catskill high peaks festival at the carey institute...
TRANSCRIPT
CATSKILL HIGH PEAKS FESTIVAL at the Carey Institute for Global Good
2015 Participant Directory
Leah Anderson Violin Ohio, USA [email protected]
Leah Anderson recently completed her second year at Ohio State University, studying violin performance under Kia-Hui Tan. She has served as second principal violin in the Cincinnati Junior Strings, Cincinnati Symphony Youth Orchestra, and the Ohio State University Symphony Orchestra. She has participated in summer music festivals including Jacobs School of Music String Academy, Interlochen, Soundfest Chamber Music and the Quartet Institute, where she studied with well known musicians. She has competed extensively, winning numerous awards which entitled her to perform as a soloist with the NKU Summer Encore Orchestra, the CCM Encore Advanced Chamber Orchestra, and the Clermont County Philharmonic. A fan of chamber music, Leah is the first violin of the Quartetto Grigio at Ohio State. She will pursue a Ph.D. in genetics while continuing her passion of playing violin. Other pastimes include swing dancing, rock climbing, and artisan crafts.
Yuji Chan Violin Hong Kong, China [email protected]
Fifteen-year-old Yuji Chan was born in Hong Kong. She moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts and attended Buckingham Browne & Nichols and New England Conservatory every Saturday. A student at Phillips Academy Andover, she has been playing violin for eight years and has recently begun studying under Peter Zazofsky. She recently transitioned to a vegetarian lifestyle.
Andrew Chen Piano New York, USA [email protected]
Andrew Chen is an active pianist, violinist and vocalist in the Capital Region with a view to a career in music. A senior at Queensbury High School in Queensbury, New York, he studies piano with Pola Baytelman at Skidmore College and violin with Amanda Brin of St. Rose College and the Glens Falls and Albany Symphony Orchestras. He is a member of various performing groups including the Empire State Youth Orchestra, an ensemble that has performed around the world in venues such as Carnegie Hall. Andrew has also attended summer institutes such as the Eastman Music Horizons program and the Boston University Tanglewood Institute. Currently, he gives private instruction to beginning music students and performs regularly throughout the region.
Caitlyn Chenault Cello California, USA [email protected]
Caitlyn Chenault is a passionate cellist who hails from Southern California, where she received her bachelor of music degree from the University of Redlands. After completing her master’s in 2015 with Lee Fiser at UC's College Conservatory of Music, she will continue towards her doctorate with Yehuda Hanani. Caitlyn was a frequent performer with such groups as the Redlands Symphony, the Young Musicians Foundation Orchestra, and the Orange County Symphony, and currently performs with the Richmond Symphony and the Owensboro Symphony Orchestra. When not performing, she is an active teaching artist in the Cincinnati area. In her free time she enjoys playing chamber music with her violinist/violist fiancée Walter Park, cooking and long nature hikes.
Tong Cheng Piano China [email protected]
Tong Cheng is a piano soloist and accompanist, and has been awarded many prizes in China. He began his music education at the age of eight and has performed in Shenyang, Beijing, Yichang, and Hong Kong. He has been granted numerous college scholarships, including the National Scholarship of China. He currently plays piano for the Cincinnati Museum and Kenwood Baptist Church and is pursuing his piano master’s degree at the University of Cincinnati-College Conservatory of Music. Tong is interested in spreading his passion for classical music.
Min Kyung Chun Violin South Korea [email protected]
Korean-born violinist Min Kyung Chun most recently presented a successful recital at Young-San Art Hall as a winner of the Korean Young Artist audition. She has also won other competitions including Yong-In, Suwon, Han Eum, Yejeon International, and Korea Herald. She has been featured as a soloist with the Suwon Philharmonic, the Suwon Art Phil, the Suwon Youth Orchestras, and the Gunpo String Ensemble. In addition, Min Kyung has participated in the Seoul Music Festival and the Master Works Music Festival. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Korea National University of Arts, where she is currently pursuing her master’s degree.
Rosina Curren Violin New York, USA [email protected]
Rosina Curren, a native of Rochester, New York, is currently pursuing a bachelor’s degree in violin performance at the Eastman School of Music under Renée Jolles. She has frequently served as concertmaster and principal second violin of the Eastman Philharmonia, Symphony, and Opera orchestras. Master class performances have been with Peter Serkin, Roger Vignoles, the Pacifica Quartet, and Carmit Zori, and she was selected to perform in an Eastman honors chamber music recital with her piano trio. She has also participated in the Colorado College Summer Music Festival, the Bowdoin International Music Festival, and Le Domaine Forget. She recently performed with the Finger Lakes Opera and the Rochester City Ballet.
Andrew Dezmelyk Violin New Hampshire, USA
Andrew Dezmelyk, a New Hampshire native, began violin studies at an early age and played in the student orchestras at the New England Conservatory Prep Division. In 2009, he won the first competition held by the chamber orchestra A Far Cry and performed with them, and as a high school senior, he played in the Boston Youth Symphony Orchestra. He has attended the Bowdoin International Music Festival for five summers, studying with Sergiu Schwartz. During the summer of 2012 he attended the Boston University Tanglewood Institute and performed in the Young Artists Orchestra. Currently a student in Peter Zazofsky's studio at Boston University, he studied with Gabrielle Lester at the Royal College of Music in London in the fall of 2014.
Benjamin A. Dominguez Piano Pennsylvania, USA
Benjamin A. Dominguez is seventeen years old and lives with his family in South Central Pennsylvania where he has studied piano for nine years. Music is his passion in life with the piano his primary form of expression. His early piano studies were with Sue Davis in Littlestown, Pennsylvania and last year he moved to the studio of James Sempeles for more advanced study. Over the last five years, he has participated in Gloria Dei Lutheran Church’s choir, playing flute duets, piano solos and piano accompaniments with other instruments, and is one of the church’s organists. Milestones include masterclasses with Thomas Mastroianni, Brian Ganz, Jeffrey Sharkey, Alon Goldstein, Michael Chertock, and Yehuda Hanani. Benjamin plans to pursue a bachelor of music in piano performance at the University of Kansas School of Music under Dr. Jack Winerock. Other interests include music composition, scroll-
sawing, programming, and sketching.
Micah Donar Cello Arkansas, USA [email protected]
Micah Donar is from Conway, Arkansas and began her cello studies at the age of eight. She is a former member of the Conway Symphony and was principal cellist of the Arkansas Symphony Youth Orchestra. In 2010 she was a Stella Boyle Smith Young Artist Competition String division winner. That year she also won the Strings International Music Festival Vivaldi competition, allowing her to perform with the festival orchestra at the Mann Center in Philadelphia. In 2011 she won second place in the Crescendo Music Awards High School String division as well as grand prize in the University of Central Arkansas/Conway Symphony Concerto Competition. She has played for masterclasses given by Steven Doane, Hai-Ye Ni, Gloria de Pasquale, Udi Bar-David, Yehuda Hanani and Peter Stumpf. She currently studies with Yehuda Hanani at the University of Cincinnati-College Conservatory of Music.
Fang Fang Cello China [email protected]
Fang Fang is a professional cellist with a master’s degree in music and cello performance from Arizona State University and a bachelor’s in cello performance from the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts and Nanjing Arts Institute. Fang began to play the piano when she was five years old and learned cello from her mother at the age of seven. She has been active for over eight years as a recitalist, orchestral musician, chamber musician and principal cello of the Shanghai Chinese Orchestra. She also played in the Scottsdale Philharmonic as principal cello while attending ASU. Fang has participated in numerous festivals including the Red Rocks Music Festival and the High Peaks Festival. She has been teaching for over ten years and is adept in identifying intrinsic music talents in every child. One of her students was awarded the first prize in the Cello Competition in Eastern China in 2011.
Christopher J. Fedor Cello Pennsylvania, USA [email protected]
Christopher J. Fedor is fifteen years old from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He studies cello with Katya Janpoladyan and Mikhail Istomin of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra and will join the Pittsburgh Youth Symphony Orchestra this year. For two years he has been a member of the Three Rivers Young Peoples Orchestras, with whom he has performed at Carnegie Hall. He has also played with TRYPO's string quartet, Amadeus, and their piano trio Arioso and has been coached by members of the PSO, David Premo and Michael DeBruyn. In 2010-2012 he won the Steinway Society of Western Pennsylvania Young Artist awards. In 2014 he was named a finalist in the WQED-FM Radio "Middle School Musical Kids" competition. He takes his music into a local hospital as a volunteer, playing cello and piano. Other pastimes include baseball, biking, lifting weights, skiing, table tennis, chess, and drawing.
Taichi Fukumura Violin Massachusetts, USA [email protected]
www.taichifukumura.net
Taichi Fukumura began violin studies at age three. He received training from the Boston Youth Symphony, and with Peter Zazofsky, before earning his bachelor of music performance from Boston University College of Fine Arts in 2014. There he won the Departmental Honors Award and the 2011 CFA Bach Competition. As a chamber musician, he has trained with members of the Muir String Quartet and performed with composers such as Joan Tower and Malcolm Peyton. He currently studies with Victor Yampolsky, pursuing a master’s degree in Orchestral Conducting at Northwestern University. As the Associate Conductor of the Boston Civic Symphony, Taichi has conducted Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique, and Wagner’s Siegfried and Rhine Journey. He has also served as assistant conductor for the Boston Youth Symphony Orchestras and is the founding music director of the Boston Accompanietta. This season he will return to the Boston Civic Symphony performing the Bach Double Concerto with Peter Zazofsky.
Zhenyu Gao Piano China [email protected]
Zhenyu Gao was born in Liuzhou, China. She started learning piano at the age of 5. She studied in Beijing, and came to America for high school. During her senior year at Stadium High School, she was an accompanist for school concerts and competitions, then she decided to seriously focus on music as a career. She is currently pursuing a dual bachelor degree of music and business at Stony Brook University. She studies with Jacob DeHoyos and is involved in chamber music and choral singing in her spare time.
Benjamin Gittens Piano Connecticut, USA [email protected]
Nineteen-year-old Benjamin Gittens was born in New Haven, Connecticut and has studied piano since age four. In 2015 he won first prizes in the Lee University International Piano Competition and the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music Undergraduate Piano Competition. In 2014 he was awarded the overall grand prize, first prize, and the Best Romantic Performance at the Carmel Debut International Piano Competition; first prize in the Lana M. Bailey Piano Concerto competition; and second prize in the Chopin Youth Piano Competition. He won first prizes at the DePauw Young Artists Piano Competition, the Southwest Ohio Pre-Collegiate Buckeye Competition and the Blue Ash Montgomery Symphony Orchestra Concerto Competition. He has performed in masterclasses for pianists including Emmanuel Ax, Awadagin Pratt, Karen Shaw, Ning An, Yoshikazu Nagai and Alan Chow. This year, he will be a sophomore at CCM under the tutelage of Michael Chertock.
Kazuhide Iino Viola Japan [email protected]
Kazuhide Iino began playing the violin at the age of five and studied under Reiji Inda and Asako Yoshikawa in his native Japan. He later enrolled at the Tokyo College of Music and switched to viola. After graduation he entered the master’s program in viola at the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music. He was a Second Phase Fellow of Suntory Hall Chamber Music Academy and won second place in the Twelfth Japanese Musician’s Competition in String Instruments. His teachers have included Kazunori Kawasaki, Yuki Hyakutake, and Pierre Henri Xuereb of the Paris Conservatoire. Kazuhide plans to attend the Centre Musical Edgar-Varese Conservatoire A Rayonnement Departemental in France.
Tadao Hermida Ito Cello Mexico [email protected]
Tadao Hermida Ito is a Mexican-Japanese cellist born in 1995. He began studies at age four with Juan Hermida, and made his first public performance at the age of six. He has appeared in many festivals: In Mexico in the 10º International Festival of Puebla, “Barroquísimo” Festival, 3rd Cello Encounter (Escuela Nacional de Música), International Festival Instrumenta Oaxaca, and International Festival Cervantino Guanajuato; In the US, Sound Choice Guest Artist Series, Indiana University of Pennsylvania, and High Peaks; as well as in Central America, Europe, and Israel. Tadao has taken masterclasses with Gavriel Lipkind, Hillel Zori, Balázs Máté, Eric Kim, Jeroen Den Herder, and Gustav Rivinius, and he recorded “Sendas de Oku No. 2” by Brian Banks in 2013. In 2014 he was chosen to play for Yo-Yo Ma at the National Center for the Arts in Mexico City. He received the Bowen and Epperson Awards to study at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music with Yehuda Hanani.
Laura Jekel Cello Ohio, USA [email protected]
Laura Jekel is a cellist and founder/director of MYCincinnati, a free El Sistema-inspired youth orchestra program in Cincinnati, Ohio (mycincinnatiorchestra.org). She is a graduate of the New England Conservatory’s Sistema Fellows program, which has trained 50 leaders who are helping to bring programs modeled after El Sistema to the United States. Originally from Boston, she has performed and taught throughout Latin America and the US. After earning a bachelor of music degree at Indiana University in Bloomington, she became a member of the Orquesta Sinfónica de Guayaquil and cello professor at the music school Fronteras Musicales Abiertas in Ecuador. She earned a master of music in cello performance from Carnegie Mellon University, and is a co-founder of the Price Hill String Quartet in Cincinnati. She is also a substitute cellist with the Cincinnati Ballet Orchestra, the Richmond Symphony, the Kentucky Symphony, and the Dayton Philharmonic.
Eun Ji Jeong Cello South Korea [email protected]
A native of Korea, Eun Ji Jeong began playing the cello at age twelve. Among numerous awards she has received are first place at the Kangwon Music Competition for Teenagers and the bronze medal at the Wonju City Music Competition. She also won third place at the National Music Competition at Kangreung Wonju University. This year, she garnered third prize at the Music Education Newspaper Competition. In 2011, she was selected to perform solo at Wonju Chiak Arts Center as part of her school’s festival. Currently, she is a senior at Kangnam University studying with Professor Sae Rom Kwon, where she is principal cellist in the Kangnam University Orchestra. She has performed at various venues such as Seoul Arts Center, Gyeonggi Arts Center and Poeun Art Hall.
SunYoung Jung Violin South Korea [email protected]
Sun Young Jung, born and raised in South Korea, has been playing the violin with great enthusiasm since the age of twelve and has participated in many major music competitions and performances. She has been awarded prizes including first prize at the National Music Competition (2009) and grand prize at WMN National Student Concour (2010). She attended Sangrok Music Camp and Kangnam University Music Camps for three years. As a violinist in the Kangnam University Orchestra, she has performed at venues such as IBK Chamber Hall at Seoul Arts Center, Gyeonggi Arts Center, and Youngin Poeum Art Hall. A senior at Knagnam University in the studio of Myeong Kwon, she performs at Full Gospel Bupyeong Church and with the Sion Orchestra at Kyesan Church.
DoYeon Kim Cello South Korea
South Korea native DoYeon Kim began playing the cello at the age of ten, going on to win numerous competitions: The Adrian Boyer Competition; the 34
th Music Education Journal
Competition; the Madura Scholarship Competition in Grand Rapids, and the Chamber Competition at the University of Cincinnati-College Conservatory of Music. DoYeon has performed as a soloist with Bayview Music Festival Orchestra and has participated in several solo and chamber recitals in the US. She has also attended summer festivals including The Quartet Program with Charles Castleman; the Bowdoin International Music Festival; and the Aspen International Music Festival. DoYeon has a bachelor in cello performance from the University of Cincinnati under Yehuda Hanani and a master in cello performance from the Eastman School of Music under Alan Harris. A member of the Dante Deo Trio and the Miclot Trio, she is in her second year of doctoral studies in cello performance with Yehuda Hanani at the University of Cincinnati.
Eunsoo Kwak Violin South Korea [email protected]
Korean-born violinist Eunsoo Kwak is currently a candidate for a master’s degree in string performance at Boston University in the studio of Peter Zazofsky. She is the winner of numerous competitions and prizes, including first prize in the New York Artist International Competition. Previous festivals she has participated in are the J & R Music Academy and the Summer Music Festival at Indiana University.
Grace UnHae Kwon Violin California, USA [email protected] www.graceunhaekwon.com
Grace UnHae Kwon began playing the violin at the age of six. She earned her bachelor’s at the New England Conservatory under James Buswell and Mary-Lou Churchill, and her graduate performance degree from the Boston Conservatory. Grace UnHae also holds a master's in music from APU School of Music under Charles Stegeman, and from USC Thornton School of Music with Alice Schoenfeld. Currently she is a scholarship doctoral candidate at Boston University under Peter Zazofsky. In 2012 she participated in the Buenos Aires International Violin Competition. She has gained international recognition as concertmaster of Video Game Orchestra. She was the recording artist of Chrono Cross Time’s Scar solo for VGL-Video Games Live and the violinist for Cybill Shepherd’s movie Listen to Your Heart. Grace UnHae has premiered contemporary works by composers such as Esa-Pekka Salonen and Andy Vores. This summer, she has served as a Resident Artist of the Atlantic Music Festival.
Jaemin Lee Cello Pennsylvania, USA [email protected]
Jaemin Lee is a fourteen year old freshman at North Allegheny Intermediate High School. He has been a member of the Three Rivers Young Peoples Orchestra and the Pittsburgh Youth Symphony Orchestra. He was selected to play cello in two side-by-side programs: the McKeesport Symphony Pops in 2012 and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra in 2015. He participates in the Pittsburgh Music Educators Association, District 1 Honor Orchestra, Golden Strolling Strings, and the NAI Chamber Orchestra. In 2015 he was the Young Artist Concerto Competition Winner, sponsored by the Pittsburgh Philharmonic, performing Saint-Saens’ Cello Concerto No. 1 with them. He is a member of the wrestling team, Key Club, and loves many types of music. He studies cello with Katya Janpoladyan, a founding member of Freya String Quartet.
Ji-Yeon Lee Violin [email protected]
Ji-Yeon Lee is a graduate of the Eastman School of Music where she studied with Oleh Krysa. She is a B-contract violinist with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra and a concertmaster and principal with the Eastman School Symphony Orchestra and the Eastman Philharmonia. Solo performances include the Millennium Stage at the Kennedy Center and Kodak Hall, as the Eastman School Concerto Competition winner. She has performed in Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall, collaborated with Mikhail Kopelman, and performed Strauss “Capriccio” sextet with Carol Rodland, Oleh Krysa, and Rosemary Elliott. Ji-Yeon has attended the Bowdoin International Music Festival and the National Repertory Orchestra. Her piano trio at Eastman competed in the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition in 2014. She has participated in master classes with Pamela Frank, Eric Rosenblith, Nicholas Kitchen, Donald Weilerstein, Lucy Chapman, and the Juilliard Quartet. She will return to Eastman in the fall to continue her master’s studies.
Jonathan Lin Cello California, USA [email protected]
From San Diego, California, Jonathan Lin has been playing cello since the age of nine. A freshman at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, he is pursuing a bachelor's degree in cello performance under William Grubb. He has studied with Yao Zhao, Joon Sung Jun, Bing Yan and Chia-Ling Chien, and has played in master classes with William Grubb and Alan Rafferty. Teachers have included Merry Peckham, Richard Weiss, Andrew Mark, Yu Ming Qing, and John Walz. He has been coached in chamber music by the American String Quartet, Ariel String Quartet, Ko Iwasaki, Richard Slavich and Yehuda Hanani. Music festivals attended include the Idyllwild Summer Music Festival, Great Wall International Music Academy and the Montecito International Music Festival. The San Diego Civic Youth Orchestra's principal cellist for two years, in 2014 he performed with the San Diego Symphony's principal cellist and as a member of the Music For All's Honor Orchestra of America. His hobbies are golf and basketball.
Jiaze (Jiahua) Ma Cello China
Jiaze (Jiahua) Ma was born into a musician family in China. He began studying piano with his mother at age four and cello with his father at age eleven. In 2001, he joined in Shenzhen Experimental School Symphony Orchestra as principal cellist, touring Italy, Austria and Taiwan. Jiaze earned his bachelor of music degree from the University of Wisconsin under Dr. Lawrence Leviton, and studied at Northern Illinois University under Cheng-Hou Lee and the Avalon Quartet. Each year of his studies he earned the Edmund Builkolt String Scholarship, the Francescbi-Stoll Scholarship, and the Academic Excellence Award. In 2011, he joined the Honor String Quartet at Northern Illinois University School of Music. He is finishing his master’s degree in cello performance at Arizona State University Herberger School of music with a talent scholarship, under the guidance of Belgian cellist Thomas Landschoot.
Michael Mahler Cello Michigan, USA
Originally from Troy, Michigan, Michael Mahler is a cellist in his fifth year of study at Central Michigan University, double majoring in music performance and education. Michael has been a member of the Symphony Orchestra at CMU for four years. This summer, he performed with the Saarburg Music Festival in Germany and he has played with the Bariolage String Quartet and the Troy High Symphony, performing in Chicago, Orlando, New York, Atlanta, and at the Michigan Music Conference. He was also a member of the Gaylord Community Orchestra for three years. His teachers have included Andrea Thorne and Dr. Jamie Fiste. He has been playing the cello for twelve years.
Ren Martin-Doike Violin France
[email protected] renmartindoike.com
Violist Ren Martin-Doike is an innovative performer on a mission to captivate audiences worldwide and in disparate venues—on the streets and in the concert hall. She has performed in the Americas, Europe, and Asia as a soloist and with the Curtis Symphony and Chamber Orchestras, the Benny Rietveld Jazz Quintet, and the Indiana University Violin Virtuosi. As principal viola of the Curtis 20/21 Chamber Orchestra, she performed in the Kennedy Center with Jennifer Koh and Jaime Laredo for the Two x Four Project, resulting in a Grammy-nominated recording. In the works is an album with the Benny Rietveld Jazz Quintet and Teodora Enache, with whom she will tour Romania this fall. Ren regularly performs with the Philadelphia Orchestra. A graduate of the Curtis Institute of Music, she will soon begin her master's studies at the Conservatoire Supérieur de Musique in Paris as a Harriet Hale Woolley Scholar.
Adrianna Mateo Violin New York, USA [email protected]
https://soundcloud.com/adriannamateo/
likealittlekidwitharagingheart
https://soundcloud.com/adriannamateo/ lean-back-and-release
Adrianna Mateo, new music violinist, pop/rock singer-songwriter, and writer, has performed solo at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, American Museum of Natural History, internationally, and at TimesCenter with DJ Spooky. She was hailed as “triumphant” by TimeOut New York for her Bang on a Can Marathon debut last summer. She is known for her audacity, ingenuity and performance flair. Recently, she performed her second run of shows at the Met, conducted orchestral premieres at Merkin Concert Hall and the DiMenna Center; was appointed concertmaster of the LITHA summer orchestra; and ran a successful 10K Kickstarter campaign for her first album, supported by composers David Lang, Nico Muhly, and Bora Yoon and violinist Tim Fain. Her body of work includes solo violin recordings, an original single and three vocal demos (self-accompanied on electric guitar, ukeleles, and piano), self-produced photo shoots, two commercials slated for national release (recorded violin, modeling), a music video, creative and critical writing, and six social media channels. Adrianna is the Kaufman Center's youngest faculty member. Ensemble credits include performances at Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center and recordings for Philip Glass and David Starobin. Adrianna studied with Renée Jolles at the Aaron Copland School of Music, earning a bachelor's in Music.
Seohee Min Violin South Korea
Seo Hee Min is from South Korea and is a senior at the Eastman School of Music where she studies with Renee Jolles. She is the winner of the Eastman Open Strings Concerto Competition. In addition to the Catskill High Peaks Festival, this summer she also participates in the Bowdoin International Music Festival this summer, where she is a Kaplan Fellow in violin.
Isabel Oliart Violin Massachusetts, USA [email protected]
Isabel Oliart, a nineteen year old violinist from Newton, Massachusetts, has studied with Peter Zazofsky for the past six years. She has been a member of the Boston Youth Symphony and the Boston Philharmonic Youth Orchestra and has studied chamber music at New England Conservatory Preparatory Division. As a soloist she has played with the Waltham Symphony, the Newton Symphony, the Rivers Symphony, the Newton North Orchestra, as well as the Boston Youth Symphony (at Jordan Hall) as concerto competition winner in 2013. She also won first prize in the Roman Totenberg Competition. Isabel also enjoys traditional fiddling in many styles and has been a featured guest in The Burren Backroom Series in Somerville, and on the National Public Radio show "Says You.” First place winner in the 2013 Highland Games Scottish Junior Fiddling Competition in New Hampshire, Isabel will attend the New England Conservatory in the fall as a student of Lucy Chapman.
Raphaël Pagnon Viola France [email protected]
Raphaël Pagnon obtained his bachelor’s diploma in viola from the Conservatoire Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris, and in violin from the Conservatoire de Paris, where he graduated with honors. He has studied with M. Michalakakos, A. Nanashima, and P. Hommage, and has participated in master classes with R.Daugareil, J.J.Kantorow, Ch .Poiget, M.Piketty, and Ph.Bride. He was a prizewinner in the French competitions Concours National des Jeunes Altistes and Concours Léopold Bellan, and received the Award of the Conseil Général des Bouches-du-Rhône. Raphaël has performed solo violin with the Sinfolario Orchestra at the Festival Lago di Como e Insubria in Italy as well as the Marseille CRR orchestra. He has also participated in orchestras conducted by A.Altinoglu, F.X.Roth, and F.X.Bilger in venues such as Salle Pleyel and auditorium de la Cité de la musique in Paris. He is a member of L’ensemble Eclosion, a chamber orchestra comprised of young talent from the South of France, and is a founding member of the quartet Quatuor Agate. He also enjoys exploring jazz and improvised music with Didier Lockwood as well as Indian music.
Hyuna Park Piano South Korea [email protected]
Hyuna Park was born in 1986 in Busan, South Korea, and discovered her artistic talents at the age of five. When she was thirteen she began studying piano at the Peniel Middle School of the Arts with Kyung Won Noh. There she made her first solo orchestral debut in 2002 with the Busan Symphony Orchestra, performing Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 3 in C minor. In 2011 she graduated third in the music department from Sookmyung Women’s University, where she studied Chopin with Seung-Hee Kim, drawn especially to Chopin’s sensitive voicing and tone color. In 2013 she received a master’s degree from the Cleveland Institute of Music, where she studied with Antonio Pompa-Baldi. Previously, she studied with Robert McDonald (Juiliard School of Music), at the Seoul Music Festival Academy, and participated in a masterclass with Billy Edi (Ecole Normale de Musique de Paris). Currently, she is pursuing a doctoral degree in piano performance at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, under Michael Chertock.
Sohyeon Park Cello South Korea [email protected]
Sohyeon Park, a native of South Korea, began her cello studies at the age of nine. She received her bachelor’s from Jeju National University with a dean's scholarship and has claimed prizes from numerous competitions: Seoul Orchestra (first prize), The Music Education News (second prize), Ara Music (third prize) and Jeju Music Association (first prize). This year she was awarded the Glenn and Frances Harris Cello Prize. After winning the 2013 New Figure Debut Concert with a performance of Dvořák’s cello concerto, she made her debut with the Jeju Philharmonic. Sohyeon has appeared as a soloist with them as well as the Jeju Chamber Orchestra, the Jeju Feel Junior Orchestra, the Rumanian Banatul Timisoara Orchestra and the Jeju Contact Ensemble. She is currently a member of the cello ensemble Marri Celli in Jeju and is pursuing a master of music degree at Eastman School of Music with Professor Alan Harris.
Aleida Ramírez Corona Violincello Mexico [email protected]
Aleida Ramírez Corona began studying violoncello in 2006 at the Conservatorio de Música del Estado de Puebla. In 2012 she obtained her bachelor of music from Universidad de las Américas Puebla where she studied under the cellist Juan Hermida Camacho. She has been in various student orchestras, including Orquesta Sinfonica Juvenil del Conservatorio de Puebla, Orquesta Sinfónica Infantil y Juvenil del Estado de México, and Orquesta Symphonia UDLAP. Aleida plays with her teacher and other students in a cello quartet called Rock & Cello, which performs the music of Apocalyptica. She is currently enrolled in reading promotion at Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla, integrating live music performance with short selected readings and images for children and adults.
Carolyn Snyder Viola Illinois, USA [email protected]
Carolyn Snyder is a graduate student and teaching assistant at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, Illinois, pursuing a master of music degree in viola performance under Tony Devroye. Her bachelor’s degrees in instrumental music education and music performance is from Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, AZ where she graduated Summa Cum Laude and with Liberal Studies Honors. There she also studied viola privately under Dr. Jacquelyn Schwandt, performed with the NAU Symphony and Chamber Orchestras, and the Flagstaff Symphony Orchestra; and was a member of the Wren Quartet and the Plein Aire String Quartet. While enrolled in her study programs, Carolyn has led an active performing and teaching career, appearing with the Phoenix Symphony as a substitute, and as a regular member of the West Valley Symphony, Symphony of the Southwest, Pro Arte Ensemble, the East Valley Chorale, and other Phoenix area ensembles. She is now transferring her activities to the Chicago area.
Ming Hang Tam Violin Hong Kong, China [email protected]
Ming Hang Tam is from Hong Kong, where he began playing the violin at the age of four, under Hon-Biu Poon, Wing-Shun Li, Professor Shi-Sheng Zheng and Beedarn Chao. He received prizes consecutively, from 2000 to 2004, in Hong Kong school music festivals, including the Sea Sound Scholarship for String Concerto. He has been awarded a diploma in violin performance from Trinity College London. In secondary school he was a member of the string orchestra and the school orchestra, active as concertmaster, and second-violin principal chair. He was awarded an Outstanding Musician Scholarship in 2006 and the Subject Prize in Music in 2007. In 2013 he performed in two violin masterclasses in Hong Kong with Cho-Liang Lin and Dmitry Sitkovetsky. He now studies violin performance at the Eastman School of Music with Renée Jolles. This summer, he also participates in the Bowdoin International Music Festival.
Wendy Toh Violin Singapore [email protected]
A native of Singapore, Wendy Toh has made solo appearances with the Singapore Festive Orchestra as well as at the Barber Institute of Fine Arts at the University of Birmingham, UK. She represented Singapore in the Southeast Asia Diploma Awards Ceremony Concert organized by the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music and was a prizewinner in the Singapore National Violin Competition Artist Category and first prize winner of the Duxbury. MA Music Festival Chamber Competition. She is also an inaugural recipient of the Alumni Excellence in Performing Arts Award from the Tanjong Katong Girls’ School (Singapore). An avid performer of Baroque violin, she has studied with Baroque experts Kristian Bezuidenhout, Cynthia Roberts, and Christel Thielmann. She is currently a doctor of musical arts candidate at the Eastman School of Music under Renee Jolles. Previous teachers include Oleh Krysa.
Eliza Li-Han Tseng Cello Taiwan [email protected]
Eliza Li-Han Tseng began her studies in 2014 under Lee Fiser at the University of Cincinnati-College Conservatory of Music, where she is pursuing her DMA degree, on a scholarship. Her master’s degree is from the University of North Texas, where she studied with Nikola Ruzevic and where she was awarded a scholarship from the College of Music and taught in the UNT String Project. This year she will become a cello instructor at Northern Kentucky University-Music Preparatory Department. Eliza was a visiting scholar at Internationales Musikkonservatorium Graz and won a full scholarship to the Manchester Music Festival. She has performed with orchestras such as the National Taiwan Youth Symphony and the Monroe Symphony. Her teachers have included Chia -Yi Tseng, Chung-Cheng Lin, Yehuda Hanani, Danwen Jiang, Eugene Osadchy, and Amit Even-Tov (Ariel Quartet). Eliza will continue to explore the musical possibilities of cello, performing chamber music and teaching.
Holly Workman Violin Pennsylvania, USA [email protected]
Holly Workman is originally from Mountville, Pennsylvania, where she began studying the violin at the age of four. While in high school, she studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of Music, completing their Certificate Program. Holly has participated in and won awards from several music competitions. In 2012, she performed a solo in Carnegie Hall after being awarded second place in the American Protège Music Talent Competition and she has attended music festivals in the US, Italy, France, and Germany. She will be a junior in the fall at the Eastman School of Music where she is pursuing her bachelor of music in violin performance, in the studio of Renée Jolles.
Yite Xu Violin [email protected]
Yite Xu is from the People’s Republic of China and has the distinction of having been chosen to compete in the upcoming 2015 Joseph Joachim International Violin Competition Hannover. He received the top prize in the 2011 Hong Kong International Violin Competition. Yite has a Bachelor’s Degree from the Central Conservatory of Beijing and received a Master’s Degree from the Yale School of Music. He will continue his doctoral studies with Peter Zazofsky at Boston University.
Anton Xuereb Viola France [email protected]
Anton Xuereb started violin lessons in the Académie d’Ixelles in Belgium with Marinette Gillard and then advanced to the Conservatoire de Nîmes in France with Philippe Mouchon. He has appeared in chamber music concert festivals in the south of France and Saint Dizier, France.
Bruno Xuereb Viola France [email protected]
Bruno Xuereb also started violin lessons in the Académie d’ Ixelles in Belgium with Marinette Gillard and then the Conservatoire de Nîmes in France with Philippe Mouchon. Like is older brother he has appeared in chamber music concerts in the south of France and Saint Dizier, France.
Zongbei Zhang Piano China [email protected]
Zongbei Zhang is a student of Michael Chertock at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music where she recently completed her MM degree in Piano Performance. She has a particular affinity for the music of Mozart, Beethoven and Schubert and has attended the Catskill High Peaks Festival in the past. She studied in her native China with Xi You who is currently on the faculty of Beijing Central Conservatory. Zongbei has performed at the Wuhan International Music Festival and has a large studio of private students in Mason, OH.
Xinya Zhou Cello China [email protected]
Xinya Zhou was born in Chengdu, China, began studying cello at age five and entered the Yinxing Art Group at age seven. In 1999 she entered the Sichuan Conservatory of Music as a cello major. In 2007 she participated in Young Euro Classic, a music festival in Germany sponsored by her school. In 2009 she earned her bachelor’s degree in music performance from the Shanghai Conservatory of Music and joined the cello section of the Hangzhou Philharmonic Orchestra. She received a full scholarship and assistantship to Bowling Green State University in 2010 and began graduate studies under Alan Smith, becoming a member of the Graduate String Quartet and also joining the Perrysburg Symphony Orchestra as the principal cello. In 2013, she began her pursuit of a doctorate in musical arts at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music where she studies under Yehuda Hanani.
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