arx duo
Aspiring to expand the genre of percussion chamber music through performing and creative collaboration, arx duo has been blazing a trail in the realm of contemporary music since their inception at the Yale School of Music in 2013. In these short years, the duo has performed and given educational clinics across three continents.
Through combining their different personas and experiences, Mari and Garrett showcase similar movements and unique musical communication that creates a oneness with an energy that fills any venue. The name "arx duo" comes from their desire to forge new connections and artistic pathways - or "arcs"- within the genre, expanding the opportunities for bringing their music to audiences.
With a repertoire ranging from established masters to today’s newest compositional voices, arx duo has worked closely with composers such as Alejandro Vinao, James Wood, and Gaudeamus Prize winner Ted Hearne. Always seeking opportunities to bring percussion to a wide variety of audiences, the group has given concerts, outreach performances, and master classes at universities and conservatories in Japan and the United States.
Born from the legendary chamber music studio, YPG (Yale Percussion Group) directed by Robert Van Sice, Mari and Garrett found their magical collaborative sound together in 2012 as students at Yale School of Music. They are currently the ensemble in residence at Michigan State University as guest teaching artists, and percussion department coordinator/faculty members at the Young Artist Summer Program at Curtis Summerfest.
Mari and Garrett both proudly endorse Adams Instruments, Pearl Drums, and Vic Firth Sticks and Mallets.
The New York Times has singled out flutist Beomjae Kim’s playing for its “memorable eloquence.” A winner of Astral Artists' 2017 National Auditions, he has appeared at the Seoul Arts Center, Lincoln Center, SubCulture, National Sawdust, Trinity Wall Street, the Guggenheim Museum, Brooklyn Museum, Kimmel Center, and Carnegie’s Zankel Hall, Weill Recital Hall, and Stern Auditorium. From 2014-2016, he was a fellow of Ensemble Connect (formerly Ensemble ACJW), a program of Carnegie Hall, The Juilliard School, and Weill Music Institute.
Mr. Kim has been featured in such festivals as the Alba Music Festival in Italy, the Dani Muzike Festival, the Charles E. Gamper Festival of Contemporary Music, the Bowdoin International Music Festival, Lake George Music Festival, the New York String Orchestra Seminar, and in “A Classical Christmas” in Bali. He has also appeared in concerts sponsored by UNICEF, the National Endowment for the Arts, the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, the Kumho Cultural Foundation, the Aaron Copland Fund for Music, the Alice M. Ditson Fund of Columbia University, and the BMI Foundation.
BEOMJAE KIM
Beomjae Kim earned a Bachelor’s degree from Oberlin College, and holds both a Master’s degree and Artist Diploma from the Manhattan School of Music. Mr. Kim is represented by Astral Artists (Philadelphia, PA)