Young Concert Artists Announces Semi-Finalists and Jury Panel for 2024 Susan Wadsworth International Auditions
38 Early-Career Artists from 14 Countries Representing 11 instruments
Esteemed Jury Members Include Susan Wadsworth, Daniel Kellogg, Inon Barnatan, Angela Cheng, Nokuthula Ngwenyama, Barry Shiffman, Pamela Frank, Marya Martin, Dawn Upshaw, Cristina Rocca, Donald Palumbo and Abhijit Sengupta
New York, NY (October 1, 2024) – Renowned for identifying and investing in musicians of “exceptional caliber” (The New York Times), Young Concert Artists has announced the semi-finalists in the 2024 Susan Wadsworth International Auditions. Based on a preliminary round of live auditions in New York and Los Angeles, and virtual auditions via video submission, 38 artists were selected from a pool of more than 170 applicants to advance to the semi-final round. The semi-finalists are as follows: pianists Derek Wang, Hoi Leong Cheong, Hyojin Shin, Jihyung Youn, Jonathan Mak, Kiron Tellian, Saehyun Kim, Tom Zalmanov, Yang (Jack) Gao, Yuval Hen, Zitong Wang; violists Nicolas Garrigues, Emad Zolfaghari; violinists Elli Choi, Emmanuel Coppey, Haram Kim, Julian Rhee, Karisa Chiu, Koshiro Takeuchi, Leonard Fu, Rino Yoshimoto; accordionist Radu Ratoi; oboist Jamie Yoojin Lee; bassoonist Jakob Peäske; flutists Blue Shelton, Rafael Mendez; saxophonist Maria Torres-Melgares; ensemblesTerra String Quartet, Erinys String Quartet, Paddington Trio, Trio Azura, baritones Gregory Feldmann, Shavon Lloyd, mezzo-soprano Ruby Dibble; sopranos Alexandra Hotz, Maggie Kinabrew, Shelén Hughes.
The semi-final round of auditions will be held October 23-25, 2024 at Merkin Hall at Kaufman Music Center in New York City. The final round, sponsored by the Linda & Isaac Stern Charitable Foundation, will be held on Sunday, October 27, 2024, also at Merkin Hall. A Winners Concert will follow on Monday, October 28, 2024 at 7:00pm at New York’s Gilder Lehrman Hall at The Morgan Library & Museum.
Anchored by Young Concert Artists founder Susan Wadsworth and YCA President Daniel Kellogg, the jury for the semi-final and final rounds is also comprised of pianists Inon Barnatan and Angela Cheng, violist Nokuthula Ngwenyama, violinists Barry Shiffman and Pamela Frank, flutist Marya Martin, soprano Dawn Upshaw and conductor Constantine Orbelian; along with Cristina Rocca, VP of Artistic Planning at the Chicago Symphony Orchestra; Donald Palumbo, Chorus Master at the Metropolitan Opera; and Abhijit Sengupta, Director of Artistic Planning at Carnegie Hall. The jury makeup of artists, managers, concert presenters, and conductors reflects YCA’s broad connections throughout the classical music world, which in turn is one of the key benefits for the young artists accepted into its three-year YCA Jacobs Fellowship.
Named for a generous gift from Joan* and Irwin Jacobs, the YCA Jacobs Fellowship offers artists selected through YCA’s famously rigorous audition process a holistic system of support and opportunities, including artist management services, an expanded digital portfolio, dedicated mentorship, community engagement training, and unparalleled performance opportunities, helping them develop their unique artistic voices. This Fellowship is recognized as the world’s most comprehensive, innovative, and well-resourced incubator for the brightest and most promising young artists, preparing these rising stars to lead the future of classical music.
YCA Jacobs Fellows join an illustrious legacy of YCA alumni that includes such luminaries as Emanuel Ax, Julia Bullock, Anne Akiko Meyers, Jeremy Denk, Ray Chen, Anne-Marie McDermott, Richard Goode, Dawn Upshaw, Mason Bates, Zlatomir Fung, Jean-Yves Thibaudet, Kevin Puts, Pinchas Zukerman, Randall Goosby and Sasha Cooke. Jurors Nokuthula Ngwenyama, Marya Martin and Dawn Upshaw are YCA alumni as well.
*in memoriam