Chamber Collaborations
A chamber artist of wide reach and curiosity, Ráyo Furuta brings clarity, intention, and imagination to collaborative performance. His chamber work spans traditional repertoire, newly commissioned works, and global musical dialogue, emphasizing communication and shared artistry at the center of every project.
Ráyo Furuta performs as a member of a dynamic flute, cello, and piano trio alongside cellist Christine Lamprea and pianist Gwendolyn Mok. The trio is featured on Breath and Brilliance, released on Azica Records, presenting the Complete Mendelssohn Piano Trios in newly crafted arrangements by Furuta. The project brings a fresh perspective to cornerstone repertoire through a balance of virtuosity, transparency, and ensemble cohesion.
In addition to Mendelssohn, programs with Furuta, Lamprea, and Mok include cornerstone piano trio repertoire by Debussy, Schubert, Beethoven, and Brahms, alongside contemporary works by Jake Heggie, George Crumb, Kaija Saariaho, and Chen Yi, offering a broad and thoughtfully curated range of styles.
Stream Breath and Brilliance here!
Furuta is currently collaborating with the Del Sol String Quartet on a new chamber music project anchored by All the Blues I See by Errollyn Wallen, alongside two newly commissioned works: Xicarú by Ivette Herryman Rodriguez, whose title means “all things beautiful” in the Purépecha language, and Celestial Orange by Erin Busch. The program highlights a range of contemporary compositional voices through close collaboration between performers and composers, with world premieres and recording (to be released by Azica) scheduled for May 2025 and availability for booking in the 2026–27 season.
Programs may also incorporate additional works for flute and string quartet by Joan Tower, Amy Beach, and Yuko Uebayashi, offering presenters flexible programming options that balance new work with established chamber repertoire.
Ráyo Furuta maintains a rare and deeply personal flute duo collaboration with legendary flutist Carol Wincenc, his teacher and mentor of eleven years. Their partnership reflects a shared artistic lineage and an extraordinary likeness of sound, shaped through years of close study and musical exchange. Together, they present performances for two flutes that span traditional repertoire and contemporary works, offering audiences an intimate conversation between mentor and protégé now meeting as artistic equals.
Ráyo Furuta’s chamber work extends into global collaborations that engage music as a site of cultural exchange and storytelling. These projects include partnerships with guzheng artist Chiffon Fu, dan tranh artist Van-Anh Vo, and accordionist Merima Ključo. This global lens is central to Precious Scars: A Musical Homage to the Incarcerated Japanese Americans of WWII, a concert-length collaboration conceived by Furuta that weaves global and Western musical traditions with spoken-word narration, honoring resilience, memory, and humanity through an immersive and deeply resonant chamber experience.