Carnegie Hall

Trio Fadolín is a new ensemble with a unique sonority—featuring Sabina Torosjan on violin, Valeriya Sholokhova on cello, and Ljova Zhurbin on the fadolín, a new instrument that encompasses the range of the violin, viola, and most of the cello and that finds its footing in an acoustic chamber music setting for the first time. The ensemble formed during the COVID-19 pandemic. Its first performances were in the summer of 2021, on a makeshift stage at the Javits Convention Center mass vaccination site, operated by the US Army and sponsored by Sing for Hope. Since that time, the ensemble has made appearances at Lincoln Center, The Kennedy Center, Bargemusic, Barbès, Symphony Space, Museum of Art and Design, and The Metropolitan Museum of Art. As its opportunities to play together grew, its repertoire evolved steadily. It now includes works by Ukrainian composers Vasily Barvinsky, Mykola Kolessa, and Miroslav Skoryk; compositions by Spanish American composer Andrea Casarrubios and Estonian American composer Lembit Beecher; folk music from Denmark, Sweden, and Romania; and original works by Zhurbin. All three members of the ensemble are graduates of The Juilliard School.

This spring, Trio Fadolín was the inaugural ensemble-in-residence at Interlochen Public Radio, where it recorded material for its forthcoming debut album. It also completed its first East Coast tour with stops in Washington DC, Baltimore, Philadelphia, and New York. The group’s focus is multifaceted. On the one hand, it explores the unique sonority of the acoustic fadolín  (six-string violin, with low C and F strings) within a trio context, using it—for the first time in history—as an integral instrument in an acoustic chamber music setting. On the other hand, the group also shares a deep personal connection—all three members grew up in the former Soviet Union and arrived in New York as teens. Ms. Torosjan was born in Estonia of Armenian Jewish heritage; Ms. Sholokhova was born in Ukraine of Ukrainian, Jewish, and Russian heritage; and Mr. Zhurbin was born in Moscow of Ukrainian Jewish, German Jewish, Polish, and Romanian heritage. The members share common bonds: immigration, Eastern European literature, humor, animation, and music. The group is here to tell the complicated story, to tell the stories of immigrant composers, to collaborate with immigrant artists, and to showcase places where cultures intersect.