Vancouver Symphony Orchestra USA's National Young Artist Competition Finals Upcoming On October 17

The exciting final round of the 27th annual Young Artist Concerto Competition will take place live on October 17, 2021 at 1 PM PDT at First Presbyterian Church in Vancouver, WA, USA.

Featuring nine remarkable competitors from across the United States, this popular event will see the selection of the gold medal winners for 2021 and will be hosted by OPB CEO Steve Bass.

Audience space will be limited due to COVID guidelines, however the finalist performances will also be live streamed simultaneously at vancouversymphony.org. Tickets for live attendance will also be available on the VSO website.

The extraordinary young finalists have selected the pieces they will perform for a chance to win first prize. Of the piano category, Alyssa Gabrilovich will perform Grieg's Piano Concerto in A minor, 1st movement, and Dora-Ziyan Chen and David Choi will both perform Liszt's Piano Concerto No. 1 in E-flat major. In the strings category, Adrien Hsieh will perform Dvořák's Cello Concerto in B minor, 1st movement, Ezekiel Sokolof will perform Prokofiev's Violin Concerto No. 2, 1st movement, and Jonathan Okseniuk will perform Sibelius's Violin Concerto in D minor, 1st movement. In the winds/brass category, Nikka Gershman-Pepper will perform Mercadante's Flute Concerto in E minor, 1st movement, Spencer Cox will perform Creston's Concerto for Alto Saxophone, 1st movement, and Erica Wang will perform Borne's Carmen Fantasy for flute.

The final round performances will be judged by an extraordinary panel of renowned performers and educators from across the nation:

Maestro Salvador Brotons: VSO Music Director and Conductor, professor of composition and orchestra conducting at Escola Superior de Música de Catalunya (ESMUC).

Zuill Bailey: GRAMMY Award winning cello virtuoso, Artistic Director of several major music festivals in the US including Sitka Summer Music Festival, and a professor of Cello at UT El Paso.

Dr. Igal Kesselman: Internationally renowned piano educator, Director of Lucy Moses School in NYC, Music Director of Special Music School and Artistic Director of Kaufman Music Center International Piano Competition.

Pedro Diaz: Solo English Horn at the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, faculty member of The Juilliard School, as well as Artist-in-Residence at SUNY Stony Brook University.

Dr. Stephen Shepherd: VSO Associate Concertmaster, Portland Columbia Symphony Associate Concertmaster, former musician with Westmoreland, Wheeling, and Cedar Rapids symphonies and Vice Principal of Portland's Roosevelt High School.

Open to all students 18 years of age or under who are citizens or legal residents of the United States of America, nine of the nation's finest young musicians chosen from over 100 applicants will compete in three categories: piano, strings and winds/brass. The 2021 Gold Medal winners in each category will receive the opportunity to perform with the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Maestro Salvador Brotons on January 22nd and 23rd at Skyview Concert Hall. All finalists will receive generous cash prizes. Gold Medalists will be awarded $5,000 each; Silver Medalists, $2,000 each; Bronze Medalists, $1,000 each.

The VSO, now in its 43rd season, has been a cornerstone of Southwest Washington's arts community, providing symphonic music of the highest caliber in live performances and through music education in schools, concert halls, and throughout the community. For more information, please visit vancouversymphony.org.

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