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| Vytautas Marijosius |
The American Prize is pleased to announce the 2017-18
winners, runners-up and honorable mentions in orchestral programming,
The Vytautas
Marijosius Memorial Award. Congratulations!
The American Prize—Vytautas Marijosius Memorial Award in Orchestral Programming honors the memory of the great Lithuanian conductor, Maestro Vytautas
Marijosius, music director of the Lithuanian State Opera, and for nearly
thirty-five years Director of Orchestral Activities at the Hartt School
of Music. The Prize recognizes and rewards the best achievement in the
unique field of orchestral programming, where the selection of
repertoire by knowledgeable, creative and courageous music directors
builds orchestras and audiences, educates young people and adults, and
enriches the community.
Questions, or to make us aware of any misprints in the listings below,
please email:
theamericanprize@gmail.com
The American Prize in Orchestral Programming / Vytautas Marijosius Memorial Award—college/university division
The American Prize Winner:
Thomas Taylor Dickey
OK State University Symphony Orchestra
Stillwater OK
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| Thomas Taylor Dickey |
Dr. Thomas Dickey is the Director of Orchestral
Studies at Oklahoma State University, where he conducts the OSU Symphony
Orchestra and guides all aspects of the orchestra and orchestral
conducting programs. He concurrently serves as Music Director &
Conductor of the OSU Youth Orchestra and the Stillwater Community
Orchestra. Prior to his appointments in Oklahoma, he was the Director
of Orchestral Activities at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville and
Music Director & Conductor of the Dubuque Symphony Youth
Orchestra (IA). He holds doctoral and master's degrees in orchestral
conducting from the University of Georgia and Louisiana State
University, respectively, and graduated with highest honors from Eastern
Illinois University. He has worked with conductors such as Carl
Topilow, Christopher Zimmerman, Daniel Lewis, Gustav Meier, and Diane
Wittry, and further studied conducting at the Cleveland Institute of
Music, Cincinnati Conservatory of Music, and numerous workshops and
master classes.
2nd Place and Special Judges' Citation: Remarkable Growth in the Programming of Major Repertoire
Tara Villa Keith
Davidson College Symphony Orchestra
Davidson NC
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| Tara Villa Keith |
Tara Villa Keith is in her fifteenth season as music
director of the Davidson College Symphony Orchestra (DCSO) in Davidson,
North Carolina and in her ninth season as music director of the Lee
County Community Orchestra (LCCO) in Sanford, North Carolina. Tara has
won local and national awards for her work with both orchestras, and has
enjoyed conducting orchestras, running clinics, and serving as a guest
speaker throughout the south, northeast, and abroad. For the past four
seasons, Tara has served as a cover conductor and pre-concert speaker
for the Charlotte Symphony Orchestra, and enjoys introducing audiences
to orchestral music through their new Symphony 101 adult education
program. Originally from Baltimore, Maryland, Tara studied percussion
and piano at the Preparatory of the Peabody Conservatory. Tara holds
degrees from Franklin & Marshall College, Pennsylvania State
University, and the University of South Carolina. Please feel free to
visit her website at
taravillakeith.com.
3rd Place:
Johannes Dietrich
Lebanon Valley College Symphony Orchestra
Annville PA
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| Johannes Dietrich |
Johannes Dietrich, a native of Bozeman, Montana, is
the Newton and Adelaide Burgner Professor in Instrumental Music at
Lebanon Valley College. Along with his duties as conductor of the LVC
Symphony and Chamber Orchestra, he is active as a guest conductor and
clinician. He has led festival, District, Region and State orchestras
from New Jersey to Montana. His college orchestra has completed three,
highly successful tours to Europe. He is also active as a violinist,
performing regularly as a member of Duo Terlano with his wife, cellist
Marie-Aline Cadieux.
Www.duoterlano.com
Finalist Honorable Mention:
Chris Younghoon Kim
Cornell Orchestras
Ithaca NY
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| Chris Younghoon Kim |
Chris Younghoon Kim has been at Cornell University as
the director of orchestras and associate professor of music, since
2004. The League of American Orchestras and ASCAP have awarded the first
place award for Adventurous Programming of Contemporary Music to the
Cornell Orchestras among all collegiate orchestras in 2008, 2009, 2010,
2011, 2012 and 2014. He has premiered over 200 works by contemporary
composers worldwide. Cornell Symphony Orchestra has hosted two Meet the
Composer New Partnership residencies. At Cornell University he directs
the Cornell Chamber Orchestra, the Cornell Symphony Orchestra, teaches
conducting and works closely with the DMA composers in presenting their
work in concert. With the Cornell Orchestras he has led international
tours and joint collaborations with the Royal Irish Academy of Music,
and Conservatorio de Música de Puerto Rico and most recently to Neuquén,
Argentina for a collaborative project to perform Gustav Mahler’s 6th
Symphony with the combined forces of the Sinfónica del Neuquén and the
Cornell Symphony. He has appeared with orchestras in the United States
and abroad, including ensembles such as the Louisiana Philharmonic
Orchestra, Delta Festival Ballet, Symphoria based in Syracuse, NY,
Divertimento Ensemble of Milan, Italy. He has also appeared in music
festivals such as, Kinhaven Music Center, Skaneateles Music Festival,
and International Bartók Festival in Szombathely, Hungary among others.
Finalist Honorable Mention:
David Alexander Rahbee
University of Washington Symphony Orchestra
Seattle WA
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| David Alexander Rahbee |
David Alexander Rahbee is currently Senior Artist in
Residence at the University of Washington School of Music in Seattle,
where he is Director of Orchestral Activities and teaches conducting. He
also serves of faculty of the Pierre Monteux School and Music Festival
as Conducting Associate. He is recipient of the American-Austrian
Foundation's 2003 Karajan Fellowship for Young Conductors, the 2005
International Richard-Wagner-Verband Stipend, and the Acanthes Centre in
Paris in 2007. He has recently worked with the Seattle Symphony,
Orchesterakademie der Bochumer Symphoniker, the Seattle Modern
Orchestra, and Orquesta Sinfónica de Loja. He participated in
masterclasses with Kurt Masur, Sir Colin Davis, Jorma Panula, Zdeněk
Mácal, Peter Eötvös, and Zoltán Peskó. His principal conducting teachers
were Charles Bruck and Michael Jinbo at the Monteux School. He holds
degrees from Indiana University, New England Conservatory, and
University of Montreal. He also studied at Universität für Musik und
Darstellende Kunst, Vienna.
The American Prize in Orchestral Programming / Vytautas Marijosius Memorial Award—community division
The American Prize Winner:
Annette Jurcevic
Shoreline Symphony
Muskegon MI
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| Annette Jurcevic |
Described by contest judges as “an electric
personality” and “what a dynamo!”, Annette Jurcevic brings vitality to
each ensemble she leads. She currently directs the Star Gate Orchestra
in Chicago, Illinois, and the Shoreline Symphony in Muskegon, Michigan.
While living in Texas, she conducted the Austin Philharmonic Orchestra,
the St. Edward’s University Orchestra, and the Austin Summer Pops
Orchestra. Career highlights include premiering contemporary works,
founding three orchestras, conducting a German version of Messiah, and
collaborating with dance and theater companies. Additionally, she gives
pre-concert discussions, has taught at four universities, maintains a
private teaching studio, and performs as a pianist, organist, and
singer. Possessing music degrees in multiple fields – music history
& literature, music theory, choral conducting, and vocal
performance – Ms. Jurcevic approaches conducting with a breadth of
expertise. Training in dance and martial arts has expanded her
understanding of movement and gesture. Read more at
www.annettejurcevic.com.
2nd Place:
Reuben Blundell
Lansdowne Symphony Orchestra
Lansdowne PA
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| Reuben Blundell |
Reuben Blundell is Music Director of the Lansdowne
Symphony Orchestra near Philadelphia, and New York’s Riverside
Orchestra. From Fall 2009 he transformed Hunter Symphony from a small
group into a symphony orchestra: recent performances included major
symphonies and the Ewazen Flute Concerto with Mindy Kaufman of the NY
Philharmonic. He recently completed his fifth season as a Chelsea
Symphony conductor. His Gowanus Arts Ensemble CD, American Romantics,
garnered outstanding reviews, including Gramophone Magazine. Blundell
has performed in his native Australia, in Austria, Chile, Holland, Iraq,
Japan, and Lebanon. He conducted the New World Symphony in their 2013
John Cage festival. After studies in Melbourne and Sydney, he was a
Tanglewood Fellow (’02 & ’03) and a principal New World Symphony
violinist (2003-05). He attended the Monteux School (’05 & ’06)
and Eastman, earning a DMA in conducting with Neil Varon and studying
violin with Zvi Zeitlin. Website:
www.reubenblundell.com
3rd Place:
Orlando Cela
Arlington Philharmonic Orchestra
Arlington MA
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| Orlando Cela |
Venezuelan conductor Orlando Cela has recently been
awarded second place in the Ernst Bacon Memorial Award for the
performance of American music, and second place in the London Classical
Soloists Conducting Competition for his rendition of Beethoven’s Seventh
and Eighth Symphonies. His experience includes launching the orchestral
department at Ningbo University in China and conducting the inaugural
concert of the Ningbo City Symphony Orchestra. In the US, his conducting
positions include work with orchestras and choruses at Randolph College
(VA) and UMass Dartmouth (MA). Guest conducting credits include the
Marquette Symphony Orchestra (MI), the Northern Michigan State
University Orchestra (MI), Brandeis New Music Ensemble (MA). He is
currently the music director and conductor of the Arlington Philharmonic
Orchestra, and the orchestra of the Governor’s School of North
Carolina, with which he has performed world and American premieres by
composers like Salvatore Sciarrino, Chen Yi, Hector Parra, Rebecca
Saunders, and many others.
The American Prize in Orchestral Programming / Vytautas Marijosius Memorial Award—youth orchestra division
The American Prize Winner:
Robert Boardman
South Bend Youth Symphony Orchestra
South Bend IN
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| Robert Boardman |
Robert Boardman has been music director and conductor
of the South Bend Youth Symphony Orchestras (SBYSO) since 2011. In
2015, he was named winner of the American Prize in Orchestral
Programming for his work with SBYSO. Since 2012, Boardman has been
artistic director of Live from Orchestra Hall, the free webcasts of the
Detroit Symphony Orchestra, for which he frequently serves as cover
conductor. In 2015 and 2017, Boardman led the Grand Central Symphony of
New York City on a national tour, collaborating with Bollywood star
Arijit Singh and his rock band. The tour visited sold-out venues across
the United States. Since 2006, Boardman has been assistant conductor for
The Lord of the Rings Symphony, assisting in more than 75 performances,
including tours of North America and Europe. Other recent artistic
engagements include the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music, where
he was assistant conductor for two seasons. As assistant to music
director Marin Alsop, he worked with dozens of composers, including John
Adams, Philip Glass, and Jennifer Higdon. Recently, Boardman assisted
Michael Christie and the Phoenix Symphony in a semi-staged production of
John Adams’ opera Nixon in China. He also performed and recorded the
world premiere performance of Lembit Beecher’s multimedia oratorio And
Then I Remember, a musical documentary about Beecher’s grandmother and
her escape from Estonia during World War II. Boardman has conducted 14
world premieres and more than 30 orchestras worldwide, including the
Houston Symphony, Spokane Symphony Orchestra, and Cabrillo Festival
Orchestra. Boardman studied conducting with Alsop, Kurt Masur, Gustav
Meier, and Kenneth Kiesler. He also has participated in numerous master
classes, workshops, and seminars with major orchestras and conductors
throughout the United States. In May 2010, he earned a Doctor of Musical
Arts degree in orchestral conducting from the University of Michigan
School of Music, Theatre & Dance.
2nd Place:
Chad Hutchinson
SD Symphony Youth Orchestra
Sioux Falls SD
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| Chad Hutchinson |
Chad Hutchinson is the Interim Director of
Orchestras, Assistant Professor of Conducting and Conductor of
University Opera at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He conducts
the Symphony Orchestra in 5 concerts annually, leads University Opera
productions and teaches undergraduate and graduate conducting courses.
Prior to his time in Madison, Dr. Hutchinson was the Assistant Conductor
for the South Dakota Symphony Orchestra and Music Director of the South
Dakota Symphony Youth Orchestras. As comfortable in the pit as on the
stage, he has recently led productions at the University of Minnesota,
the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Morningside College. Committed
to education, Dr. Hutchinson taught orchestra in the public schools for
nine years in Sioux Falls, SD and Williamsville, NY. He later taught
collegiately at Northwestern College(IA) and was the Coordinator/Music
Director of the Siouxland Youth Orchestras in Sioux City,
Iowa. He holds conducting degrees from the University of Minnesota and
Bowling Green State University and a Bachelor's Degree in Music
Education from Morningside College (IA).
Third Place:
Tigran Arakelyan
Bainbridge Island Youth Orchestra
Bainbridge Island WA
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| Tigran Arakelyan |
Armenian-American conductor Tigran Arakelyan is the
Music Director of Bainbridge Island Youth Orchestras, Federal Way Youth
Symphony and the Artistic Director and Conductor of Port Townsend
Community Orchestra. Arakelyan held conducting positions with California
Philharmonic, Los Angeles Youth Orchestra, Whatcom Symphony, Rainier
Symphony, and the Northridge Youth Philharmonic. His recent conducting
engagements are with the Olympia Chamber Orchestra, Armenian Pops
Orchestra, Fort Wayne Philharmonic, Northwest Mahler Festival, a second
international tour of South Korea, and the inaugural Bainbridge Island
String Orchestra Festival.
Arakelyan helped in creating youth
scholarship programs, festivals, young composer competitions, and led
performances at unconventional venues. He conducted the Pacific
Northwest premiere of Hindemith Kammermuzik Nr. 1. Arakelyan played
alongside Sir James Galway during his induction into the Hollywood Bowl
Hall of Fame with the LA Philharmonic. He received a D.M.A. from
the University of Washington under the mentorship of Ludovic Morlot and
David Alexander Rahbee.
www.TigranArakelyan.com
***
Congratulations!
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