June Lively Arts Preview: Annual Youth Festival

Submitted by Eleanor James

Upper Merion Middle School 7th grader Janet Wu won first place in the Junior Piano Division.

Winners of the Tri-County Concerts Association’s 69^th Annual Youth Festival auditions will appear in recital on Sunday, June 12, at 3 p.m. at the Science Center Theater at Montgomery County Community College, Blue Bell. The young artists include pianists, instrumentalists, and vocalists from Montgomery, Chester, and Delaware Counties. They will perform works by Chopin, Beethoven, Mendelssohn, and Dvorak, among others. Tickets cost $10 and will be available at the door. Students and children will be admitted free (supported by the Ethel Sergeant Clark Smith Memorial Fund).  For further information, call 610-853-1041 or visit www.tricountyconcerts.org.

Many talented young musicians from Montgomery County won prizes in this year’s Youth Festival and will perform at the concert.  Janet Wu of King of Prussia, a 7^thgrader at Upper Merion Middle School, won First Place in the Junior Piano Division. Cellist Minzo Kim, a junior at North Penn High School, won Second Place in the Senior Strings Division.  Pianist Sukmin On, a senior at Abington Senior High School, is a member of the Temple Prep Piano Trio, which won First Place in the Senior Ensemble Division. Winning Second Place in that division was The Melrose Trio, with Jean Lin, piano, Lijia Xie, violin, and Lynn Yip, cello. The trio members are 11^th grade students at Upper Dublin High School, North Penn High School, and Upper Moreland High School, respectively. In the Junior Ensemble Division, the First Place winner was The JKL Trio with violinist Amy Li, cellist Seyoung Kim, and pianist Mason Jiang. Amy Li is a 7^th grader at Sandy Run Middle School; Seyoung Kim is a 7^th grader at Valley Forge Middle School; and Mason Jiang is in 6^th grade at The Shipley School.  Finally, Kevin Zhang of Ambler, in 11^th grade at Hatboro-Horsham High School, will be recognized at the awards ceremony after the concert for winning Honorable Mention in the Senior Piano Division.

The Tri-County Concerts Youth Festival is one of the area’s most prestigious competitions for aspiring young classical musicians living in Chester, Delaware, and Montgomery Counties.  Since 1943 the festival has been a stepping stone to achievement for many emerging young artists, including current and retired members of the Philadelphia Orchestra.  This year will mark its 69^th anniversary.