Newly formed in 2013, Webern Trio Frankfurt unites three versatile members of the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra. These award-winning musicians come together to explore the rich string trio repertoire. The string trio format allows each member to showcase their soloistic virtuosity as well as dynamic interplay between the players.

The trio's name was inspired by Anton Webern, the prominent figure of the Second Viennese School.  His String Trio Op. 20 is among one of the most fascinating and intricate chamber music works of the 20th century. Webern Trio Frankfurt's Debut concert was broadcast live at the Hessen (Frankfurt) Radio Station. The near future holds exciting projects such as a performance of unknown Jewish composers of the 20th century.

Violin

Canadian-born violinist Akemi Mercer-Niewöhner studied with Mayumi Seiler at the University of Toronto and Victor Tretiakov at the College of Music in Cologne. As a soloist, she has performed with several orchestras in Canada such as the Toronto Symphony as well as the Heilbronn Chamber Orchestra in Germany and won first prize in the Canadian Music Competition. As an avid chamber musician, Mercer-Niewöhner has been a guest at many festivals in Europe and Canada such as Ottawa Chamberfest and the Music Festival Schloss Cappenberg in Germany.  She performs frequently with her sister Rachel Mercer (cello) as soloist as well as in the Mercer-Oh Piano Trio, with whom she recently completed an entire Haydn Trio cycle in Canada.  Akemi Mercer-Niewöhner has performed as guest concertmaster and soloist with the National Ballet of Canada. From 2005 to 2007 she was in the orchestra academy of the Munich Philharmonic and member of the UBS Verbier Festival Orchestra. Akemi Mercer-Niewöhner has been a member of the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra since 2008 and assistant principal second since 2010. She plays a violin by Carlo Ferdinando Landolfi, Milan 1758.

Viola

Dirk Niewöhner, born in Wuppertal, Germany, studied violin with Ida Bieler, Miriam Fried and Rainer Kussmaul before switching to viola and continuing his studies with Wolfram Christ and Hariolf Schlichtig. He received extensive chamber music coaching with ensembles such as the Alban Berg Quartet and the Melos Quartet. As member of the Signum Quartet, Niewöhner was a prize-winner at the international Charles Hennen Commpetition in Holland and at the Deutschen Musikwettbewerb.  As a chamber musician he has performed at festivals such as the Rheingau Music Festival, Lucerne Festival and the Music Festival Schloss Cappenberg as well as in Carnegie Hall, New York. Chamber music collaborations include Kolja Blacher, Renaud Capucon, Mirijam Contzen and Igor Levit. Niewöhner is also member of the Tertis Viola Ensemble, a quartet made up of four violas, which has released a CD. As a soloist, Niewöhner has performed with several orchestras and was prize-winner in the concerto competition of the Eastern Music Festivals in the USA and from the German Viola Society. After orchestral experience with the Berlin Philharmonic and as founding member of the Lucerne Festival Orchestra under Claudio Abbado, he was a member of the Munich Philharmonic from 2003-2010. Since 2010 Niewöhner is assistant principal viola of the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra.

Cello

German cellist Ulrich Horn studied with Peter Vogler at the Hanns Eisler Music School in Berlin and with Ludwig Quandt and Georg Faust as a member of the Karajan Academy of the Berlin Philharmonic. He has won several awards including first prize in the Competition for Young Talent in Rostock and the Johann Sebastian Bach Competition in Leipzig. As a soloist he has performed with orchestras in Asia and Europe, including the Neubrandenburg Philharmonic and the Leipzig Radio Symphony for a live television broadcast. He has also performed in festivals in Korea and Germany, including Schleswig-Holstein and the Rheingau Music Festival and in concert halls such as Leipzig Gewandhaus and the Art Centre Concert Hall in Seoul, Korea. He has appeared as a soloist in Richard Strauss’s Don Quixote under Zubin Mehta and has performed as principal cellist with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and Bavarian State Opera Munich. In October 2011 he released a CD of the suites for solo cello by Max Reger on the Naxos label. Horn has been a member of the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra since 2001. He plays a cello by Giovanni Gagliano, Naples 1800.