HELEN KIM VIOLIN
NOV 3, 2024 3PM
ATLANTA MUSIC PROJECT
CENTER FOR PERFORMANCE & EDUCATION
JULIE COUCHERON PIANO
Atlanta Music Project Board
of Directors
Philip M. Juravel, CPA, Chair
Jennifer Dorian, Vice Chair
Byron Gibbs, Treasurer
Racheal Woods, Secretary
Sarah Griesenauer Barros, Ben Cherian, Anne Cross, Deva Hirsch, Valerie L. Holmes, James F. Lock III, Aaron C. Mitchell, Ceasar C. Mitchell Jr., Aisha Moody, Shawn Pacely, Andy D. Pittman, Dantes Rameau, John Sparrow
Atlanta Music Project Staff
Aisha Moody, Co-Founder & Chief Program Officer
Amber Taylor, Associate Director of AMP Academy
Breanna Johnson, Director of Choral Programs
Cruz Duhart, Operations Associate
Dantes Rameau, Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer
Dennis Freeman, Van Driver
D’Laney Bowry, Development & Grants Associate
Durand Bailey, Senior Director of Operations
Dr. Emily Boone, Music Career Advisor
Isaiah Cuffey, Preparatory School Program Manager
Jack W. Wagner, Director of Grants
José L. Morales, Marketing & Graphic Design Associate
Lauren Jones, Program Operations Associate
Lauren Spence, Executive Assistant to the Chief Executive Officer
Liesl McWhorter, Youth Orchestras Program Manager
Lydia Falcon, After-School Programs Associate
Michael Crawford, Facilities Manager
Miriam Huppert, Director of College & Career Services
Ron Pace, Finance Manager
Atlanta Music Project INSTITUTIONAL DONORS
Funding provided in part by the Fulton County Board of Commissioners under the guidance of the Department of Community Development.
Major funding for this organization is provided by the Fulton County Board of Commissioners.
This program is supported in part by the City of Atlanta Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs.
ATLANTA MUSIC PROJECT
PREPARATORY STRING ORCHESTRA II
DR. LANA TEKO, CONDUCTOR
D Scale Round...............................Gerald E. Anderson & Robert S. Frost
D Scale Waltz................................Gerald E. Anderson & Robert S. Frost
Ode to Joy..........................................................Ludwig Van Beethoven
HELEN KIM, violin
JULIE COUCHERON, piano
Praeludium and Allegro....................................................Fritz Kreisler
Sonata in A major for violin and piano..............................César Franck
I. Allegretto ben moderato
II. Allegro
III. Ben moderato: Recitativo-Fantasia
IV. Allegretto poco mosso
String Quartet No. 3 in G Major, K. 156.........Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
III. Tempo di Menuetto
Foster Wilson, violin
Joshua Croom, viola
Priya Gingrich, cello
Filter for Solo violin.........................................Daniel Bernard Roumain
Carmen Fantasy, Op. 25............................................Pablo de Sarasate
ARTIST-IN-RESIDENCE
HELEN KIM VIOLIN
Helen Hwaya Kim made her orchestral debut with the Calgary Philharmonic at the age of six, and has gone on to become a respected and sought-after artist. She has appeared as a soloist with the Boston Pops at Boston’s Symphony Hall, as well as with the Milwaukee and Atlanta Symphony Orchestras.
Ms. Kim earned her Bachelor and Master’s Degree from the Juilliard School, where her teachers included Cho-Liang Lin and Dorothy DeLay. While at Juilliard, she served as Concertmaster of the Juilliard Orchestra and was the winner of the Juilliard Concerto Competition at both the pre–college and college levels. She is the recipient of more than one hundred national and international awards. She won the prestigious Artists International Competition in New York and, as a result, gave debut recitals at Carnegie Weill Hall and the Aspen Summer Music Festival.
A native of Canada, Ms. Kim has been engaged by many of Canada’s leading orchestras, including the National Arts Center Orchestra, Montreal Metropolitan Orchestra, Vancouver Symphony, Calgary Philharmonic, McGill Chamber Orchestra, and the Windsor, Regina, Victoria and Prince George Symphonies. She has also appeared with the DeKalb, New Orleans, Aspen and Banff Festival Orchestras, and with orchestras in the United Kingdom, Germany and Poland.
Ms. Kim has toured extensively throughout Canada and the United States, including performances at Alice Tully Hall and the Santa Fe and La Jolla International Music Festivals, where she performed with Cho-Liang Lin, Gary Hoffman, Andre Previn, and the Orion String Quartet. She performed Bach’s Double violin concerto with Hilary Hahn at the Amelia Island Chamber music festival. She most recently made her debut performance at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Other festival highlights include performances at the Highlands-Cashiers, Banff, Zenith ,El Paso Pro Musica, St. Miguel De Allende and Sitka International Chamber Music Festivals.
An avid performer of new music, she can be heard on the recent CD release of the works of Alvin Singleton on Albany records. Helen performed the world premiere of the “Concertino” by Chen Yi, scored for solo violin and orchestra that was commissioned especially for her and the KSU Orchestra and was recently released by Centaur in 2016.
Ms. Kim currently resides in Atlanta, Georgia, where she served as Assistant and Associate Concertmaster for the Atlanta Symphony for three seasons. She is currently the Assistant Concertmaster of the Atlanta Opera Orchestra and serves as Professor of Violin and Chair of the String Department at Kennesaw State University.
JULIE COUCHERON PIANO
Born in Oslo, Norway, Ms. Coucheron began playing the piano at age four. She earned her Bachelor and Master’s Degree with honors from the Royal Academy of Music in London. At a young age, Ms. Coucheron had already established an international career, winning awards and prizes in Italy, Germany, UK and in the United States.
Ms. Coucheron has worked with musicians such as Claude Frank, Emanuel Ax, Chee-Yun Kim, Christopher O’Riley and Yo-Yo Ma and has toured Europe, America, South America and Asia, performing regularly in halls like Verizon Hall, Wigmore Hall, the Kennedy Center and Carnegie Hall.
Ms. Coucheron has performed with the Norwegian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Oslo Philharmonic, Trondheim Symphony Orchestra, Jena Symphony Orchestra, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Atlanta Philharmonic and the Ukrainian Symphony Orchestra in Kiev.
Ms. Coucheron regularly performs at festivals such as the Oslo Chamber Music Festival, Bergen International Music Festival, Amelia Island Music Festival, Madison Chamber Music Festival, Juneau Jazz and Classics and at La Jolla Summer Fest. She is Artistic Director of the Fjord Cadenza festival in Norway, the Kon Tiki Chamber Music Festival in Oslo, Norway and Georgian Chamber Players in Atlanta, GA. In addition, Ms. Coucheron also performed during the 2003 Winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake City, Utah, and at the 2012 Summer Olympic Games in London.
Ms. Coucheron enjoys a close collaboration with her brother, the Concertmaster of the Atlanta Symphony, David Coucheron, and together they have released two recordings, ‘Debut’ and ‘David and Julie’ on the Naxos label.
In addition to her busy concert schedule, Ms. Coucheron is a sought after teacher and pedagogue. In August 2014, she was appointed Assistant Professor at Kennesaw State University in Atlanta, Georgia, one of the top 50 state schools in the United States.
Ms. Coucheron has given masterclasses and taught at schools such as the New England Conservatory, Emory University and Mercer University.
Ms. Coucheron enjoys a various and wide range of styles and repertoire emerging from her highly trained classical background to the more contemporary and popular music. Recent collaborations include performances with the Steve Miller Band and Elton John.
DR. LANA TEKO CONDUCTOR
Dr. Lana Teko is a freelance violist and teacher in the metropolitan Atlanta area. She is in demand for adjudication, clinics, and master classes in Metro Atlanta and beyond. An avid chamber musician and enthusiast, Dr. Teko coaches chamber music and Viola Choir for At First Sight Chamber Music Workshop each summer.
Dr. Teko began playing the violin as a sixth-grader in her school orchestra and holds dear the encouragement of Kimbraly Grimes, her first significant teacher-mentor.
Dr. Teko holds music degrees from Florida State University, Georgia State University, and the University of Alabama where she obtained the Doctor of Musical Arts degree.
Under viola study with Dr. Susan Dubois of The University of North Texas, she became acquainted with Karen Tuttle’s ‘Coordination’ techniques; bringing profound insight to Lana’s teaching and performing style. Her other influential teacher-mentor include Karen Clarke and the late Dr. Michael Allen.
Dr. Teko has maintained a private teaching studio and performed in regional orchestras since 1998. She currently resides in Decatur, Georgia with her two sons. When not teaching and performing, she is a homeschool mom to her sons and enjoys trail walking with her family.
Atlanta Music Project Preparatory String Orchestra II
VIOLIN I
Karter Brown
Jasmine Clark
Nzingha Dunston
Kennedy Johnson
Braelin Pittman
Feruzi Tiya
VIOLIN II
Kandia Diawara
Sally Erwin
Rebecca Fanning
Zara Francois
Hunter Graves
CELLO
Sulaiman Abdul-Samaad
Macen Brown
Journey Dominguez
Elrico Ezzard
Auriyah Johnson
Amora Rutland
Manzo Tiya
Maya Walton
Mahogany Williams
DOUBLE BASS
Terry Dent
Tye Dent
VIOLA
Elyse Ezzard
Chadwick Gregory
Malaika Phillips
Sian Shropshire-Taylor
UPCOMING EVENTS
HOLIDAY CONCERT SERIES
AMP AFTER-SCHOOL ORCHESTRAS
DEC. 6 | 7PM | AMP CENTER
AMP YOUTH CHOIRS
DEC. 7 | 4PM | AMP CENTER AMP PREPARATORY SCHOOL
DEC. 14 | 1PM | SYLVAN HILLS MIDDLE SCHOOL
AMP YOUTH ORCHESTRAS
DEC. 14 | 6PM | SYLVAN HILLS MIDDLE SCHOOL
RESERVE TICKETS HERE
the atlanta music project mission and history
Founded in 2010, the Atlanta Music Project (AMP) provides world-class music training and performance opportunities supporting youth growth and development. Operating in under-resourced communities, AMP’s mission is to empower youth to realize their possibilities through music.
AMP serves over 1,000 young musicians annually through band, orchestra, and choir programs, private lessons, and the annual month-long AMP Summer Series. The AMP Senior Youth Orchestras and Choirs perform and compete both nationally and internationally. Additionally, AMP houses a college and career program, supporting AMP high school students and alumni. Since 2021, AMP has awarded $395,000 in college scholarships to its alumni.
AMP music ensembles perform more than 60 concerts annually, performing in venues all across Atlanta, from community centers to the Mercedes-Benz Stadium. AMP music ensembles have performed alongside international stars such as cellist Sterling Elliott, rapper Lecrae, operatic baritone Edward Parks, R&B singer Monica, The Piano Guys, the Harlem Quartet, electric violinist Lindsey Stirling, pianist Terrence Wilson, and the Imani Winds. AMP musicians can be seen performing with rapper T.I. on NPR’s Tiny Desk concert series.
AMP’s young musicians have successfully auditioned for Georgia All-State ensembles, and performed with the Atlanta Opera, the Atlanta Ballet, and the Fox Theatre. AMP ensembles have concertized as far away as Los Angeles, Aspen, Mexico, Canada, and New Zealand. The AMP Senior Youth Choir was crowned winner of the Youth Choirs category at the Open Competition of the 2024 World Choirs Games.
AMP is the recipient of several prestigious awards: 2015 Local Community Service Award (Spelman College), 2016 Neighborhood Builder (Bank of America), 2016 & 2017 Top 50 Youth Arts Program (USA President’s Committee on the Arts & Humanities), 2018 MLK Jr. Community Service Award (Emory University), 2019 Luminary Award for Arts Education (ArtsATL), and 2021 Infusion Award (Lewis Prize for Music).
AMP’s existence is a direct result of the 2009 TED Prize, which was awarded to Dr. Jose Antonio Abreu, founder of Venezuela’s El Sistema. AMP’s co-founders were members of the Sistema Fellows Program at the New England Conservatory in Boston. AMP is a member of “El Sistema USA,” the National Alliance of El Sistema Inspired Programs.
AMP’s current major funders include the Chestnut Family Foundation, Mailchimp, the Abraham J. & Phyllis Katz Foundation, the Harland Charitable Foundation, the Arthur M. Blank Foundation, The Rich’s Foundation, the Sartain Lanier Foundation, the Luluma Foundation, Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs, Fulton County Arts Council, Georgia Council for the Arts, Georgia Department of Education, Bloomberg Philanthropies, Delta Community Credit Union, the Next Generation Fund, and the Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta.
In 2024, AMP became the recipient of five Steinway pianos and was awarded the prestigious honor of being a Steinway Select School, making AMP one of eight schools in the country with this distinction.
AMP’s partners and collaborators include the City of Atlanta Department of Parks and Recreation, Atlanta Public Schools, Clayton State University, and the Chestnut Family Foundation.
AMP is a member of “El Sistema USA,” the National Alliance of El Sistema Inspired Programs.
For more information visit http://www.atlantamusicproject.org
