The Torrance Symphony’s Annual Young Artists Concerto Competition provides an avenue for
young musicians residing in Southern California to participate in the audition process. It
encourages them to continue their musical studies, as well as give each winner the opportunity to
perform as a soloist with the Torrance Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Maestro Frank
Paul Fetta. The Concerto Competition remembers John Bramhall who organized the competition
in 1996 and made a very generous donation to begin the program. He and his wife, Lynn, were
long-time supporters of the arts in our community, and we are grateful that John, with Lynn’s
blessings, established this wonderful annual event.
Young instrumental musicians from 7 through 25 years of age residing in Southern California are
invited to participate in the Competition. Awards are provided in three categories, junior (14 and
under), intermediate (15-18) and senior (19-25). In addition to cash prizes, winners are given the
opportunity to perform with the Symphony Orchestra. This event fits well within the Vision of the
Symphony Association since the competition clearly provides performing opportunities for
emerging young artists, a basic component of the Symphony’s Mission Statement.
The following talented young musicians were winners of the Fourteenth Annual Torrance
Symphony Young Artists Concerto Competition:
Jay Choi, 14 - Piano /Junior
Mayumi Kanagawa, 15 - Violin/Intermediate
Sichen Ma, 23 - Piano/Senior
In addition the judges have selected the following eight contestants as Honorable Mention:
Senior Category – Henry Chen, Kyle Shafiee, and Ruiquig Tang
Intermediate Category – Andrea Choi and Ji Min Lee
Junior Category –Leonard Chong, Nathan Le, and Eriko Okamoto
These winners will perform with the Torrance Symphony during this coming season at the James
Armstrong Theatre. They were chosen from among 40 applicants, all with exceptional talent,
playing a wide variety of classical pieces. We thank the judges, Frank Fetta, Marianne Rotstein,
Dick Ducar, and Dan Kelly for their hard work in the decision process. Truly, this was a difficult
task since all these young musicians were superb.
A special fund to cover the expenses of the competition has been established and is in need of
your financial support. You may help the Symphony continue to assist and encourage these
wonderful young musicians by making a donation to:
The Torrance Symphony Association
P0. Box 1581
Torrance, CA 90505
We are planning a competition for 2011. The dates will be posted on our website.
For more information contact:
Dr. Howard Korman at (310) 373-2442 (howarddale@verizon.net) or
Dr. Owen Griffith at (310) 325-3548
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