Yamaha Artist Services Indianapolis, in conjunction with Yamaha Corporation of America, Band & Orchestral Division, has named the winners of the 2016 Yamaha Young Performing Artists (YYPA) Competition. The annual YYPA program recognizes exceptional and emerging musicians in the jazz, classical and contemporary genres. In addition to the nine winners, the judges also selected 11 honorable mention recipients.
Contestants from across the U.S. submitted audio and video auditions, as well as support materials, which were evaluated by an expert panel of Yamaha Performing Artists and national celebrity musicians. The winning musicians demonstrated technical skill and artistry in a variety of musical instruments, including brass, winds, strings, percussion and piano.
The 2016 YYPA Winners include:
- Hyerin Kim – Flute, Cherry Hill NJ
- Ivy Ringel – Bassoon, Hillsborough NC
- Justin Sales – Saxophone, Mounds View MN
- Henry Solomon – Saxophone, Palo Alto CA
- Federico Montes –Trumpet, Colombia SA
- John Paul Powers – Tuba, Clinton, TN
- Rebekah Ko – Marimba, Torrance CA
- Wickliffe Simmons – Cello, Atlanta Ga.
- Paul Cornish – Piano, Houston TX
The 2016 Honorable Mentions:
- Jennifer Minsoo Jo – Flute, Pleasanton CA
- He Zhang – Clarinet, Malden, MA
- Ryan Toher – Clarinet, Oberlin OH
- Steven Banks – Saxophone, Evanston IL
- Ana Nelson – Saxophone, Ripon WI
- Jonathan Dely – Trumpet, New York NY
- Steven Osborne – Trombone, Smyrna GA
- Ari Evan – Cello, New York NY
- Nick Bolchoz – Percussion, Lexington KY
- Willie Barthel – Drum Set, Gahanna OH
- Adam Zsolt Szokolay – Piano, Annandale-On-Hudson NY
The 2016 Yamaha Young Performing Artists will receive an all-expense-paid trip to the YYPA Celebration Weekend (June 25 – 28), which will take place during the Music for All Summer Symposium, Ball State University, Muncie IN, June 25-July 2.
At the Celebration Weekend, the winners will attend workshops and clinics designed to help them launch a professional career, garner global media exposure via the Internet and receive a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to perform in front of thousands. The young artists will also enjoy many other privileges, including services and support from Yamaha Artist Relations. Their experience will be memorialized with a professional recording, as well as photography, of their live performance.
The celebration weekend culminates with the annual YYPA Concert, Monday, June 27, 8 pm, Emens Auditorium, where YYPA winners will have the opportunity to perform with world-renowned trumpet soloist and Yamaha Performing Artist Rex Richardson. In previous years, featured guest artists have included Dana Leong, trombonist, cellist and prolific composer; Joe Burgstaller, world-renowned soloist and distinguished faculty at The Peabody Institute; and three-time Grammy Award winner Jeff Coffin, saxophonist for the Dave Matthews Band.