Rising Stars

Realizing that young musicians establishing concert careers need performance opportunities, the Asheville Chamber Music Series in collaboration with the Asheville Art Museum established a “Rising Stars” Concert Series. These recitals will feature promising North Carolina musicians who show great potential.

Aaron Lipsky is currently a rising Senior pursuing a degree in Clarinet Performance at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, where he holds a Herman B. Wells Scholarship. He studies with Professor Eli Eban (former Principal Clarinet of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra), and in the past two years has held the positions of principal clarinet in the IU Chamber Orchestra, Symphony Orchestra, and University Orchestra. In 2020, Lipsky won “The President’s Own” United States Marine Band Concerto Competition, and soloed with the band in 2021 in Washington, DC. Lipsky enjoys performing both orchestral and chamber music, with a special emphasis on baroque, the late romantics, and Brahms' clarinet chamber works. In this past season, performances have included the Brahms Clarinet Quintet (Op. 115) with the Kuttner Quartet in Residence at IU, the Brahms Clarinet Trio (Op. 114) at IU and with ChamberFest Brown County, and the Brahms F Minor Clarinet Sonata (Op. 120, No.1) at IU.

competitions throughout the Appalachian region and Southeastern US, including the young artist division at the state MTNA competition in Florida. Christopher received a BM in Piano Performance from Florida State University in 2023 studying with Dr. Read Gainsford, before going to New York to study for a year with Rieko Aizawa at Brooklyn College, the pianist of the widely acclaimed Horszowski Trio. He will be continuing his studies in the fall pursuing a Master’s of Music in Piano Performance & Literature from the Eastman School of Music, studying with Dr. Douglas Humpherys. Outside of the practice room, Christopher enjoys being outdoors and playing chess.