NICHOLAS TAVANI AND SAMANTHA KLINE WIN NOVEC/PRINCE WILLIAM SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA YOUNG ARTIST COMPETITION!
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Manassas, VA—October 28, 2008—The Prince William Symphony Orchestra proudly announces the winners of the 2008 Young Artist Competition. The Finalist Recital, sponsored by NOVEC, was held at 2:00 p.m. on Sunday, October 26, 2008.
The winner of the senior division of the competition is 21-year-old violinist, Nicholas Tavani of Haymarket, VA. He performed the Cadenza and Burlesque from Violin Concerto No. 1 by Shostakovich. Nicholas won a cash award of $1,000. The winner of the junior division of the competition is 15-year-old violinist, Samantha Kline of Manassas. She performed Tzigane, Rapsodie de Concert by Ravel and won a cash award of $500.
“We were impressed at the level of playing, and doubly pleased to be able to announce our two exciting winners,” said Executive Music Director, David Montgomery. “Violinist Samantha Kline in the junior division, played Ravel's difficult masterpiece "Tzigane"; and Nicholas Tavani in the senior division, gave a brilliant performance of the finale of Shostakovitch's Violin Concerto No. 1."
Place winners in the Senior Division are: Caitlin Beare, clarinet won second place and $500, and Phillip Munch, cello, came in third place and won $250. Place winners for the Junior Division are: Daniel Tavani, cello, second place and $250, and Helen Jung, violin, came in third place and won $100.
Senior Division Winner:
Nicholas Tavani, 21, of Haymarket, is pursuing a Bachelor of Music in Violin Performance at the Cleveland Institute of Music and a Bachelor of Science in Mathematical Physics at Case Western Reserve University. Lauded by the Washington Post for his "brilliant musicianship," violinist Nicholas Tavani debuted in Washington, D.C.'s Gaston Hall at the age of eight. Since then, he has performed extensively in the D.C. area, including at the Kennedy Center Concert Hall, Constitution Hall, Strathmore Hall, the State Department, and the National Gallery of Art, given concerts in London, Italy, Baltimore, Los Angeles, Kansas City, Denver, Austin, Minneapolis, Ann Arbor, and Albuquerque, and toured Bolivia and Peru. A semifinalist at the Postacchini and Kingsville international competitions, Nicholas is an alumnus of the Encore School for Strings, the MasterWorks Festival, and the New York String Orchestra Seminar at Carnegie Hall.
Junior Division Winner:
Samantha Kline is a 15-year-old violinist and a sophomore at Osbourn Park High School. She has been studying the violin with Ronda Cole since the age of four and has participated in many master classes and numerous competitions. She is a member of the Youth Symphony Orchestra of Prince William County and has performed with them as a soloist. Samantha won the Jr. Division of the Youth Orchestras of Prince William Concerto Competition and has been in the finals of the Feuer Competition.
"Six highly talented musicians made their way to the finals and made very good performances. They are all winners in our eyes and should be proud of themselves. They have a bright future ahead of them,” said Montgomery.
The competition was open to anyone between the ages of 11 and 21 who reside in Prince William County, Manassas, or other communities within the physical boundaries of Prince William County. The competition was open to students of piano, woodwind, brass, percussion, string instruments and vocalists. “We were pleased to be able to open the competition to singers and had two strong candidates this year. We look forward to even more participation next year,” added Dr. Montgomery.
The Purpose of PWSO’s Young Artist Competition is to promote local musical talent, support music in our county’s schools, and facilitate PWSO’s Art for Youth initiative, as well as develop awareness within Prince William County for the symphony and its programs. It is important that professional musical organizations give something back to their communities in support of music education. The PWSO Young Artist Scholarship Competition provides our county’s music students with an opportunity to excel, receive constructive feedback from established musicians, and be recognized for their talent and achievement, with a financial award to help them further their arts education.
The Prince William Symphony Orchestra has been providing access to high-quality classical music in our community for 34 years. Led by Conductor and Music Director, David Montgomery, this professional orchestra is committed to educating and entertaining the public with the highest standard of performance excellence possible.
The Prince William Symphony Orchestra can be contacted on-line at www.pwso.org or by calling 703-659-0103.
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