2023 Young Artists Concerto Competition

There are 42 contestants from around the country participating in the 2023 Young Artists Competition.   They are contestants from New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, California, Washington, Florida and the country of Singapore in today’s competition. They include 17 violinists, 14 pianists, 6 cellists, 1 violist, 1 oboist, 1 clarinetist, 1 marimba artist, and 1 performer on the erhu (Chinese folk instrument). The age of the competitors ranges from 8 – 18.  

The format of the competition is in hybrid form, as we have both LIVE, in-person competitors as well as video submissions. The selection of winners is based on the best of the video and in-person performances. 

There will be a maximum of four Gold Medal winners chosen to solo with the Bravura Philharmonic Orchestra. The winners will be performing on the evening of Sunday, June 4, 2023 with the orchestra. In addition, we will select Silver and Bronze Medal winners in recognition of their fabulous performances today.

(Winners in alphabetical order)

GOLD Winners will perform with the Bravura Philharmonic

William Ge, piano, age 15:  Rachmaninoff Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini

Matthew Ho, cello, age 14: Tchaikovsky Variations on a Rococo Theme, Opus 33

Madison Lee, violin, age 14: Vieuxtemps Violin Concerto No.5, Opus 37, movement 1

Jinan Laurentia Woo, violin, age 15: Beethoven Violin Concerto, movement 1

Silver Winners

Julie Kim, violin, age 16: Prokofiev Violin Concerto No.2 in G Minor, Op. 63, movement 1

Effie Li, piano, age 15: Saint-Saens Piano Concerto No.2 in G Minor, Op.22, movement 1

Krystal Sun, violin, age 17: Piazzolla The Four Seasons of Buenos Aires-Winter & Spring

Bronze Winners 

Valentina Chen, violin, age 13: Saint-Saens Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso

Kaylin Chung, violin, age 17: Sibelius Violin Concerto, movement 1

Jisang Kymm, viola, age 16: Bartok Viola Concerto, movement 1

Silver Winners

Bronze Winners

JUDGES FOR 2023 COMPETITION

Chiu-Tze Lin, music director and conductor of the award-winning Bravura Philharmonic Orchestra, is a versatile and multifaceted musician - conductor, pianist, and teacher.  While serving as the conductor of the Manalapan Battleground Symphony, she received the Victor Grossinger Award for Innovative Programming.  Ms. Lin was inducted into the Steinway Teachers Hall of Fame, the first time that such honors were bestowed by the Steinway company. She is also a Music Teachers National Association Foundation Fellow, a recognition given only to individuals who have made significant contributions to music education in the country. Ms. Lin was selected as a “Hottest Artist in New Jersey” in 2001 by the Asbury Park Press.  As a concert pianist, Ms. Lin has been acclaimed by the New York Times for her “strong technique, a hearty tone that sounded big and unforced [which] provides the greatest musical pleasure.” She is a Steinway Artist who has performed in Asia, Europe, and across the United States. Ms. Lin has appeared as a touring soloist with the Chicago Symphony and was a soloist with the Cincinnati Symphony. Her second CD featuring works of Bach solo piano works has been described by New York Concert Review as a "... most satisfying performance ... with eloquence and sensitivity." Her recordings have been broadcast across the country. Ms. Lin directed the first international summer music festival sponsored by the Chinese Ministry of Culture.  She conducted the Shanghai Musicians Chamber Orchestra in the Sino-American Cultural Exchange Concert. The performance was featured on CCTV

Violinist Cheng-Chih Kevin Tsai, concertmaster of the Bravura Philharmonic Orchestra, has been described by The Strad magazine as a violinist “with admirable facility.”  Dr. Tsai earned his doctoral degree from Rutgers University under Arnold Steinhardt, and he was a pupil of Glenn Dicterow and Dorothy Delay at the Juilliard School. He studied chamber music with Felix Galamir and members of the Tokyo, Emerson, and Guarneri String quartets. He was first violinist and founding member of the Killington String Quartet.  A native of Taiwan, Dr. Tsai is the recipient of numerous awards, including winning the Chi-Mei and the Taiwan National Violin competitions, and he is the first recipient of the Darrow Prize from the Killington Music Festival.  Dr. Tsai has given solo recitals and master classes, and he has performed as a soloist and in string quartets in many major cities in North America and Taiwan, and in European countries including Italy, Germany, Switzerland, and France.  He has appeared in concerts at Avery Fisher Hall, Carnegie Hall, and Alice Tully Hall, and collaborated with artists such as Arnold Steinhardt, Michael Tree, and Pinchas Zukermann.   In addition to his active private studio, Dr. Tsai is a highly sought-after chamber music coach. The groups he has worked with have won top awards in chamber music competitions that have enabled them to perform in prestigious venues in New York City.  

Pianist Yu Xi Wang is Director of Keyboard Studies at the Curtis Institute of Music and Piano Program Director in the Philadelphia International Music Festival. She also teaches at the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Wang has given masterclasses, workshops, and lectures at regional schools, colleges, and the local MTNA chapter. She has taught piano, chamber music, solfège, music theory, and keyboard harmony at prestigious institutions including The Juilliard School, Music Institute of Chicago, and Settlement Music School. Dr. Wang’s private piano students have taken top prizes in competitions and have gone on to study at The Juilliard School, Manhattan School of Music, and Oberlin Conservatory. As a performer, Dr. Wang made her Carnegie Hall recital debut in 2002 as the winner of the Artists International competition. She has released a CD under the Chinese label JSCP and has an active performing career both as a soloist and chamber musician throughout North America and Asia. A native of Beijing, China, Dr. Wang started piano at age 3 with her mother, a pianist and renowned pedagogue of the “electone.” She made her debut with the China Women’s Philharmonic at age 10 and soon enrolled in the Central Conservatory of Music, studying with Hui-Su Chen. Dr. Wang attended the Juilliard Pre-College Division under the tutelage of Herbert Stessin and holds her B.M., M.M., and D.M.A from The Juilliard School, where she studied with Jerome Lowenthal and Julian Martin and chamber music faculty members Constance Moore and Jonathan Feldman. Dr. Wang resides in Philadelphia with her family.