Biography
Connected through their love for any and all chamber music, Trio Laval formed at the University of Michigan in 2024. Jordan Bartel (violin), Sarina Zhang (cello), and Sean Terada Yang (piano) made their first performance in a community home and have since graced venues all around the globe. They are currently based in Ann Arbor, MI and the Texas Triangle.
While earning awards including those at the Music Teachers National Association and Briggs competitions, Trio Laval also prioritize sharing under-performed works in concerts. In their first year of collaboration, Trio Laval have presented programs in Michigan, Texas, New York, Minnesota, Missouri, Oregon, and Berlin, Germany. Through residencies at the Texas Chamber Music Institute and Redfish Music Festival, the trio instilled its commitment to youth and rural community engagement through masterclasses and coachings. Year-round, the members hold teaching positions at the University of Michigan, University of Texas, and Rice University.
Trio Laval grew during their first year under the mentorship of Professors Amy I-Lin Cheng and Kathryn Votapek, and they have worked closely with Richard Aaron, Krzysztof Polonek (Concertmaster of Berlin Phil), Aaron Berofsky, Fritz Gearhart, the Horszowski Trio, and many others. In July 2025, the trio premiered a set of Dvorak’s Slavonic Dances arranged by famed cello pedagogue Terry King, and they are now slated to present a program focusing on folk influences across the Czech, Swiss, English, and German regions at venues in Michigan, Massachusetts, and Nevada throughout the fall season.
Aside from rehearsals filled with laughter, the trio also enjoys going on road trips, watching comedy TV, spectating basketball, and making wonderful dumplings.
Members
JORDAN BARTEL / violin
Described as playing with “delirious ecstasy” (Seen and Heard International), violinist Jordan Bartel is currently pursuing his Doctorate degree in Violin Performance at the University of Texas at Austin with Sandy Yamamoto, serving as her Teaching Assistant. He has performed alongside the Verona and Invoke string quartets, the Garth Newel Piano Quartet, and as a member of the Lyrica Citizen’s Artist Orchestra, making their NPR debut at WQXR’s McGraw Hill Financial Young Artist Showcase with Robert Sherman. He serves on faculty at ArtsAhimsa Chamber Music Festival and Austin Chamber Music Center, and has held fellowship positions at Green Mountain and Garth Newel Chamber Music Festivals.
Jordan completed Master’s degrees in Violin Performance and Chamber Music and a Specialist Degree from the University of Michigan studying with Aaron Berofsky, and a Bachelor’s in Music Industry from Syracuse University studying with Laura Bossert, where he won the 2020 Concerto Competition. He has recent solo appearances with the Loudoun Symphony Orchestra, University of Michigan’s Baroque Chamber Orchestra, and the Balcones Community Orchestra.
SEAN TERADA YANG / piano
Sean Terada Yang began playing piano at age 3 and now regularly performs around the world. In 2024-2025, he was a top prizewinner at the Seattle International, Chautauqua SAI, Frances Walton, MTNA Young Artist, and National Federation of Music Clubs Competitions. In recent months, he has given performances in Seattle, Ann Arbor, New York, Boston, Toronto, Spain, and Germany. At Vanderbilt, Sean’s piano trios were awarded performance opportunities through the Fischoff and MTNA Chamber Competitions. While at Vanderbilt, he used his Neuroscience major to conduct research on the health benefits of live classical music performances in ICU patient wards. To maintain his interests in research, he now serves as a visiting student at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s MIT.nano lab studying biomechanics and human movement.
He recently earned his Master’s degrees in piano and chamber music with Logan Skelton and Amy I-Lin Cheng at the University of Michigan, and he is doing his Doctoral studies at Rice University with Jon Kimura Parker.
SARINA ZHANG / cello
Raised in San Diego and New York City, pianist and cellist Sarina Zhang made her debut with the New York Philharmonic in 2011. Over the years, she has performed as a soloist with the St. Louis, Detroit, San Diego, Albany, and Corpus Christi Symphony Orchestras, as well as the Buffalo Philharmonic, among others. She was a part of the 4th Season of the Classe d’Excellence de Violoncelle with Gautier Capuçon, performing and working alongside him in Paris.
Sarina graduated with a Bachelor of Music from the Juilliard School, studying piano with Yoheved Kaplinsky and Hung-Kuan Chen, and cello with Richard Aaron and David Finckel. She continued her studies in Germany at the Franz Liszt Hochschule für Musik, where she studied with Wolfgang Emanuel Schmidt and Balázs Szokolay. In May of 2025, Sarina earned her Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Michigan in cello performance with Richard Aaron. She currently resides in Ann Arbor, Michigan.