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| Maestro Vytautas Marijosius |
The American Prize is proud to announce the winners and runners-up of
The American Prize in Orchestral Programming—Maestro Vytautas Marijosius Memorial Award, 2015.
Awards were made in three divisions this year: college/university
orchestras, community orchestras and youth orchestras. All the results
are below.
Please make us aware of any misprints by emailing: theamericanprize@gmail.com
For nearly thirty five years
Director of Orchestral Activities at the Hartt School of Music of the University of Hartford, Vytautas
Marijosius programmed concerts that were alive in every sense—not
programming for novelty’s sake, nor neglecting the great masters
of the past—but always bringing to the awareness of his students and his
audiences great composers of the current time and potential masters of
the future. I believe he would be pleased in different ways with each of
this year's honorees." —DK
For more about Maestro Marijosius, please visit the companion blog here.
The American Prize in Orchestral Programming
Maestro Vytautas Marijosius Memorial Award
—College/University Orchestra Division
The American Prize Winner:
Tian Hui Ng South Hadley, MA
Mount Holyoke Symphony Orchestra
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| Tian Hui Ng |
The
Mount Holyoke Symphony Orchestra (MHSO) is one of the largest musical
groups on campus. Led by their conductor Ng Tian Hui, the group reflects
the diversity of the college's community, with musicians from the five
colleges and the Pioneer Valley, in addition to students, faculty and
staff from Mount Holyoke College. Students who perform in the Orchestra
might be majors in Music or Biology, English or International Relations,
philosophy or mathematics. They are drawn by the collective desire to
be an active participant in creating great beauty in the realm of sound.
The
orchestra is particularly proud of its second prize in the 2014
American Prize for Orchestral Programming, and acknowledged for its fine
work by grants from the Massachusetts Arts Council, Massachusetts
International Festival of the Arts, National Arts Council of Singapore,
the Singapore International Foundation, Women’s Philharmonic and
WomenArts in acknowledgement of its creative and engaging programming.
2nd Place:
Chris Younghoon Kim Ithaca, NY
Cornell Chamber Orchestra
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| Chris Younghoon Kim |
Cornell
Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Chris Younghoon Kim, present
multiple concerts during each academic school year. The membership of
the orchestra is formed from students of all colleges and departments
across the university-wide community. It is the only non-music major
orchestra to win first place among collegiate orchestras the ASCAP award
for Adventurous Programming of Contemporary music during the 2008-2009
season. It has won the Adventurous awards for 6 years in a row from
2008-2014. For the last seven seasons Cornell Orchestras have been
jointly producing the Ithaca International conducting masterclasses with
Ithaca College Symphony Orchestra.
3rd Place:
Michael Griffith Laramie, WY
University of Wyoming Symphony Orchestra
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| Michael Griffith |
Now
in his 26th year as Conductor of the University of Wyoming Symphony,
Michael Griffith’s guest conducting ranges from NY’s Times Square to Rio
de Janeiro; locally Denver’s Mercury Ensemble, Ft. Collins Symphony,
Cheyenne Symphony, and Opera Fort Collins. With younger musicians he’s
conducted ensembles in China, Canada, and across the US. He was a
visiting professor at the Sibelius Academy and Shanghai University,
twice elected a Top Ten Teacher by UW graduating classes, and taught
UW’s London Semester. Past president of the Conductors Guild, he’s won
an ASCAP Adventurous Programming Award. Broadcast performances include
the Nigerian Broadcasting Company, CBC, Minnesota Public Radio, KUSF San
Francisco, and Wyoming Public Television. Dr. Griffith inherited his
musical talent from his grandmother, a leading soprano in the Vienna
Folksoper. He grew up in Cleveland, studying oboe with Harvey McGuire
and Robert Zupnic of The Cleveland Orchestra. His conducting teachers
were Charles Bruck (Monteux School), Dennis Burkh (MSU), and Giora
Bernstein (Colorado).
The American Prize in Orchestral Programming
Maestro Vytautas Marijosius Memorial Award
—Community Orchestra Division
The American Prize Winner:
Michael Korn Waltham, MA
The Waltham Philharmonic Orchestra
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| Michael Korn |
In
just a few years since immersing himself into conducting Michael Korn
appeared on stage of Tsai Performance Center and Paramount Theater in
Boston and amassed extensive repertoire ranging from works by Lully and
Handel through the 21st century orchestral music by living composers.
American music advocate, he premiered in Boston works by many
contemporary composers and performed Gaelic Symphony by Amy Beach and À
Montevideo Symphony by Louis Moreau Gottschalk.
As an
accompanist, Michael Korn collaborated with many outstanding Boston
musicians and young talented performers alike. He regularly teaches
young students in orchestral settings and conducts Oliver Ames High
School orchestras in Easton and Sharon Community Chamber Youth
Orchestra. In 2014 he directed 2014 senior S.E.M.S.B.A. Festival
Orchestra in Massachusetts.
Michael Korn is Music Director of Waltham
Philharmonic Orchestra and Sharon Community Chamber Orchestra.
2nd Place:
Donald L. Appert Vancouver, WA
Clark College Symphony Orchestra, Jewish Community Orchestra
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| Donald L. Appert |
Donald
Appert has been Artistic Director and Conductor of the Jewish Community
Orchestra of Portland, OR since 2012. He has guest conducted orchestras
in Europe, Central America, Japan and Australia. Currently he is Music
Director/Conductor of the Clark College Orchestra and a Professor of
Music and Head of the Music Department at Clark College in Vancouver,
Washington. In addition he is the Music Director/Conductor of the Oregon
Sinfonietta in Portland, Oregon. He received The American Prize in
Orchestral Programming—Vytautas Marijosius Memorial Award in 2011 for
his work with the Oregon Sinfonietta, an Honorable Mention in 2012, and
3rd Place in 2014. The Clark County (WA) Arts Commission awarded him the
Lifetime Achievement in the Arts Award in 2014. He has received the
ASCAPLUS Award numerous times. Videos of his conducting and his original
compositions may be seen and heard via the Internet on his web site at
www.maestroappert.com.
The American Prize in Orchestral Programming
Maestro Vytautas Marijosius Memorial Award
—Youth Orchestra Division
The American Prize Winner:
Robert Boardman South Bend, IN
South Bend Youth Symphony Orchestra
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| Robert Boardman |
Robert
W. Boardman, a native of Ithaca, New York is currently Music Director
and Conductor of the South Bend Youth Symphony Orchestras, and Artistic
Director of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra's webcast, "Life from
Orchestra Hall." He has assisted Marin Alsop at the Cabrillo Festival of
Contemporary Music, and served as Associate Conductor for CAMI's
worldwide tour of Howard Shore's "The Lord of the Rings Symphony."
Boardman received the DMA of Orchestral Conducting from the University
of Michigan in 2010 where he studied with Kenneth Kiesler. He has
participated in dozens of workshops nationwide and been a participant in
masterclasses with conductors Larry Rachleff, Lorin Maazel, Kurt Mazur,
Gustav Meier, JoAnn Falletta, and many other fine pedagogues.
2nd Place:
Allen Tinkham Chicago, IL
Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra
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| Allen Tinkham |
Allen
Tinkham is hailed by the Chicago Tribune as one of Chicago's most
important "educators, mentors and inspirational guides in the training
of tomorrow's orchestral professionals," working "wonders" in concerts
performed at a "professional-level." As Music Director of the Chicago
Youth Symphony Orchestras, Tinkham has led them to critical acclaim on
four continents, winning nine ASCAP Awards for the Adventurous
Programming of Contemporary Music.
Recent guest appearances
include the Colorado Symphony Orchestra and Members of Chicago Symphony
Orchestra. He is on faculty at the New York Summer Music Festival and
the Columbia College of Chicago and conducts all-state and other youth
festival orchestras across the country, including the 2015 NAfME
All-Northwest and All-Eastern orchestras.
Tinkham holds degrees
from the Eastman School of Music and the University of Michigan. He
began his career as an Apprentice Conductor of the Oregon Symphony
Orchestra under Music Director James DePreist.
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Congratulations!
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