University’s Miller Theater, the Chamber Music Northwest festival in Portland, OR and the Bargemusic in NYC.
Jesse Mills began violin studies at the age of three. He graduated with a Bachelor of Music degree from The Juilliard School in 2001. He studied with Dorothy DeLay, Robert Mann and Itzhak Perlman. Mr. Mills lives in New York City, and he is on the faculty at Conservatory of Music of Brooklyn College. In 2010 the Third Street Music School Settlement in NYC honored him with the ‘Rising Star Award’ for musical achievement. He also received the "Achievement Award" from the Chamber Music Center of New York in 2023.
Born and raised in Berlin, Germany, Ole Akahoshi is known for the rare combination of musical sensitivity and technical mastery, which has earned the admiration of musicians and critics across the globe.
As a soloist he has performed with the Orchestra of St. Luke’s under the direction of Yehudi Menuhin, Symphonisches Orchester Berlin, and the Czechoslovakian Radio Orchestra, among others. The Los Angeles Times praised his performance of the Haydn Concerto for its “technical solidity, fluent passage work and perfect intonation,” continuing, “Akahoshi made a large and edgeless tone of a buttered-rum quality, and conquered all the many hurdles of his assignment with panache.”
Akahoshi has collaborated with such esteemed musicians as Sarah Chang, Leon Fleisher, Ani Kavafian, Karl Leister, Yo-Yo Ma, Edgar Meyer, Garrick Ohlsson, Gil Shaham, David Shifrin, the Tokyo String Quartet, the Michelangelo Quartet, and the Keller Quartet. He has also performed and served on the faculties at numerous festivals including the Aspen Music Festival, Banff Centre for the Arts, and Norfolk Chamber Music Festival.
He was the youngest cellist to be accepted as a student of the legendary Pierre Fournier at the age of eleven. Later, he continued his studies with Aldo Parisot at the Juilliard School and at the Yale School of Music, and with Janos Starker at Indiana University. He is now the director of the Yale Cellos, a Grammy-nominated ensemble, and is Assistant Professor of Cello at the Yale School of Music. He is also on the faculty at Manhattan School of Music and at Mannes School of Music. He joined the Horszowski Trio in 2020.
Praised by the NY Times for an “impressive musicality, a crisp touch and expressive phrasing”, Japanese pianist Rieko Aizawa has performed throughout the U.S., Canada and Europe, including New York City’s Lincoln Center, Boston's Symphony Hall, Chicago’s Orchestra Hall, Vienna’s Konzerthaus, and Wigmore Hall in London.
At the age of thirteen, Ms. Aizawa was brought to the attention of conductor Alexander Schneider on the recommendation of the pianist Mitsuko Uchida. Schneider engaged Ms. Aizawa as soloist with his Brandenburg Ensemble at the opening concerts of Tokyo's Casals Hall. Later that year, Schneider presented her in her United States début concerts at the Kennedy Center and Carnegie Hall with his New York String Orchestra. She has since established her own unique musical voice.
Ms. Aizawa is also an active chamber musician. The youngest-ever participant at the Marlboro Music Festival, she has performed as a guest with string quartets such as the Guarneri Quartet and the Orion Quartet. She is a founding member of the Horszowski Trio and of the prize-winning Duo Prism. Ms. Aizawa became artistic director of the Alpenglow Chamber Music Festival in Colorado in 2010.
Recently, Ms. Aizawa’s solo debut recording of Scriabin’s and Shostakovich’s “24 Preludes” was released by Altus in Japan, and her second album of Messiaen's and Faure's preludes is coming out in the upcoming season. Ms. Aizawa also has a great interest in exploring unusual repertoire. - the St. Paul Pioneer Press said of her performance with the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra conducted by Hans Graf: "the Salieri Piano Concerto in C was played so splendidly by Rieko Aizawa. Hers was a graceful reading. .... Aizawa's performance lent the work a respect it rarely receives." In the same year, she received the Washington Award.
Ms. Aizawa was the last pupil of Mieczyslaw Horszowski at the Curtis Institute and she also studied with Seymour Lipkin and Peter Serkin at the Juilliard School. Ms. Aizawa lives in New York City, and she is on the faculty at Bard College Conservatory of Music, Conservatory of Music of Brooklyn College and the Juilliard School. Ms. Aizawa is a Steinway Artist.