The 2008 Artists of the Future Competition was held on Sunday, January 27 at the Kawai America Showroom in Rancho Dominguez. Twenty-seven contestants from thirteen studios were represented - with 15 pianists, 8 violinists, 4 flutists, and 1 violist - in a full day of competition which began at 10:30AM. The judges for the event were Dr. Valentina Gottlieb, pianist, Neal Stulberg, conductor, and Sandra Kipp, flutist. Congratulations to each and everyone who participated in the 2008 Artists of the Future Competition - all are to be commended for your commitment and dedication to the pursuit of excellence in your musical training.
The four winners will be presented in concert as soloists with the Beach Cities Symphony Orchestra on Friday, May 23, 2008, at 8:15 p.m. at Marsee Auditorium of El Camino College, with a special installment of “Young Audience Concert Previews” at 7:30PM. You are cordially invited to attend this concert. Admission is free. The list of winners (unranked), alternates, and honorable mention recipients appears below.
Winners:
Eleanore Dunbar, Violin - Student of Gail Mellert
Monica Liu, Piano - Student of Sylvia Ho
Ji Min Lee, Piano - Student of Mihyang Keel
Jessie Chen, Violin - Student of Elmer Su
Alternates:
1st: Leigh Gaines, Piano - Student of Hyeja Chong Ganahl
2nd: Rachel Lim and Amy Yokoyama, Flutes - Student of Shirley Yamamoto
Honorable Mention Recipients:
Nathan Ben-Yehuda, Piano - Student of Deborah Aitken
Sherry Wang, Piano - Student of Janet Favreau
Susan Wang, Piano - Student of Janet Favreau
Ivan Huang, Violin - Student of Henryk Liao
Ashley Sun, Violin - Student of Henryk Liao
Linda Edsinga, Piano - Student of Hyeja Chong Ganahl
Sabrina Kozak, Piano - Student of Hyeja Chong Ganahl
Vivian Hua, Piano - Student of Edwin Deveny
Lisa Park, Piano - Student of Mihyang Keel
Eric Ngan, Piano - Student of Kimmy Wang
Julianne Lin, Piano - Student of Sylvia Ho
Formerly the leading professor of piano at Latvian Academy of Music in Riga, Latvia, Dr. Valentina Gottlieb coaches future Bachelors and Masters of Music at CSULB and teaches at her private studio in Irvine. Dr. Gottlieb has been a jury member for SYMF, United States Open Music Competition, MTAC and MTNA festivals, etc. She graduated with honors from State J. Vitol Academy of Music in Riga, Latvia. She holds Masters degrees in Piano Performance, Chamber Music, and Pedagogy from that Academy and a Doctorate from the St. Petersburg Conservatory of Music. Her teachers include Prof. K. Blumental and Prof. N. Perelman. Her first solo recital at age 19 was dedicated to works of J. S. Bach. Several her programs were recorded and broadcasted by Latvian State Radio and TV. She was invited to Riga, Latvia to open a concert series “The Masters and the Apprentices” with a solo recital followed by two more concerts of her former graduates from Latvian Academy of Music and current American students. Dr. Valentina Gottlieb regularly performs solo and ensemble recitals (Istituto Italiano di Cultura, CSU Dominguez Hills, Multi-Piano Extravaganza concerts at CSU Long Beach, Irvine Chamber Music Festivals Victoria Chamber Music Festivals, Classical Music Encounters of Southern California, etc.)
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Neal Stulberg currently serves as Visiting Director of Orchestral Studies at UCLA and Director of Chamber Music at the Crossroads School in Santa Monica. In the United States, Stulberg has led the Philadelphia Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Atlanta, Houston,Indianapolis, Milwaukee, National, New Jersey, New World, Pacific, Saint Louis, San Francisco, Utah, and Vancouver symphonies, St. Paul Chamber Orchestra and Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, among others. A frequent guest conductor in Germany, the Netherlands, and Scandinavia, he is recording the complete orchestral works of Russian-American composer Lazare Saminsky for West German Radio. Stulberg is a recipient of America's most prestigious conducting prize, the Seaver/National Endowment for the Arts Conductors Award, has served as assistant conductor of the Los Angeles Philharmonic under Carlo Maria Giulini and music director of the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra.
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Sandra Kipp, flutist, received a Bachelor of Music, cum laude and Master of Music with Distinction from CSU Northridge. She began teaching privately in 1979 and is on the Music Faculty of CSU Northridge, Moorpark College, Idyllwild Summer Music Festival, Hawaii Performing Arts Festival, and Los Angeles Valley College. Sandra has also taught at Pepperdine University, Glendale Community College, and the Pasadena Conservatory of Music. Sandra is an instructor for the Pasadena Symphony Mentor Program, is a member of the Pasadena Symphony Education Committee, and was a member of the Pacific Woodwind Quintet affiliated with the Los Angeles Philharmonic's Music Center On Tour. She is an active member of the MTAC and is the associate music contractor for De Crescent & Rotter Music Contracting working in the motion picture recording industry. Sandra has performed with such orchestras as the Pasadena Symphony, Long Beach Symphony, LA Master Chorale, Opera Pacific, Moscow Ballet Orchestra, Symphony in the Glen, Glendale Symphony, Santa Barbara Symphony, Riverside Philharmonic, LA Classical Ballet, and Ventura Symphony among others.
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Chairs:
Deborah Aitken
Assistants:
Verna Balch
Mihyang Keel
Advisor:
Anli Tong