CKW Trio
Ricardo Morales, clarinet

The Chien-Kim-Watkins Trio comprises three of classical music’s most highly esteemed artists performing today: pianist Gloria Chien, violinist Soovin Kim, and cellist Paul Watkins. The trio has been performing together since 2019 and presented Beethoven’s groundbreaking Piano Trio cycle at the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival in 2022.

Award-winning pianist Gloria Chien made her orchestral debut at age 16 with the Boston Symphony Orchestra. She’s the Founder and Artistic Director of the String Theory chamber music series in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and was the Director of the Music@Menlo Chamber Music Institute in California from 2010-2020. In 2017, she joined Mr. Kim as Artistic Director of the Lake Champlain Chamber Music Festival. Since 2020, the husband-and-wife duo has also served as the Artistic Directors of Chamber Music Northwest in Portland, Oregon, and were named recipients of Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center’s Award for Extraordinary Service in 2021 for their efforts during the pandemic.

Violinist Soovin Kim is the Founder and Artistic Director of the Lake Champlain Chamber Music Festival in Burlington, Vermont. The University of Vermont recognized Soovin’s extensive work in the community by bestowing an honorary doctorate upon him in 2015. First prize winner of the Paganini International Violin Competition at age 20, he is also recipient of the Avery Fisher Career Grant and the Borletti-Buitoni Trust Award. For 20 years, he was the first violinist of the Johannes Quartet. Soovin has devoted much of his time to his passion for teaching at the New England Conservatory in Boston since 2014, and most recently joined the faculty at the Yale School of Music.

Paul Watkins has been the cellist of the Emerson String Quartet since 2013, and for 16 years he was a member of the award-winning Nash Ensemble. He is the Artistic Director of the Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival in Michigan and Professor of Cello at the Yale School of Music. Paul enjoys a distinguished career as a concerto soloist, chamber musician, and conductor. Appointed Principal Cellist of the BBC Symphony Orchestra at age 20, he performs regularly with major orchestras, including eight concerto appearances at the BBC Proms. Winner of the 2002 Leeds Conductors Competition, Paul served as Music Director of the English Chamber Orchestra and Principal Guest Conductor of the Ulster Orchestra, and continues to conduct a wide range of internationally acclaimed ensembles.

Ricardo Morales is one of the most sought after clarinetists of today. He joined The Philadelphia Orchestra as principal clarinet in 2003. Prior to this he was principal clarinet of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, a position he assumed at the age of 21. His virtuosity and artistry as a soloist, chamber, and orchestral musician has been hailed and recognized in concert halls around the world. He has been asked to perform as principal clarinet with the New York Philharmonic, the Chicago Symphony, and at the invitation of Sir Simon Rattle, performed as guest principal clarinet with the Berlin Philharmonic. He also performs as principal clarinet with the Saito Kinen Festival Orchestra and the Mito Chamber Orchestra, at the invitation of Maestro Seiji Ozawa.

A native of San Juan, Puerto Rico, Mr. Morales began his studies at the Escuela Libre de Musica along with his five siblings, who are all distinguished musicians. He continued his studies at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music and Indiana University, where he received his Artist Diploma.

Mr. Morales has been a featured soloist with many orchestras, including the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, the Chicago Symphony, the Cincinnati Symphony, the Indianapolis Symphony, the Seoul Philharmonic, and the Flemish Radio Symphony. During his tenure with the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, he soloed in Carnegie Hall and on two European tours. He made his solo debut with The Philadelphia Orchestra in 2004 and has since performed as soloist on numerous occasions. Ricardo performed the world premiere of the Clarinet Concerto by Jonathan Leshnoff, commissioned for him by the Philadelphia Orchestra.

An active chamber musician, Mr. Morales has performed in the MET Chamber Ensemble series at Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall, at the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, the Seattle Chamber Music Summer Festival, and the Saratoga Chamber Music Festival, on NBC’s The Today Show, and with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. He has performed with many distinguished ensembles, such as the Juilliard Quartet, the Pacifica Quartet, the Miró Quartet, the Leipzig Quartet, and the Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson Trio. He has also collaborated with Christoph Eschenbach, André Watts, Emanuel Ax, Jean-Yves Thibaudet, James Ehnes, Gil Shaham, and Kathleen Battle. Mr. Morales is highly sought after for his recitals and master classes, which have taken him throughout North America, Europe and Asia. In addition, he currently serves on the faculty of Temple University.

Mr. Morales’s debut solo recording, French Portraits, is available on the Boston Records label. His recent recordings include performances with the Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson Trio, with the Pacifica Quartet, which was nominated for a Latin Grammy Award, as well as the Mozart Concerto with the Mito Chamber Orchestra for DECCA. Ricardo is a sought after consultant and designer of musical instruments and accessories, and enjoys a musical partnership with F. Arthur Uebel, a world renowned manufacturer of artist level clarinets.