The Concord Orchestra Young Artist Concerto Competition
Music Director - Zeke Fetrow
Announcing the 2024-2025 CO Young Artist Concerto Competition Winner
Jihye Yun is a 12-year-old aspiring violinist and a 7th grade-student at McCall Middle School in Winchester, MA. Born in Seoul, South Korea, she moved to Cambridge, MA with her family at her age two. She is grateful for the mentorship of her esteemed violin teachers, chamber coaches, conductors, and theory teachers who led to today’s her musical growth.
Jihye began her violin journey at the age five through the early music education program at NEC Prep. She studied thoroughly Mozart Violin Concerto No.4 with Mr. Lynn Chang, and currently she studies playing the violin with Ms. Jin-kyung Joen. Recently she has had the opportunity to attend a masterclass with Mr. Soovin Kim. Her prior teachers include Ms. Kelly Barr and Ms. Klaudia Szlachta.
As a soloist, she played Mozart Concerto No.3 with Lexington Symphony Orchestra for the Family concert and Orchestrating Kids Through Classics in 2022 and 2023. She is a first prize winner in age category A of 2024 NEC Prep Concerto Competition, 2021 NEC Prep String Solo Competition, 2019 Bay State String Competition. She began her orchestral journey in the String Training Orchestra under Mr. Peter Jarvis at NEC prep in 2018 and followed by in the Petite Orchestra at BYSO and Camerata Ensemble at Rivers, led by Ms. Marta Zuard. In 2022, she joined Youth Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Mr. Steven Karidoyanes at NEC Prep, and now she serves as concertmaster. She has played chamber music at Lexington Chamber Music Center led by Mr. Randy Hiller and NEC prep program. Her chamber music coaches include Mr. Pip Moss, Mr. Peter Jarvis, Ms. Soomi Lee, Ms. Margaret Cerjan, Ms. Amy Galluzzo, Mr. Brian Clague, and Ms. Paola Caballero. Jihye has attended summer programs of Walnut Hill School, Heifetz Music Institute, and Boston Music Institute, and her summer teachers and coaches include Ms. Jennifer Elowitch, Ms. Desiree Ruhstrat, Ms. Kyoto Horowitz, Mr. Daniel Getz, Mr. Eunghee Cho, and Mr. Tudor Donescue. She has studied music theory with Mr. Michael Weinstein, Ms. Margaret McAllister, Mr. Ian Wiese, and Ms. Ginny Latts. She attended workshops and evaluations at NEC Prep with Ms. Magdalena Suchecka Richter, Ms. Fudeko Takahshi, and Ms. Amy Goodman Wulfman.
Besides playing the violin, she enjoys reading books and taking walks in the woods with her family.
Jihye will perform Mozart’s Violin Concerto #4 in D on the Dreaming With Your Feet program on March 29 & 30. Check here for additional information and tickets.
Congratulations to the 2024-2025 runners up:
Both a gifted cellist and pianist, Lorenzo Ye is a 17-year-old project STEP student studying with Meghan Carye. Over the summer, Lorenzo attended the Sphinx Performance Academy at The Juilliard School and served as principal cellist in the Youth Orchestra of Los Angeles/Gustavo Dudamel Tour “Voices for the Future” in Bogota, Colombia. Currently, Lorenzo is the principal cellist in his school’s Concert String Orchestra and in the NEC Prep’s School Youth Philharmonic Orchestra, and he has earned a spot in this year’s National Pathways Festival Orchestra with the Chicago Symphony.
A senior at the Boston Latin School, Lorenzo is currently studying composition at the New England Conservatory Prep School and is the co-founder of the nonprofit BostonCityShowcase. Outside of music, Lorenzo is a member of his school’s Varsity Sailing and Model UN team.
Lorenzo will perform a recital on Saturday, May 31 at 7:15PM. Check the Dreaming With Your Feet concert page for further details.
Lillian Arnold Mages, 16, lives in Waltham, Massachusetts, and is a tenth grader. She began playing Texas-style old-time fiddling at the age of five, and soon developed a love for classical music. Lillian started her classical violin studies at age six at the City Music Center in Pittsburgh, PA. After relocating to Boston in 2018, she joined Anait Arutunian’s studio at the New England Conservatory Preparatory School (NEC Prep). Currently, Lillian studies with both Anait Arutunian and Soovin Kim. She is a member of NEC’s Chamber Music Intensive Performance Seminar (CHIPS) trio program and is in her second year with NEC’s Youth Philharmonic Orchestra. Lillian performed on NPR’s From the Top “Giving Thanks”, Show 455, and is a From the Top Learning and Media Fellow. In November of 2022, Lillian won First Prize in the MTNA Massachusetts State Junior String Performance Competition. Her other accolades include runner up in the 2025 Concord Orchestra Young Artist and 2024 Waltham Philharmonic Orchestra’s Concerto Competitions and second place in the 2024 New England Conservatory Prep Concerto Competition, and the 2020 New England Conservatory Prep Virtual Solo Competition. Lillian was a finalist in the 2023 MTNA Eastern Division Junior String Performance Competition and the Beethoven Concours Nederland Junior Violin Competition, and the United Stars Music Competition.
In addition to violin, Lillian studies voice at NEC with Deborah Williams. She has enjoyed singing with the Boston Symphony Children’s Choir and as a member of BSCC she performed with the Boston Symphony Orchestra and Boston Pops Orchestra. Notably, Lillian has won 1st Prize for four consecutive years in the South Shore Music Club Traditional Irish Ballad Singing Contest.
Lillian will perform a recital on Sunday, June 1 at 1:45PM. Check the Dreaming With Your Feet concert page for further details.
2024-2025 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.
**** Single movements will not be accepted ****
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 May/June 2025 concerts: Saturday, May 31, 8 PM and Sunday, June 1, 2025, 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
Applicants may submit application forms online or download a printable application form.
The complete application and fee must both be received by January 17, 2025.
The nonrefundable application fee is $40. The application fee may be paid either online or by check, payable to the Concord Orchestra.
Paper copies of the application and checks payable to the Concord Orchestra, should be mailed to: Concord Orchestra, P.O. Box 381, Concord MA 01742
Live Auditions
DATES/TIMES: Wednesday and Thursday, February 5 & 6, 2025, 7:30-10:30 PM
LOCATION: Concord Academy, 166 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. Please remember that single movements will not be accepted for auditions and performance.
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 on our website: https://www.concordorchestra.com.
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 2024 - 2025 competition may not select any of the following works:
Barber, Violin Concerto
Dvorak, Cello Concerto
Elgar, Cello Concerto in E Minor
Hovhaness, Artik
Lalo, Symphonie Espagnole
Lebrun, Oboe Concerto No. 1
MacDowell, Piano Concerto No. 2
Mozart, Horn Concerto #3
Rachmaninoff, Piano Concerto No. 2
Schumann, Cello Concerto
Sebring, The White Cockade
Tchaikovsky, Violin Concerto
Vaughan Williams, The Lark Ascending
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 2024 - 2025 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.
2024 Young Artist Competition Winners
Winner: Jiyu Oh, 17, violin, Barber Violin Concerto - Performed on the March 23 & 24 concerts
Runner up: Jessica Kartawidjaja, 18, violin - Invited to play recital on Saturday, March 23
Runner up: Maggie Bai, 12, piano - Invited to play recital on Sunday, March 24
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