2006-07
2nd annual Young Artists Competition Results

 

Prizewinners in the Second Annual Mondavi Center Young Artists Competition have been announced!

Images from the competition

Rieko Tsuchida, age 13, began her piano studies at the age of 3 in her native Japan. In 1999 her family relocated to San Francisco to enable her to advance her piano studies at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music; where she is presently a student of John McCarthy. Rieko has won numerous state and regional piano competitions.  Last December she performed as a guest soloist for the Smuin Christmas Ballet to a capacity crowd at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. She also performed at the inaugural “Pacific Union’s Concerts at the Presidio” and was one of only four students selected to play for a special San Francisco Conservatory “Capital Campaign” event for the building of the new conservatory campus.  Rieko is currently in the 7th grade at Mill Valley Middle School in Mill Valley. Besides music, she enjoys reading, swimming, and mountain biking. More information about Rieko is at www.pianosisters.com.

Stephen Kim, age 11, began his violin studies at the age of 3. He currently studies with Bettina Mussumeli at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. Stephen made his debut last year as the winner of the Palo Alto Chamber Orchestra, and in May 2006 became the youngest winner of the San Francisco chapter of the American String Teachers Association competition. Stephen has performed in numerous recitals at the San Francisco Conservatory, the Legion of Honor, the Pacific Musical Society, Stanford University and Santa Clara University.  He volunteers to perform for many community-service organizations including the Stanford University Hospital, the Veterans hospital, senior center, and elementary schools. Stephen is a 6th grade student at Kennedy Middle School in Cupertino.

Kevin Sun, age 13, was born in Sacramento, and is currently an 8th grade student at Winston Churchill Middle School in Carmichael. He began his piano studies at age 5 under Sylvia Hsieh and currently studies with Tien Hsieh. Kevin performed his first public performance at age 8. He has won awards in several state piano competitions, including the Music Teachers Association of California competition, and has participated in the Junior Bach Festival and Gold Country Summer Piano Institute. In his spare time, Kevin enjoys reading, playing computer games, playing Ping Pong, swimming, writing and downloading Japanese comics.

Catherine Fu, age 15, is a 9th grade student at Monte Vista High School in San Ramon Valley. She has won awards in numerous competitions, including the Etude Club of Berkeley’s Young Artists Competition, the San Francisco Chopin Competition, the Menuhin-Dowling Young Musician Competition, and the Junior Bach Competition. She is a student of John McCarthy at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music.

Mayumi Wyrick, age 15, began her violin studies at the age of 5 with Dorothy Roffman in New Jersey. She continued her studies in the Bay Area with Victor Romasevich and Li Lin, and currently studies with Axel Strauss at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. She has participated in summer music programs such as Cazadero, Music in the Mountains, and most recently the Garden State Music Festival. She is currently a sophomore at San Domenico School where she is a member of the Virtuosi Program.

Michael Reinhard, age 16, is a junior at Davis Senior High School where he is co-leader of the bass section in the school’s Madrigal Choir. Michael began his musical studies in kindergarten, when he started Suzuki piano lessons. In fourth grade he began saxophone studies and played in his school band. In 2002 Michael moved to Davis with his family and joined the Emerson Junior High School Advanced Choir. In 2005 he began private voice lessons with his current teacher, Rachel Kessler. He has been invited to participate in several regional choral groups, including the Central Valley Honor Choir.

Kenric Tam, age 16, made his debut with the Los Angeles Philharmonic at Disney Concert Hall last April as the 1st prize winner of the 2006 Kaper Awards. Recently, he was named the 1st prize winner of the “Individualis” International Competition in Ukraine, and in summer 2006 he was awarded the 2nd prize at the Eastman International Piano Competition in Rochester New York. He will be the featured soloist on the San Jose Youth Symphony’s Eastern European tour in 2007. Kenric has won numerous state and regional competitions; as 1st prize winner of the 2005 Palatino Solo Piano Competition, he was presented with a grand piano. Kenric is a junior at Gunn High School in Palo Alto and studies piano with Hans Boepple.

Special thanks to the jurors of the Second Annual Mondavi Center Young Artists Competition: Sheri Greenawald, Director: San Francisco Opera Center; Peter Jaffe, Conductor: Stockton Philharmonic; TimmRolek, Artistic Director: Sacramento Opera, and Axel Strauss, Violin Professor: San Francisco Conservatory of Music. 

Generous support for the Second Annual Mondavi Center Young Artists Competition has been provided by John and Lois Crowe; Mary Horton; Barbara Jackson; KXJZ Radio and the Yehudi Menuhin Chamber Music Seminar and Festival.