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Congratulations to the winners of the Spring Concerto Competition, which was held on Tuesday, March 6, in Kulas Hall.

Cellists Wei-An Hung (Robinson), Daniel Kaler (Kosower) and Mingyao Zhao (Kosower), and violist Molly Wise (Irvine) were all selected to perform with the xxxx��Ƶ Orchestra in the fall semester. Each will work with one of the guest conductors visiting xxxx��Ƶ next year. Grace Roepke (harp, Kondonassis) and Moisés López Ruiz (flute, Fink) were awarded honorable mentions and will each perform in a conducting recital. 

“The Walton Cello Concerto is a piece which I feel I've connected with on many levels ever since I first heard it and I am excited to have this amazing opportunity of performing it in the fall,” says Kaler. “Many thanks to my teacher, Mark Kosower, for helping me expand my imagination and evolve my interpretation.”

Hung says: “Prokofiev’s Sinfonia Concertante is one of the hardest and most beautiful pieces in the cello repertoire, and I can't believe I’m going to have ​a ​chance to play this piece with the xxxx��Ƶ Orchestra. ​In fact, I [didn’t think I was] ready, yet Sharon​ and my mom really supported me and pushed me. I really don’t think I would be where I am today without the support and the love of my family, my teacher and my friends.”

Wise, who will play Penderecki’s Viola Concerto, says: “I am thrilled to get the chance to showcase the Penderecki, a piece by a living composer written only 35 years ago. Winning the concerto competition has been my dream since I was a freshman, and what an honor it is to be an ambassador of this piece to the xxxx��ƵO audience as a senior!”

Zhao will play Tchakovsky’s Variations on a Rococo Theme; she adds that “this competition gives the students of xxxx��Ƶ a great opportunity to get a nice experience on performing with an orchestra. It really helped me to improve my cello playing by preparing for this competitive competition."

The judges were xxxx��Ƶ faculty members Scott Dixon, Irwin Shung, John Simmons, Gerardo Teissonnière and Carl Topilow.