About the Trio

Israeli pianist Itamar Prag made his orchestral debut at the age of eleven with the Tel Aviv Soloists Ensemble and has since appeared as a soloist with the Israel Symphony Orchestra, the Haifa Symphony Orchestra, the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra and the McGill Symphony Orchestra, collaborating with conductors including Lahav Shani, Omer Welber, Frédéric Chaslin, Vag Papian and Alexis Hauser. Selected by Zubin Mehta in a competitive audition, he performed as a soloist under the baton of Yoel Levi.

He won the Classical and Romantic Concerto Competitions at the Schulich School of Music. A first prize winner at the Pnina Salzman Piano Competition and a longtime recipient of the America-Israel Cultural Foundation scholarship, he has also received support from the Zefunot Culture Foundation and the Mushkin Memorial Scholarship for young musicians.

He has given recitals across Israel, Europe and North America and participated in the Yellow Barn Chamber Music Festival. He has taken part in masterclasses with Murray Perahia, Eliso Virsaladze, Richard Goode, John Perry, Piotr Paleczny and Gabriel Kwok.

He studied with Hannah Shalgi, Asaf Zohar, Vadim Monastyrski, Arie Vardi, André Laplante, Kyoko Hashimoto and Ilya Poletaev, and holds degrees from the Buchmann-Mehta School of Music at Tel Aviv University and McGill University's Schulich School of Music, where he is completing his Doctorate in Piano Performance.

Known for her fearless expression and radiant energy, Korean violinist June Lee is based in Montréal. She draws inspiration from art, science, dance, nature and human emotion, weaving her full cultural identity into a vivid and inclusive musical story. She believes that genuine, heartfelt art is what truly resonates with audiences, and brings her own experience to playing that is honest and sincere.

As a member of Trio Timia she won a Bronze Medal at the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition, and in 2025 she competes as a quarterfinalist at the Dallas International Violin Competition. She won Second Prize at the Schulich Golden Violin Competition and performed Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto as soloist with the Paju Philharmonic Orchestra in South Korea, both in 2023, the same year she joined the Bourgie Hall Mentorship Program with Daniel Hope. Earlier distinctions include the Anna Y. Tringas Award for Violin, Second Prize at the Mary Lane Memorial Violin Competition and a finalist placing in the string division of the Ronald Sachs International Music Competition.

Beyond North America, June served as assistant concertmaster for a European touring orchestra, performing alongside her all-time favourite musician, Martha Argerich. Her festival appearances include IMS Prussia Cove with Gerhard Schulz, the Lunenburg Academy of Music Performance with Steven Isserlis, the Schiermonnikoog Festival with Marc Danel and Philippe Graffin, the Trondheim String Quartet Academy, MISQA with members of the Alban Berg Quartet, and the Encore Chamber Music Institute, Toronto Summer Music Festival, Heifetz International Music Institute and Sarasota Music Festival. In August 2025 Trio Timia joins Musique à Flaine with members of the Ysaÿe Quartet.

Recent performances include the Mendelssohn and Enescu Octets with Mihaela Martin, Mathieu Herzog, Jinjoo Cho, Brannon Cho and Frans Helmerson at the 2024 Encore Chamber Music Institute, and Brahms's Viola Quintet with Hélène Clément at the Trondheim String Quartet Academy. Holder of an Artist Diploma, she studied with Jinjoo Cho at McGill University's Schulich School of Music, and previously with Jaime Laredo and Jan Sloman at the Cleveland Institute of Music and with Margaret Batjer at the Colburn Music Academy.

François Lamontagne began his cello studies with David Ellis at the Conservatoire de Musique de Saguenay, and continued at McGill University under Elizabeth Dolin, where he received the Student Excellence Award scholarship and the Frank Mills Prize. In 2022 he earned his bachelor's degree with the distinction of outstanding achievement in cello performance, followed by his master's degree in 2025.

Since 2025 François has been principal cellist of the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean Symphony Orchestra and assistant principal of the Orchestre symphonique de l'Estuaire. He also plays with the Orchestre de l'Agora and the Orchestre symphonique de Québec.

He has distinguished himself in competitions including the Festival du Royaume and the Canadian Music Competition, and won the Jeunes solistes competition of the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean Youth Orchestra. In 2018 he was awarded the Lieutenant Governor's Medal and the Governor General's Medal as part of his collegial diploma at the conservatory.

Passionate about chamber music, he studied string quartet under renowned ensembles including the Alban Berg Quartet, Quatuor Ébène and Quatuor Danel at the McGill International String Quartet Academy. François has also performed internationally at the Fischoff Competition in the United States, the Schiermonnikoog Festival in the Netherlands and the Trondheim Chamber Music Academy in Norway.