Devree Lewis

Devree Lewis, cellist, is a prolific performer, arranger, and concert producer based in Washington, D.C. Founding member of Trifilio Tango Trio, she is also principal cellist of Amadeus Orchestra and performs in cello duo with Susanna Mendlow, in addition to freelancing cross-genre and classical music across the U.S. East Coast. Internationally, Devree has toured with Trifilio Tango Trio, Pan American Symphony, and UNSCA String Quartet to various venues in Argentina, Cuba, Peru, Lebanon, and Austria.

 

As freelancer, Devree performs in cello sections for Richmond Symphony, Annapolis Symphony, Lancaster Symphony, New Orchestra of Washington, Gourmet Symphony, and Post-Classical Ensemble. Devree played side-by-side with Cleveland Orchestra at Kent/Blossom Music Festival, and performed at the premiere season of the Hollywood in Vienna Festival with the Radio Philharmonic Orchestra in Vienna, Austria. In 2015, Pennsylvania Philharmonic featured Devree as principal cellist and soloist, accompanying David Kim, concertmaster for Philadelphia Orchestra, in Vivaldi’s and Piazzolla’s Four Seasons.

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Devree won performance scholarships to Killington Music Festival, Kent/Blossom Music Festival, North Carolina School of the Arts, and University of Maryland’s Graduate Assistant program in Music Performance, where she received her Master’s degree. During her studies she performed in masterclasses for Mischa Maisky, Bonnie Hampton, Steven Doane, David Finckel, Stephen Geber, David Ying, and Miro Quartet.

 

Soon after completing her degrees, Devree joined metal cello band Primitivity and can be heard on their 2013 album Evolution. She also arranged multiple songs for the group and was a full time member 2009-2014. In addition to metal, Devree provides studio sessions in other cross-over genres and creates original music arrangements; she also arranges for musical theater, string quartet, tango small ensemble, and string orchestra. The National Symphony of Cuba premiered her arrangement of “Ni Pelota: Milonga” by E. Trifilio in 2017; her arrangements have also been performed by the Hubbard Quartet at venues including San Francisco New Music Center and Tanglewood Music Festival, by the Invoke Quartet in Austin, TX, and Manhattan Chamber Music. 

 

A dedicated educator, Devree maintains a private studio of 30 piano and cello students; in 2017, she created curriculum for and directed D.C.’s first youth tango orchestra, culminating in a concert at the Embassy of Argentina featuring her tango arrangements for strings and bandoneon. Devree joined the faculty of Cellospeak, a summer festival for adult cellists, in 2019. 

 

Devree co-founded, and performed in Trifilio Tango Trio from 2015-2018. “Milonga de la Ausencia” from their first album, a track featuring Devree on cello, was chosen as soundtrack for the short film “Vuelve con nosotros” and was nominated as best original score at Milan’s 2016 MOFF Film Festival. Along with several U.S. and international tours, Trifilio Tango Trio released three albums, recorded and produced in Argentina.