Five Finalists Chosen for Third International Chesapeake Chamber Music Competition

EASTON, MD. – The 2008 Third International Chesapeake Chamber Music Competition  announces that five finalists have been chosen from a field of 56 ensembles from sixteen states and Canada, Germany, Russia, France and the United Kingdom. They will perform in competition at the Avalon Theatre on March 29, 2008 for a Gold Medal Award of $10,000 and a Silver Medal Award of $5,000. Each will appear in a concert on March 30 at various venues on the Eastern Shore. Presenters of several outstanding concert series will be in attendance. The Gold Medal winner will later appear at the 23rd Eastern Shore Chamber Music Festival’s opening night on June 6 in Easton, MD, on June 7 in Chincoteague, VA and on June 8 at the Candlelight Concert Series, Columbia, MD.

 

Attacca Quartet			Amy Schroeder, violin Keiko Tokunaga, violin Gillian Gallagher, viola Andrew Yee, cello
	New York
Gracieux Trio			Ryoko Arai, violin Yuiko, Arai, cello Gloria Shih, piano
	New York
N-E-W Trio			Andrew Wan, violin Gal Nyska, cello Julio Elizalde, piano
	New York
ViM Saxophone Quartet			Kristin Rarick, soprano Michael Matlock, alto Dimitrios Kostaras, tenor Richard Miserendino, baritone
	Washington, DC
Credo Quartet			Asya Sorshneva, violin Darya Filipenka, viola Alexandra Budo, cello Natalia Zlobina, piano	Disqualified due to non-compliance with the Competition rules.
	Russia

 

Judges for the Final Round include:

 

David Krakauer, an internationally acclaimed clarinetist who is a master of myriad musical styles, including chamber music, klezmer music (traditional eastern European Jewish folk music), jazz, and avant-garde improvisation. His recent guest performances include with the Tokyo String Quartet, the Kronos Quartet, the Orion String Quartet, the Barcelona Symphony and the Brooklyn Philharmonic.

 

Pianist Lydia Artymiw has appeared with more than one hundred orchestras throughout the United States, Europe, and the Far East, including the Boston Symphony, Cleveland Orchestra, and New York Philharmonic. She has given solo recitals at major concert halls throughout North America and Europe.  She has performed at many festivals and in scores of chamber group performances.

 

Marcy Rosen is a founding member of the world-renowned Mendelssohn String Quartet and La Fenice.  She is the co-artistic director of the Eastern Shore Chamber Music Festival and is currently assistant professor of cello at the Aaron Copland School of Music at Queens College, New York.  She appears regularly at the Santa Fe, Ravinia, Saratoga and Bridgehampton Festivals and records on many labels.

 

The Chesapeake Chamber Music Competition is advised by a panel of distinguished musicians and educators: J. Lawrie Bloom, Catherine Cho, Leon Fleisher, Miriam Fried, Michael Kannen, Maria Lambros, Katherine Murdock, Peggy Pearson, Todd Phillips, Marcy Rosen, John Steinmetz, Diane Walsh and Robert Yekovich.  It is one of the few ensemble competitions of international stature that invites instrumental ensembles of any kind that also seeks to broaden the horizons for chamber ensembles and provide performance opportunities for young professionals. Arnold Lerman, co-chair of the Competition, remarked, “This group of finalists exhibit the superb artistry and talent of young ensembles. They bring excitement and enthusiasm to traditional and new repertoire and hold great promise for the future of chamber music.”  Co-chair Anna Larkin added, “Like atheletes, classically trained musicians must play to prove themselves. Competitions like the Chesapeake Chamber Music Competition give young musicians a chance to demonstrate their abilities to a broad audience.” The musicians  also enjoy hospitality in the homes of chamber music lovers during the Competition.

 

The Competition is sponsored by the Eastern Shore Chamber Music Festival, now in its 23rd year of bringing outstanding musicians to the Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake Bay. The Competition is funded by private contributions and grants. This year PNC Wealth Management has become a major underwriter of the event. “PNC is delighted to support this acclaimed international chamber music competition, which attracts the best young chamber musicians from North America and Europe to Maryland’s Eastern Shore,” said Bonnie Stein, Executive Vice President and Managing Director, PNC Wealth Management.

 

For further information see www.chambermusiccompetition.org or call 410-819-0380.

Photos and bios available on request.  For Festival information view www.musicontheshore.org

Contact: Don Buxton 410-819-0380 or Patricia Barbis 410-745-2312
 

Rev.: 07/01/2008
 

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