The Upton Trio October 10th at 7PM

The Upton Trio – Bach, Brahms, and Beyond October 10th at 7:00!

The GOPO Foundation Board is THRILLED to bring you Bach, Brahms, and Beyond – An evening with the Upton Trio!

The Upton Trio features Mary Lee Taylor Kinosian on violin, Ismail Akbar on cello, and John Hoffmeyer on piano!

The Upton Trio would like to dedicate this concert to the memory of Ben and Ann Williamson.

Doors open at 6PM. The show will follow at 7PM. Your order includes hors d’oeuvres from South of Pearl and full bar from Micky Finn’s. We look forward to seeing you at The Grand Old Post Office.

This order gives you (1) ticket for The Upton Trio! 

TICKETS

• $50 for GOPO Foundation members
• $60 for nonmembers

About the Performers

A native of Columbia, violinist Mary Lee Taylor Kinosian began studying music at five and joined the Columbia Philharmonic Orchestra (later the SC Philharmonic) at fourteen. She enjoyed a successful career in San Jose, CA with the San Jose Symphony, Midsummer Mozart Festival and as concertmaster and soloist with the Redwood Symphony, and later in Nashville as principal second violin with Nashville Symphony Orchestra and the Nashville String Machine before returning to Columbia in 1996. Since then, she has played numerous engagements, ranging from musical theatre to her well-received performance of Kurt Weill’s Violin Concerto with the Philharmonic. Her work with the Upton Trio as both composer and violinist, has been featured on NPR’s Theme and Variations. She appears frequently with the Sterling Chamber Players and also serves as the assistant concertmaster of the Greenville Symphony.

Hailed as a cellist with “warmth and panache in solo flight” (Atlanta Journal Constitution), Ismail Akbar was born in Atlanta and completed his studies at Oberlin Conservatory and Mercer University. He has performed as a soloist with a number of orchestras, including the Atlanta Symphony, Savannah Philharmonic, and North Georgia Chamber Symphony. As a member of the Helen String Quartet, he performed several times at the Orvieto Musica festival in Italy. He is currently professor of cello and chamber music at Spelman College, Morehouse College, Clark Atlanta University, Allen University, and Clayton State University. In the summer of 2025, he became the cellist of the Upton Trio.

Born and raised in Florence, pianist John Hoffmeyer has appeared as a solo, chamber, and orchestral musician on major international stages including Shanghai Symphony Hall, Jordan Hall, and the Rose Studio at Lincoln Center. He has performed as concert soloist with a variety of orchestras, including the Orchestra Giovanile Napolinova, Princeton Sinfonia, and Florence Symphony Orchestra. In 2019, he was a semifinalist for the Premio Città Imola, and he traveled to Barcelona in 2022 to compete in the Maria Canals International Piano Competition. John holds degrees from Princeton and Oxford, and he is completing his PhD at Yale. He graduated with a Certificate in Piano Performance at USC under the guidance of Dr. Nicholas Susi, and in 2025, he became the pianist and managing artistic director of the Upton Trio.