Tannery Pond Center presents the Summer Concert Series ~ Rhodora String Quartet, Classical
Thursday, July 2 2026 | 7:30 PM
Tickets: $20 in advance, $25 day-of concert, Free for youth 18 & younger
For advance price tickets, please visit the TPC box office, call (518) 251-2505, or purchase online through Eventbrite. We have limited tickets available for "Day of Event", which will be sold on a first-come, first-served basis. We will also begin a wait list of names at the event window for tickets not picked-up. Tickets not picked up by 10 prior to the event will be issued to wait list customers.
Parking: As there is significant construction in the lot behind the town hall building, that lot is unavailable for parking. You may park in the “library/town hall” lot, along Main Street north of the intersection of Main Street/28N. On 28N, you may park on either side of the road so long as you are not in the street and pulled off on the shoulder of the road. You may also park in the grass lot on the corner of Main Street/28N - this is private property, but we have temporary permission to use this lot.
Grant Funding: This event is made possible, in part, by the Occupancy Tax grant from the Town of Johnsburg. We are grateful for their support.
About the Group
Praised for their “excellent blend, precision” the Rhodora String Quartet is a captivating emerging ensemble founded in 2024 at Stony Brook University. The quartet was a prizewinner of the Ackerman Chamber Music Competition in 2025, and served as Manchester Music Festival’s first ensemble-in-residence in 2026. They have also participated in the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center’s masterclass series. The group is committed to maintaining a dynamic balance of bringing the masterworks of the string quartet to life, while championing works of living and underrepresented composers.
The group has been a participant in the Emerson String Quartet Institute and, during their studies, has been mentored by Philip Setzer, Eugene Drucker, Lawrence Dutton, Paul Watkins, David Finckel, William Fedkenheuer, Ani Kavafian, Colin Carr, and Arnaud Sussman. Each member of the quartet is a Doctor of Musical Arts candidate in Stony Brook’s graduate music program and holds degrees from The Juilliard School, Yale University, Seoul National University, the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing, the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, Vanderbilt University, the Crane School of Music, and Stony Brook University. They currently perform on a quartet of instruments crafted and generously loaned to them by violinmaker James McKean.
The name “Rhodora” is derived from Ralph Waldo Emerson’s short poem “The Rhodora.” Through the imagery of a modest flower blooming unseen in the woods, Emerson’s poem explores the idea that true beauty and worth exists for its own sake. Taking inspiration from Ralph Waldo Emerson as well as their mentors, the Emerson String Quartet, the young ensemble strives to create beauty for its own sake through music.
Listen to their music HERE, HERE
Visit their Instagram page HERE
Chaewon Kim
Violinist Chaewon Kim has been praised by The Dallas Morning News for her “throaty, viola-ish sound” that perked up the ears while summoning “lyricism and plenty of virtuosity”. Ms. Kim appeared as a soloist with renowned ensembles such as the Dallas Chamber Symphony, Jeonju City Symphony Orchestra, and SeongNam Philharmonic Orchestra. She made her solo debut with the Gunsan City Symphony Orchestra at age of seven and has since been recognized as a prizewinner in numerous competitions, including the Dallas International Violin Competition, Classic Olympus Violin International Competition in New York and 34th Busan MBC music competition. Most recently, she is the winner of Concerto competition at Stonybrook University and will perform as a soloist in November 2025. A dedicated chamber musician, Ms. Kim’s won the top prize at the Ackerman Chamber Competition at Stonybrook (2025), second prize at the Coltman Chamber Music Competition (2023), was a semifinalist at the Prague Spring International Competition (2021) and performed at prestigious festivals such as the Music Academy of the West and Aspen Music Festival as an Assistant Concertmaster.
Also, she has collaborated with distinguished artists such as the Takács Quartet, Benjamin Beilman, Yura Lee and Philip Setzer. She holds degrees from The Juilliard School, Yale School of Music, and Seoul National University and is currently pursuing her Doctor of Musical Arts at Stony Brook University, studying with Philip Setzer, Jennifer Frautschi, and Arnaud Sussmann. Her former teachers include Ronald Copes, Tai Murray, and Ju-Young Baek.
Hanbo Wang
Hanbo Wang is quickly emerging as a distinguished violinist, violist and conductor, active as both a soloist and chamber musician. He is currently pursuing his Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA) at Stony Brook University, studying with renowned violinist Arnaud Sussmann and the legendary Emerson String Quartet. He completed his master’s degree in San Francisco Conservatory of Music and bachelor’s degree in Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing.
In 2024, Hanbo founded the Rhodora Quartet under the Emerson String Quartet Institute at Stony Brook. The ensemble quickly developed into a professional group and won the 2025 Ackerman chamber music competition. They were praised by the Emerson Quartet as “a very matured quartet with great potential.” Previously, he founded the Duke Quartet in Beijing in 2018, which received first prize with full marks at the China-Germany Youth Music Competition (Hummingbird Music Award) and later won second prize at the Futian International String Competition in 2020. The Juilliard Quartet has described the group as “a very high-level, promising young quartet.”
As a soloist, he received first prize and the Best Bach Performance Award at the 2021 International Best Bach Performance Music Competition. He was also awarded the Excellent Prize in the Violin Group C at the 2018 American International Music Competition, and third prize at the 2017 Qingyuan International Arts Festival. He served as concertmaster of the Youth Orchestra of the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing from 2019 to 2021. As a conductor, he led both the string ensemble and youth orchestra at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music from 2022 to 2023. In 2024, he successfully conducted Handel’s Messiah with the Stony Brook University Orchestra, and in 2025 led a critically acclaimed contemporary chamber music concert.
Rachel Haber
Beginning on violin at age four and taking up the viola later in school in third grade, New York based violist Rachel Haber always knew music would be an important part of her life. She has performed with various groups across the country including the San Francisco based chamber-orchestra One Found Sound, the award-winning conductorless ensemble Academy of St. Martin in the Fields, and worked in the renowned Ocean Way Recording Studio in Nashville, Tennessee.
As a high schooler, she won the prestigious Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center’s Young Musicians competition and performed with her piano quartet at Alice Tully Hall. In college, her piano quintet at the time also placed first in the 2018 Music Teacher’s National Competition. Summer after summer, she's performed music around the world including at the Aspen Music Festival, the Fontainebleau Schools of Music and Arts, the Mendocino Young Artists Program, Bear Valley Music Festival in California, Icicle Creek Chamber Music Festival in Leavenworth, Washington, and the Maine Chamber Music Seminar.
Rachel’s musical studies have brought her to Vanderbilt where she received her Bachelor of Music degree working with Professor of Viola Emerita Kathryn Plummer, the San Francisco Conservatory of Music where she earned her Master's of Music and studied under the esteemed Dimitri Murrath, and is currently working towards a Doctorate of Music Degree at Stony Brook University under the guidance of Lawrence Dutton of the Emerson String Quartet and Matthew Lipman of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. At Stony Brook, she is part of the Emerson String Quartet Program where she is currently in residence with her quartet, The Rhodora Quartet, receiving guidance from all members of the Emerson String Quartet. In addition to gigging in the Long Island and New York City areas, she currently holds a studio of wonderful violinists and violists at New York Conservatory in Syosset, NY and Concordia Conservatory in Bronxville, NY.
Jonathan Kim
Jonathan Kim began his cello studies with the Buffalo Suzuki Strings program and has since built a multifaceted career as a soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral performer, appearing in venues across the United States and Canada. He is a prizewinner of numerous competitions, including the Crane Concerto Competition, the Richard Stephan Chamber Music Competition, and the Greater Buffalo Youth Orchestra Concerto Competition, and is a two-time winner of Stony Brook University’s Lauren V. Ackerman Chamber Music Competition.
Jonathan is a founding member of the Rhodora String Quartet, winner of the Ackerman Competition in 2025, and is mentored by the Emerson String Quartet. The quartet served as the first Winter Ensemble in Residence at the Manchester Music Festival in 2026 and has participated in the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center’s masterclass series with Ani Kavafian.
In addition to his work with the Rhodora Quartet, Jonathan is a member of the Mysé Piano Quartet, which was selected to participate in Gilbert Kalish’s Piano Chamber Music Intensive Seminar, and he regularly appears as an artist in Concordia Conservatory’s Hoch Chamber Music Series.
Throughout his musical journey, Jonathan has collaborated with distinguished artists such as Peter Wiley, Hsin-Yun Huang, Philip Setzer, Eugene Drucker, Paul Neubauer, Jennifer Frautschi, Lawrence Dutton, and his current mentor, Colin Carr. He has participated in major festivals including the Manchester Music Festival, Sarasota Music Festival, Aspen Music Festival, Festival Orford Musique, Domaine Forget International Music Festival, and the Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival.
A devoted music educator, Jonathan is passionate about passing on the knowledge and inspiration he has received from the many distinguished pedagogues who have shaped his development. His principal teachers include Colin Carr, Paul Watkins, David Finckel, Richard Aaron, and Marie-Elaine Gagnon, and he has also studied Suzuki pedagogy with Dr. Tanya Carey. Jonathan currently serves on the faculty of the Concordia Conservatory and maintains a private cello studio with students across Long Island.
Jonathan is currently a Doctor of Musical Arts candidate at Stony Brook University and a member of the Emerson String Quartet Institute. He earned his Master of Music degree from Stony Brook University in 2022 and his Bachelor of Music degree from the Crane School of Music in 2020. He currently performs on a cello crafted by and generously loaned to him by violinmaker James McKean.
