On Sunday, April 14, 2024, at Koerner Hall, Vancouver Academy of Music, the Friends of Chamber Music hosted the 69th annual Young Musicians Competition. Each competing group of three or more musicians played roughly ten minutes of music in a free public concert. The Competition helps young musicians gain appreciation and familiarity with the collaborative process and skills needed to play great chamber music from many eras. And we hope this begins a lifelong relationship for them with this fascinating music genre.
Adjudicator Jane Coop (concert pianist: recitalist, chamber musician, soloist with orchestras; emeritus professor, Faculty of Music, UBC) awarded prizes and gave her performance notes to all the musicians at the end. Audience members voted for one Junior group (up to 18 years old) and one Senior group (up to 26 years old) to receive an audience prize (donated by a Friends board member) in addition to those awarded by Ms. Coop.
We give our thanks to the adjudicator, to the student musicians, their coaches, their parents and families, the staff at the VAM who helped with the venue, the Friends board members (especially Karen Shuster) who volunteered to make the event happen, our videographer, and to all the people who attended this public concert.
The competition results, decided by adjudicator Jane Coop, as well as the prizes decided by the audience, were as follows:
Junior First Prize winners:
Mondschein Trio: Justin Junwoo Ha, violin; Joseph Wang, cello; Edward Duan, piano playing Beethoven’s Piano Trio No. 7 in B flat major, Opus 97 “Archduke”, 1st movement – allegro moderato
Junior Second Prize and Audience Prize winners:
Pi Trio: Adam Ngui, violin; Nini Lu, cello; Allen Ding, piano playing Mendelssohn’s Piano Trio No. 1 in D minor, Opus 49, 1st movement – molto allegro ed agitato
Junior Third Prize winners (tie):
Brio Trio: Kira Gill, violin; Nandini Singh, cello; Julianne Yu, piano playing Shostakovich’s Piano Trio No. 1 in C minor, Opus 8, single movement – andante, moderato
Junior Third Prize winners (tie):
Owl Quintet: Aaron Kang, violin; Joseph Zheng, violin; Emma Sha, viola; Charlie Goulding, cello; Judah Williams, piano playing Brahms’ Piano Quintet in F minor, Opus 34, 1st movement – allegro non troppo
Senior First Prize and Audience Prize winners:
Astral Quartet: Da-Wei Chan, violin; Xenia Huang, violin; Hilary Chan, viola; Carl Teng, cello playing Mozart’s String Quartet No. 19 in C major, K465 “Dissonance”, 1st movement – adagio, allegro
Senior Second Prize:
Orpheus Quartet: Harry Xie, soprano saxophone; Emma Porter, alto saxophone; Steven Zhang, tenor saxophone; Thyme Shi, baritone saxophone playing Bolcom’s “A Schumann Bouquet”, 6 movements (arrangements of R. Schumann piano pieces)
Additional Senior Participants:
Category Five Quintet: Isabella Wark, flute; Daniel Ketter, clarinet; Sayako Leznoff, oboe; Eric Li, bassoon; Tyrell Loster, hornplaying Barber’s “Summer Music” for Wind Quintet, Opus 31
Juniper Quartet: Caitlin Wong, violin; Justin Junwoo Ha, violin; Johnny Huang, viola; Julian Lee De Vita, cello playing Brahms’ String Quartet No. 1 in C minor, Opus 51 No. 1, 4th movement – allegro
