Sponsors:
Kennedy Violins - Gold Medal
R. L. Ray Violin Shop - Silver Medal
Geesman Violins - Bronze Medal
Saturday, March 9, 7:00 pm | Buckley Center Auditorium at University of Portland
This is a free event - however event registration is encouraged**
** Register for your spot for free and get entered into a drawing to win free tickets to the March 23 performance of A Feast of Beethoven!
Witness the final round for our very first Young Artist Competition featuring vocalists and violinists performing for the chance at prize money as well as an opportunity to perform with the Portland Chamber Orchestra in the fall of 2024.
Vocal Finalists (expand for bio info)
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From a young age, Lucinda Mone knew her main passion in life was to perform. She was involved in theatre from the age of seven, participating in vocal recitals, and began taking voice lessons at the age of eight; her passion for performing has only been heightened since then. By the age of sixteen she was cast in eleven musicals. Presently, Lucinda loves all forms of art, but spends the majority of her time studying classical music with the goal of becoming an opera performer. At the age of twelve Lucinda started competing, and between the Sunriver Music Festival Young Artist Scholarship and the National Association of Teachers of Singing, she has received upwards of ten awards and scholarships in various categories. One of her favorite accomplishments was winning the Dagny Gustafson Scholarship through NATS in February of 2023. In June of 2023 she attended the Lamont School of Music Summer Program, showcased in the Vocal Chamber Recital, and was invited to perform in the Solo Honors Recital. Lucinda performed in Opera Bend’s Pagliacci in spring of 2023, performed in their Winter 2023 Artistic Showcase, and is preparing for La Traviata in the spring of 2024. Alongside her vocal coach, she has found fulfillment in visiting nursing homes and singing for the elderly, for at the heart of her passion there is a need to spread joy. Lucinda is preparing to take the next step in her career by auditioning for Conservatory/University, and is determined to make her mark in the world of classical music.
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Emma Nichols, soprano, studies vocal performance and French at Oregon State University. She has been singing since kindergarten when she was cast as a rock in the Jungle Book, Jr. Highlights of her fledgling career include Die Fledermaus, Catch Me If You Can, West Side Story, Mamma Mia!, and Beauty and the Beast. In addition to loving music as a young child, Emma has had a lifelong love affair with France. She took an internship in Bordeaux post-high school for a year, and returns often to visit friends and take in performances.
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Soprano, Taylenne Juliana Ubieta Johnson was born and raised in Salem, Oregon where she grew up listening and singing music that represents her heritage: Rhythm and Blues on one side of the family and Mariachi and Bolero on the other. She began taking voice lessons in high school in order to better imitate the sounds made by her father who sings everything from Mariachi to Italian Opera. Inspired by Whitney Houston and Maria Callas, Ms. Ubieta hopes to one day sing the roles of Norma and Madama Butterfly. She is currently a sophomore at University of Portland, where she studies with Dr. Nicole Leupp Hanig. In addition to advancing to the final round of the Portland Chamber Orchestra Young Artist Competition, Ms. Ubieta has advanced to the NW Regional level in the National Association of Teachers of Singing Competition.
Violin Finalists (expand for bio info)
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Winner of the 2021 MTNA National Junior String Competition, 16-year-old Tokuji Miyasaka is also a first prize laureate at the 2021 Kocian International Violin Competition. He was awarded fourth prize at the 2022 Kloster Schöntal International Violin Competition and the special “Virtuoso” prize for his interpretation of Paganini’s Variations on Nel Cor Più Non Mi Sento, the only American to win this award in the competition’s 36-year history. Tokuji was named one of the Seattle Symphony’s 2023 Young Artists, and has been awarded more than 20 first prizes at competitions including the Seattle Young Artists Music Festival Concerto Competition, having been awarded the prestigious Festival Medal in 2022 and previously winning in 2019, the 2023 North Corner Chamber Orchestra’s Concerto Competition, the 2022 KING FM/Seattle Chamber Music Society Young Artists Award, the 2022 Washington-Idaho Symphony’s Young Artist Award, the 2021 Music of Remembrance Young Artists David Tonkonogui Memorial Award, and the 2018 Cascade Symphony Rising Star Competition. Tokuji has performed extensively across North America, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. After making his solo orchestral debut at the age of eleven with the Spokane Symphony, Tokuji has since been featured as a soloist with the Seattle Symphony, Washington-Idaho Symphony, Fairbanks Symphony, Cascade Symphony, and Philharmonia Northwest. He has made appearances on The Violin Channel, NPR Music Live Sessions Song of the Day, Classical KING FM’s Northwest Focus Live, and From the Studio on KPBX Spokane Public Radio. Tokuji has participated in some of the world’s most prestigious music festivals, including the Keshet Eilon Mastercourse (Israel), Sounding Point Academy at the Colburn School, the Summer Symphony’s International Academy for Strings (Norway), the Brian Lewis Young Artists Program, the International Violin Academy in Liberec (Czech Republic), and Center Stage Strings. A member of the Coleman Violin Studio, Tokuji currently studies with Simon James. He is additionally fortunate to have had the opportunities to perform for James Ehnes, Augustin Hadelich, Vadim Gluzman, Robert Lipsett, Ilya Kaler, Robin Wilson, Martin Chalifour, Martin Beaver, Ivan Straus, and Chaim Taub, among others. In addition to his solo experience, Tokuji participates in the Seattle Chamber Music Society’s Academy program as the first violinist of the Anserem Quintet. The group has been featured on Classical KING FM 98.1, as well as the Seattle Chamber Music Society’s Academy Showcase concert. They have also been able to study regularly with Noah Geller and Kevin Krentz, as well as perform in masterclasses for James Ehnes, Michael Kannen, and Jeewon Park.
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Lin Tokura, age 12, began violin at three, and is currently studying under Prof. Simon James from San Francisco Conservatory of Music. The winner of the Cascade Symphony’s Rising Star Competition 2022-23, Lin at the age of 11, made her solo orchestral debut with the conductor of maestro Michael Miropolsky. Lin has achieved brilliant results in numerous local, national, and international competitions. She won the first prize at the 65th Kocian Violin Competition in the Czech Republic and the first grand prize in the strings division in all age categories from 8 to 35 at the Vancouver International Music Competition 2023. She was also the youngest top prize winner, the platinum medalist of the Bellevue Symphony’s Concerto Competition 2023-2024. In addition, she won first place in the strings category and first place overall in the Open Junior Division, which included all other instruments in the Walgreens National Concerto Competition.
In addition to that, Lin also received the second prize at the Arthur Grumiaux Competition for Young Violinists 2022 in Belgium, the first prize winner at the Crescendo International Music Competition, the Paris International Music Competition, the London Festival Competition, and the New York Concert Festival International Competition where she received the Grand Prix and Soloist of the Year 2019. Lin has performed several times in recitals at Carnegie Hall and had opportunities to perform at Bösendorfer Hall of Mozarthaus and Amadeus International School while on an International Concert Scholarship Tour to Vienna. She was selected as an honored solo performer by The Japan-Seattle Suzuki Institute and had a recital at Seattle Pacific University in 2018. Lin was invited to participate in the Cremona Music Festival in Italy as the youngest ambassador from Japan when she was five.
Since last fall, she has been playing in a duo with cellist Anthony Kim and took master classes with cellists Edward Arron and Alisa Weilerstein at the Seattle Chamber Music Society Academy. Lin was also invited to perform live with Anthony as a violin and cello duo on Northwest Focus, Seattle area’s Classical King FM 98.1. The duo pre-opened a concert of world-class musicians, including James Ehnes, at the Seattle Chamber Music Society’s Winter Festival in Benaroya Hall.
Lin will perform Saint-Saens’ Introduction and Rondo Capricioso as soloist with the Vancouver Metropolitan Orchestra in February 2024. She will also perform a Mendelssohn concerto with Bellevue Chamber Orchestra in April 2024.
The instrument used is a 1677 Nicolò Amati, loaned by Nippon Violin.
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Timothy Yu, aged ten, received his first violin lesson from his mother at the tender age of five. His musical journey burgeoned when he became a member of the Bellevue Youth Symphony Orchestra in 2019. Transitioning to a virtual platform amidst the pandemic, Timothy participated in Seattle Youth Symphony Orchestra's virtual orchestra program in 2020, eventually assuming the role of concertmaster in the Symphonette Orchestra during the 2022-23 season.
Amid the challenges posed by Covid-19, Timothy embraced the realm of music competitions. In 2021, his talent earned him third place in the International Music Competition OPUS, clinched first place in his category at PAFE(Performing Arts Festival of the Eastside), and secured second place in the Marker and Pioneer International Music Competition. Notably, he garnered Honorable Mention in the under-13 instrumental group category at the Seattle International Piano Festival 2023.
Under the tutelage of Professor Ronald Patterson, Timothy continues to refine his craft, following the footsteps of his previous instructor Gloria Guo, who ignited his passion for the violin. Concurrently, Timothy navigates his academic endeavors as a fifth-grade student at Somerset Elementary School in Bellevue, WA. Timothy is an avid reader, and enjoys playing sports of all kinds, including tennis, swimming and basketball.
Our Panel of Judges
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Maria Garcia began piano studies in her native Puerto Rico at the age of four, making her debut with the Puerto Rico Symphony Orchestra at the age of ten. She holds a Bachelor of Music with Distinction in Performance from the New England Conservatory of Music and a master's degree as well as Doctoral studies from SUNY Stony Brook. Her main teachers have been Luz Hutchinson, Victor Rosenbaum, and Gilbert Kalish.
An active chamber musician and soloist, Maria has performed throughout the United States, Europe, the Middle East, and Latin America with groups like the Mark Morris Dance Company, her former Piano Trio Melànge, the Bamberg and Madawaska String Quartets, Musical Chairs Ensemble, and Poetica Musica participating in international festivals such as the Bergen and Casals Festivals.
As teacher, she has served on the faculties of the Manhattan School of Music Pre-College Division, CUNY Pre-College, New Jersey City University, the 92nd Street Y School of Music, and the Stony Brook Summer Chamber Music Festival. Now a Portlander, she’s best known as one half of the dynamic 20 Digitus Duo, a joyous occasional collaborator with Third Angle Ensemble, a piano teacher, and chamber musician.
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American vocalist Katherine Goforth shares the “thrilling tenor power” (Opera News) of her “noble, colorful and iridescent vocal sound” (Magazin Klassik) in vivid character portraits and heartfelt performances that “[do] not hold back” (The New York Times).
Katherine is the recipient of Washington National Opera’s inaugural True Voice Award for transgender and non-binary singers and of the Career Advancement Award from the fourth Dallas Symphony Orchestra Women in Classical Music Symposium, and received critical acclaim for her role in Philip Venables and Ted Huffman’s The F*****s and Their Friends Between Revolutions at Manchester International Festival, Festival d’Aix-en-Provence, and Bregenzer Festspiele.
Katherine was a member of the International Opera Studio of Oper Köln, received her Bachelor’s degree from St. Olaf College and her Master’s degree from the Juilliard School. She teaches at Clark College in Vancouver, WA, and is active as a creative and performing artist. katherinegoforth.com
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Stephen Shepherd, Violin, has performed throughout the country since leaving Kansas City, MO for the University of Iowa where he completed his Bachelor’s degree in music performance. He relocated to Pittsburgh, PA to work towards a Masters in Music Performance and Artist Diploma degrees and upon receiving them, decided to pursue a Doctorate of Musical Arts degree at the University of Iowa, completing the terminal degree in 2003. His orchestral experience includes several seasons with the Westmoreland Symphony, the Wheeling Symphony, the Cedar Rapids Symphony, and the Cedar Rapids Opera Orchestra before moving to the Pacific Northwest in 2003. Stephen has served as Concertmaster of the Linfield Chamber Orchestra in McMinnville, OR, and is currently Associate Concertmaster of the Vancouver Symphony in Vancouver, WA, and a violinist with The Portland Chamber Orchestra. He has performed during the summer at festivals in Kansas, Colorado, Oregon, and Massachusetts. He is fortunate to have a lovely wife, Lanette, and two daughters, Josie and Jasmine.