ELEMENTARY DIVISION
Penelope Scott began playing piano five years ago. She has performed in Guild and Junior Festival one ear and earned superior scores. Last summer she studied piano at Bob Jones University EduCamp and was selected to perform during the final recital. She also enjoys playing for annual recitals and at church.
Simeon Wilson:
Member of the South Bend Youth Symphony Concert Orchestra; performed with the South Bend Youth Symphony Orchestra on the Bach Double.
Olivia Xie started her piano journey at age of 6 with Mrs. Ada Shebanova. In her 3 years of practice, she is inspired by the beautiful music from Bach a lot. Olivia won the 1st place in Indianapolis Matinee Musicale and IPTG(Indiana Piano Teachers Guild), honorable mention in Gene Marcus Piano Competition and Carmel Klavier Piano Competition.
JUNIOR DIVISION
Rebecca Li: Piano
Indiana National Federation of Music Clubs Junior Festival 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022
Young Hoosier State Piano Competition
• 2017 1st place; 4th place
• 2018 4th place; honorable mention
• 2019 1st place; 4th place
• 2022 2nd place; honorable mention
Indianapolis Piano Teachers Association Scholarship Competition
• 2021 winner
• 2022 winner
National Association for Gifted Children Annual Conference, 11/19/22
Cello
ISSMA (Indiana State School Music Association) Solo and Ensemble Contest
• Cello Solo, gold with distinction, 2021, 2022
• String trio, gold with distinction, 2022
• Chamber ensemble, gold with distinction, 2022
• Organizational, gold with distinction, 2022
Carmel Clay Schools 8th Grade Orchestral Festival, Carmel Palladium, 10/18/22
Indianapolis Youth Orchestra 41st Season Fall Concert, Carmel Palladium, 10/30/22
Glenda Na is a student at Southside Elementary School, Columbus, Indiana. She is currently learning Piano at Ada Shebanova Piano School. She has passion in Piano and love performance on different recitals. Her recent accomplishments include First Place winner of 2022 IMTA – Indiana Music Teacher Association Competition, in Elementary Division and Third Place winner of 2022 Carmel Klavier International Piano Competition, in Solo Intermediate A2 Division. Besides Piano, Glenda also enjoys Taekwondo Martial Art and has been competing at State and National Championship.
Twelve-year-old Priscilla Scott began playing piano shortly before her fifth birthday. She has played for Guild for five years and Junior Festival one year, receiving highest honors each year. This past summer she was named an outstanding pianist at Bob Jones University EduCamp and was selected to play at the final concert. She performs for annual recitals and enjoys playing preludes and offertories at church.
Katherine Wang has been studying piano for 6 years. Her teacher includes Sophia Gorlin, Irina Gorin, Ada Shebanova, and currently Phoenix Park-Kim. Below are her performance experiences and awards:
1. Summer music camp in Italy- Interharmony Music Festival 2022
2. 1st Place, Piano, Junior Category, 2021 America Protégé International Competition of Romantic Music
3. 1st Place, Contemporary, 2019 Carmel Klavier International Competition, Elementary
4. 1st Place, Duet, 2019 Young Hoosier State Piano Competition, Elementary
5. 1st Place Contemporary, 2018 Carmel Klavier International Competition, Elementary
6. 1st Place Duet, 2018 Carmel Klavier International Competition, Elementary
7. 1st Place Non-classical, 2018 Young Hoosier State Piano Competition, Elementary
More performances available on Katherine's YouTube channel www.YouTube.com/5QkidbyYayaWang , about the 5Qs; (Adversity, Health, Social, Emotional, and Intelligence Quotients).
Angela Xiu: My music journey began at the age of five, when I began playing piano. While I never entered piano competitions and only played at routine recitals, my persistence in piano instilled in me a strong desire for music. I began studying violin with my private teacher Natalia Nizhalova in January 2020. I progressed fairly quickly under her expert tutelage and due to my background in piano. In regards to experience, I do not have much experience in performing as a soloist nor have I earned many awards. Excluding a soloist competition hosted by the Indianapolis Youth Orchestra which I am actively waiting for the results of, I have not participated in any other violin-related competitions. However, while my competition experience may be limited, I have participated in numerous workshops, camps, and orchestras that have honed my experience as an orchestra member and soloist. I am currently the principal chair of my school orchestra and the Indianapolis Youth Orchestra. I am excited to be a contestant and hope that my participation in this event will add to my experience and set the backdrop for future musical milestones.
SENIOR DIVISION
Eleanor Barco is a ninth grade student at Martinsville High School, where she participates in orchestra, cross country, soccer, track, musical productions, and French club. She enjoys playing piano and singing and has won several local competitions in both disciplines. She has performed in the studio of Menahem Pressler and has previously performed in the Patricia Tretick Young Artist competition. She also enjoys playing piano at church and in local community events.
Caitlin Carter has studied the violin for 9 years. She currently plays with the Indianapolis Youth Symphony in the first violin section, and with the Burris orchestra.
Of Ukrainian-Japanese heritage, Eishin Richard Hiraishi was born in Hiroshima, Japan, in 2007, and started playing the violin at age 5 with Michi Kagawa. At age 7, his principal violin teacher in Hiroshima became Prof. Naoko Murakami. From 2017 until his recent move to Muncie, Indiana, Eishin resided in Hannover, Germany, studying music at VIFF (preschool for gifted children) at the Hannover Music University HMTMH where he graduated in 2021. He has been a participant at the 2016/17 Thurnauer Chamber Music Camp in New Jersey (USA), as well as the 2018/19 Chamber Music Dolomiti festival in Italy. Also in 2018/19, Eishin attended Prof. Elizabeth Kufferath's master classes at the Goslar International Music Festival (Germany). In the summer of 2019 and 2022 he participated at the Benefic Chamber Music Camp at Ball State University in Indiana, where he won the concerto competition both times. He is a second prize winner (youth category) at the 2019 Marina Jashvili International Competition (Republic of Georgia), as well as a second prize winner in the 2022 International Youth Competition “Flame” in Paris. Since March of 2022 he has been performing a series of charity concerts “Let’s Play/Pray for Ukraine” in Japan in support Ukrainian children and refugees.
Zishan Hyder participated in the Indiana All State orchestra for 2 years, is a member of the Indianapolis Symphony Youth Orchestra, and has received multiple gold medals for State Solo and Ensemble.
Serge Kalinovsky, 16, studies cello with Susan Moses in his hometown of Bloomington, IN, and is a merit scholarship student at the Music Institute of Chicago Academy. In past summers, Serge has participated in Pinchas Zukerman’s Young Artists Program, the Indiana University Summer String Academy, and the Heifetz International Music Institute. As part of Heifetz Ensemble in Residence (HEIR) program, he will perform in several concerts in Virginia this Fall, including Dvorak Piano Quintet with famed violinist and pedagogue with Ani Kavafian. In Spring 2022, he performed Herbert Cello Concerto with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra and participated in the inaugural “Food for Music” Benefit Concert in Bloomington.
Serge has played in masterclasses for Hans Jensen, Csaba Onczay, Vladimir Perlin, Richard Aaron, Lluís Claret, Amir Eldan, Peter Stumpf, Brinton Smith, Antonio Lysy, Yessun Kim, Colin Carr, and Frans Helmerson, among others.
Serge was a finalist at 2019 International Popper Competition, 2nd prize winner of the 2020 Association of the Louisville Orchestra Young Artist Competition, the winner of the 2020 MTNA statewide competition, First Prize winner of the 2020 Indianapolis Symphony Maurer Young Musicians Contest, and First Prize winner of the 2021 Philadelphia International Music Festival Competition. In 2022-23, he was a member of the Peresson Quartet, an MIC Academy group, which won Grand Prize at St. Paul String Quartet Competition and 3rd Prize at Fischoff Competition, Junior Division in Spring 2022.
Ben Morton is a junior at Homestead High School in Fort Wayne, Indiana. He has studied piano for 12 years, nine with Marylee Morton and most recently 3 with Dr. Hamilton Tescarollo. He has participated at state level in both piano and bassoon at the Indiana State School Music Association Solo and Ensemble contest, and has been a finalist in the Gene Marcus Piano Competition in both 2020 and 2021. He has also performed Saint Saens' Piano Concerto No 2 in G minor with the Manchester Symphony Orchestra and the Fort Wayne Symphony Orchestra, as well as participated in Masterclasses with Pianists such as Keith Snell, Dr. Alexandre Dossin, and Dr. Caroline Hong. Ben plays bassoon in the Philharmonic Youth Symphony Orchestra, Homestead Symphony Orchestra and Advanced Wind Ensemble.
Chloe Park started her piano studies at the age of 7 after being inspired by a movie about Chopin. She has participated in masterclasses with prominent pianists such as Keith Snell and Alexandre Dossin. Chloe has competed in various competitions and received First Prize in the 2021 Senior Level MTNA State Competition, advanced to win the Alternate Prize in the 2022 Senior Level MTNA Division Competition, First Prize in the 2021 Junior Level IMTA State Hoosier Auditions, and the Junior/Senior Division Grand Prize in the 2021 Gene Marcus Competition. Besides performing, Chloe is the founder of Da Capo, a music service organization for piano players from Fort Wayne high schools. She has been studying piano with Dr. Hamilton Tescarollo at the Purdue University Fort Wayne School of Music since 2015.
Billy Qian
Performance at the International Arts Festival in Carmel.
Performance at the Global village for Holiday Bazaar event.
Performance at the Eiteljorg Museum.
Christmas Eve gig for a church.
Performance at the IACA Chinese New Year Banquet.
Performance with the Sphinx Virtuosi at their first stop on their national tour.
Performance at the Westfield Public Library Summer Reading program.
Performance with WHAM Orchestra at the Palladium in Carmel, featuring traumerei cello solo composed by Schumann as the encore.
Performance at the grand reopening of the Carmel Clay Library.
Performance at the state fairgrounds for the international festival.
ISSMA gold at state 3 times.
Back To BACH performance at Carmel Towne Meadow Elementary School.
I've had many performance experiences since 2021 including the palladium concert which happened roughly a few months ago with a student lead organization called WHAM, where I am one of the co-founders. Besides that, I also perform and present music in a non-profit called Back To BACH, I am also the regional director in Hamilton county.
A senior at Herron-Riverside High School in Indianapolis, Arjun Siderys has performed in several state and regional piano competitions. As the winner of the 2022 Peoria Symphony Young Artist Competition, he performed Saint-Saens' Piano Concerto No. 2 under Maestro George Stelluto. Arjun received 1st place in the 2022 Young Hoosier State Piano Competition, 2nd place in the 2022 Gene Marcus Piano Competition at Purdue University Fort Wayne, and was a finalist in the Indianapolis Symphony Young Musicians Contest and the Louisville Orchestra Young Artist Competition, among a number of other awards.
Maria Tan is a Fort Wayne based cellist. Surrounded by music from a young age, Maria has pursued music from a young age, playing cello from the age of five and since then her love of music has only grown. She has studied with teachers Deb Nitka-Hicks, Ed Stephens, Dr. Melissa Kraut, and Anne Francis Bayless. Summer studies and festivals include Interlochen and the Fry Street Quartet Chamber Music Camp. She has participated in Indiana All State Orchestra for the past five years, sitting principal cellist as a freshman, and has recently been part of the All National Symphony Orchestra. She has been playing in the Fort Wayne Philharmonics Youth Orchestra from the age of nine, and of which she is the assistant principal cellist. She is currently studying with Deborah Nitka-Hicks and attends Canterbury High School, where she plays in the orchestra under the direction of Colleen Tan.
Lauren Watterson: Music became an important part of my life when I began playing piano thirteen years ago. My passion for music grew exponentially five years ago when I started studying percussion. I have performed with our school’s marching band and our competitive indoor percussion ensemble for four years. Our percussion ensemble has qualified for state finals each year I’ve participated. I was selected for All-Region Honor Band in eighth grade. Although my freshman year there was no All-Region Honor Band due to COVID, I was chosen for the All-District Honor Band both my sophomore and junior years. I was recently notified that I have been selected for the upcoming Indiana Music Education Association Honor Band in January 2023. I first participated in Solo and Ensemble in eighth grade with a trio, receiving Silver. My freshman and sophomore years, I took Group I solos to state. As a freshman, I received a Gold. As a sophomore, I not only received a Gold with Distinction, but I earned it with a perfect 9.0 score. I plan to continue performing at Solo and Ensemble competitions, taking another Group I solo this year. I would be honored to make music with Orchestra Indiana.
Sophi Wroblewski is a senior in high school at Carmel Clay Schools where she has played in Honors Wind Symphony on both oboe and bassoon for the last 4 years. She has also been a 4 year member of the Indianapolis Youth Orchestra and serves as a student board member of that organization. She was accepted into the Interlochen (Michigan) Advanced Bassoon Intensive for the past 2 summers, is an Interlochen Summer Clinic Scholarship recipient and a current Interlochen camp outreach ambassador. Sophi has earned a total of nine Gold Ratings at the ISSMA State Solo/Ensemble Contest as a soloist on bassoon, oboe, and English Horn of which eight were Gold with distinction. She has earned a spot in the All State Honors Band for the past 3 years and was in the All State Orchestra fall of 2021. Sophi is also a 4 year member of the Carmel High School Symphony Orchestra and has been a featured bassoon and oboe soloist with the Carmel High School Marching Band. She was recently chosen as honorable mention in the Benefic summer camp concerto competition and was the winner of the young artists performance competition with the Kokomo Park Band. Her teachers include Jennifer Kirkman (bassoon, oboe), Stephen Wise (Oboe, English Horn, Bassoon, Piano), Leonid Sirotkin (Oboe/English Horn), Ivy Ringle (Bassoon), and David Britton (Piano).
Arthur Yeh is currently a senior in high school, residing in Carmel, Indiana. He is currently seventeen years old. Arthur has been playing piano for around 12 years. He particularly enjoys Chopin and Beethoven, although he accompanies friends in his spare time. In his free time Arthur enjoys meeting new people, biking, and going to the gym.
Josephine Yeh is a freshman in Carmel High School. Beside playing the piano, she also enjoys singing and dancing in choirs. She was participated numerous piano competitions, including most recently Carmel Klavier.
Micah Young is a senior at Fishers High School, and he takes piano lessons from Dr. Robert Palmer. He especially likes music, math, and science, while also enjoying running, being a member of the cross country and track teams at school.
Micah has won numerous piano competitions, and had the opportunity to make his piano solo debut with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra in March 2022. He has also been a member of the Indianapolis Youth Orchestra since 5th grade, and is the current concertmaster of their Symphony Orchestra. He has also been the concertmaster of the Fishers High School Symphony Orchestra for the last four years.
COLLEGIATE DIVISION
Allyn Beifus is from Fort Wayne, Indiana and a senior at Purdue University Fort Wayne, where she is studying Music Technology. She has been starting piano lessons when she was in kindergarten and studied Suzuki piano with Mary Todd. She is recently a student of Dr. Hamilton Tescarollo and has been taking piano lessons from him since her freshman year of high school. Allyn has done several masterclass performances with different musical guests, such as Caio Pagano and many more. She has won the District Round of the Indiana Music Teachers Association Hoosier Auditions two times. She also has won the concerto competition for the PFW Community Orchestra and had the chance to play with them. She has also won a few scholarships in the past such as the Sigma Alpha Iota Scholarship. Allyn is thinking about getting a performance certificate when she graduates from her undergrad.
Anna Day is a freshman music education/percussion major at Indiana Wesleyan University. She is a member of the IWU Marching Wildcats and has served as a featured marimba soloist with the IWU Percussion Ensemble. Prior to attending IWU, Anna served as Center Marimba and Front Ensemble Section Leader with the Northeastern High School Indoor Percussion Ensemble. Anna is passionate about pursuing excellence as a performer and mentor to other percussionists. Anna is also active with a Youtube channel where she shares performances and videos documenting her journey as a percussionist.
Violinist Wendi Li is a bright young violinist who was born in Shaanxi Province, China.
A graduate of Xi’an Conservatory affiliated high school, where Wendi was the concertmaster of Xi’an Conservatory youth symphony. And has been featured by the same orchestra as soloist. In addition to that, Wendi has been presented by the school to be the school’s prominent string quartet member.
After gradated from Xi’an Conservatory, Wendi has continued to study in the famous Indiana University Jacobs School of music, where she studied with Professor Simin Ganatra. During her time at Indiana University, she has performed multiple times with the school concert orchestra, and its conductor’s orchestra.
During the summer of 2022, she has attended Brevard Music Center, where she was the concertmaster for both of the Brevard Music Center Orchestra and the Brevard Sinfonia. Also in the same year, she and her chamber group was highlighted in the Brevard music center student chamber series.
