The Concord Orchestra Young Artist Concerto Competition

Music Director - Zeke Fetrow

Announcing the 2023-2024 CO Young Artist Concerto Competition Winner

Jiyu Oh is a violinist from Seoul, South Korea. She is currently studying with Professor Soovin Kim at the New England Conservatory Preparatory School and Walnut Hill School for the Arts in Boston, MA. She is also enrolled in the Chamber Music Intensive Performance Seminar and plays as co-concertmaster of Youth Philharmonic Orchestra of NEC Preparatory School. Her most recent highlights include full scholarship participation at the Chamber Music Northwest Young Artist Institute and Morningside Music Bridge, 1st place of Concord Young Artist Competition and 2nd place in the BSO Concerto Competition and NEC Preparatory School Concerto Competition and Jack Kent Cooke Award from NPR’s From the Top. Some of her previous performances are Walnut Hill 50th Anniversary at Rockport, “A Night at the Museum” performance held at the Calderwood Hall, Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Music for Food Concert at the Goethe Institut, “Back to Bach” virtual concert, a commissioned piece at the Learning Courage virtual concert “Hope” and recital at the Kumho Art Hall as Kumho Prodigy Artist. Also, she has participated in masterclasses with renowned musicians namely Miriam Fried, Donald Weilerstein, Philip Setzer, Grigory Kalinovsky, Ulf Wallin, Guillaume Sutre, Wayne Lin, Mikyung Lee and Wonhee Bae.

Jiyu will perform the Barber Violin Concerto on the Momentum program on March 23-24. Check here for additional information and tickets.

Congratulations to the 2023-2024 runners up:

Jessica Kartawidjaja is an 18 year old violinist from Jakarta, Indonesia. She is currently a 12th grader at Walnut School for the Arts in Natick, Massachusetts and studies with Peter Zazofsky at the New England Conservatory Preparatory School. She was a part of the Chamber Music Intensive Performance Seminar (CHIPS) and is currently in the NEC prep Youth Philharmonic Orchestra. She was co-concert master of the Boston Ballet Next Generation orchestra where they performed at the Citizens Bank Opera House. During the summer, she participated in the Singapore Violin Festival, Greenwood Music Camp, and Yellow Barn Young Artist Program. This summer, she will be attending the Chamber Music Northwest Young Artist Institute in Portland, Oregon. Recently, she performed at the Rockport Shalin Liu Performance Center and a commissioned piece at the Learning Courage Virtual Concert. She has also placed as runner-up at the Concord Young Artist Concerto Competition and received first prize at the Brockton Youth Concerto Competition, where she will be playing as soloist with the Brockton Symphony Orchestra

Jessica will perform a recital on Saturday March 23 at 7:15PM. Check the Momentum concert page for program details.

Maggie Bai, currently aged 12, is a pianist of extraordinary promise. She is presently enrolled at the New England Conservatory, where she receives instruction in piano and piano seminars from Ramon Rivera, alongside chamber music guidance from Laura Blustein. Maggie's musical achievements include First Prize in the 2021 Steinway Society Piano Competition Division I (for ages 10 and under), Second Prize in the 2023 Division II (ages 11-14), and Grand Prize Winner in the 2022 International Young Artists Competition (NLPA). She has also been selected by the renowned Music@Menlo as a pianist in their Young Performers Program. She takes regular piano lessons with Mr. Ramon Rivera and Ms. Kanako Nishikawa. She has graced prominent stages like Carnegie Hall in New York, Brown Hall, and M. Steinert & Sons in Boston. Maggie's commitment to honing her craft extends to attending master classes led by notable pianists such as Gilbert Kalish, Max Levinson, and Orli Shaham. Beyond music, she exhibits passion and prowess in other disciplines, participating in debate and tennis, and displaying literary talent by publishing a novel at age 11 in the Newton Chinese Language School Journal. She has also won First Prize in multiple public speaking competitions both within the Newton Chinese Language School and in the local community.

Maggie will perform a recital on Sunday March 24 at 1:45PM. Check the Momentum concert page for program details.

2023-2024 Season Application Process

Eligibility

The Young Artist Competition is open to musicians of high school age or younger who reside in eastern Massachusetts. All orchestral instruments are eligible, including piano. Each entrant auditions to play an entire concerto or similar work, suitable for performance with the orchestra. The winner is chosen by a panel of orchestra members and the music director through auditions. 

Prizes

The winner will be featured as our soloist for the March 2024 concerts: Saturday, March 23, 8 PM and Sunday, March 24, 2024, 2:30 PM at 51 Walden St., Concord, MA. In addition to performing with the orchestra, the winner receives a cash prize from the Ehlers Memorial Scholarship Fund, which was established in 1993 in memory of Charles and Arlene Ehlers.

Up to two other applicants may be invited to play prelude recitals before the Saturday and Sunday concerts.

Application, Fee, and Deadline

A downloadable & printable  Application Form
The completed application and fee must be received  by Oct. 31, 2023.
The nonrefundable application fee of $40 must be paid by check, payable to the Concord Orchestra. Please put the student’s name on the check.
Please mail paper applications and all checks to: Concord Orchestra, Box 381, Concord, MA 01742.

Live Auditions

DATES/TIMES: Wednesday and Thursday, November 15 & 16, 2023, 7:30-10:30 PM
LOCATION: Concord Academy, 66 Main St., Concord, MA

Audition times will be assigned with priority given to earliest applications. Invitations to the live auditions with assigned time slots will be emailed at least 10 days before the audition dates.

Accompanist and Memorization

Each entrant must supply their own accompanist.  
Memorization of the entire work is required for the audition, for all instruments, except  woodwinds, brass, and percussion.

Results

Winners and runners-up will be contacted by phone and/or email within two days of the audition dates, all other applicants will be notified by email shortly thereafter. Results will also be posted here on this webpage.

Repertoire

The Young Artist Competition is subject to repertoire restrictions that excludes all concerti performed by the orchestra in the current and the prior three seasons.

Applicants to the 2023 - 2024 competition may not select any of the following works:

  • Dvorak, Cello Concerto

  • Elgar, Cello Concerto in E Minor

  • Hovhaness, Artik

  • Lalo, Symphonie Espagnole

  • Lebrun, Oboe Concerto No. 1

  • MacDowell, Piano Concerto No. 2

  • Rachmaninoff, Piano Concerto No. 2

  • Tchaikovsky, Violin Concerto

  • Weber, Clarinet Concerto No. 2

Performance Time Restrictions 

The Young Artist Competition is subject to performance time restrictions which determine the maximum length allowed for a concerto selected by the applicant. Applicants who select a concerto longer than this limit will be disqualified from consideration.

 

**** The 2023 - 2024 Young Artist Competition’s maximum accepted concerto length is 25 minutes ****

The Concord Orchestra uses a standardized industry tool, Orchestral Music by David Daniels, to determine the length and orchestration of all works it performs. While this resource is available in print, and to subscribers online at https://daniels-orchestral.com/, information about piece lengths is not freely available to the general public. Consequently, it is strongly encouraged that if you’re unsure about the standardized length of a particular piece, please contact our Music Director using the information provided below.

 

Music Director Zeke Fetrow, zfetrow@gmail.com

 

The Young Artist Competition is a treasured part of our programming, and both our audiences and performers look forward to previewing the next generation of outstanding talent each season!! For questions not involving the length of your concerto, please email Jan Kinmonth at jan.kinmonth@gmail.com, or visit our website at https://www.concordorchestra.com.

2023 Young Artist Competition Winners

  • Winner: Lazar Kaminsky, 16, cello, Elgar, Cello Concerto - Performed on the March 25 & 26 concerts

  • Runner up: Henry Lee, 15, violin - Invited to play recital on Sunday, March 26
     

2022 Young Artist Competition Winners

Special for this season:  2 concert programs featuring young artist soloists

  • Winner: Katherine E. Liu, 17, piano, Rachmaninoff, Concerto No. 2, op.18 - Performed on the March 26 & 27 concerts

  • Winner: Ayaan Ahmad, 15, violin, Tchaikovsky, Concerto in D Major - Performed on the May 21 & 22 concerts      

  • Runner up: Naomi Yamaguchi, 17, piano - Invited to play recital on Saturday, March 26       

  • Runner up: Andrew Y. Kim, 14, cello - Invited to play recital on Sunday, March 27

2020 Young Artist Competition Winners

  • Winner: Andrew Gu, 13, piano, Prokofiev Piano Concerto No. 1 in D flat Major

  • Runner up: Fei Yang-Sady, 12, violin. Invited to play Friday recital.

  • Runner up: Kaitlyn Kaminuma, 14, violin. Invited to play Saturday recital. 

2019 Young Artist Competition Winners

  • Winner: Hayden Idson, Cello, Tchaikovsky’s Variations on a Rococo Theme

  • Runner up: Zehavi Rodriguez, 13, Cello

  • Runner up: Hannah Ryu, 17, Violin
     

2018 Young Artist Competition Winners

  • Winner: Alexander Goldberg, Violin, Prokofiev Violin Concerto Number 2

  • Runner Up: Hayden Idson, Cello. Invited to play Saturday recital

  • Runner Up: Hotin Chan, Cello. Invited to play Friday recital