Press Release

For Immediate Release:
March 8, 2006

New England Conservatory Preparatory School students dominated the Boston Symphony Orchestra 2006 Concerto Competition for High School Students in February. Two outstanding string players won first prizes and performances on BSO Family Concerts or Boston Pops concerts. Five other young musicians won cash prizes or honorable mention. All but two –the pianists—are members of NEC’s prestigious Youth Philharmonic Orchestra and four are principals of their orchestral sections. The finals of the annual competition were held on the stage of Symphony Hall, February 7.

Here are the results:

First Place / Harry & Marion Dubbs Brookline Youth Concerts Award
$750 / performance at a Boston Pops concert, 2006 summer season
Sarah Koenig-Plonskier, violin
18 years old, Newton resident, student NEC at Walnut Hill School
NEC Youth Philharmonic Orchestra concertmaster
student of Yuri Mazurkevich

First Place / Cornelius A & Muriel P. Wood Award
$750 / performance at a BSO Family Concert, 2006/2007 season
Sebastian Baverstam, cello
17 years old, Waban resident, student Newton South High School
NEC Youth Philharmonic Orchestra principal cello
student of Ronald Feldman, Andrew Pearce, Michael Reynolds

Second Place, $450
Nigel Armstrong, violin
15 years old, resident of California, student NEC at Walnut Hill School
NEC Youth Philharmonic Orchestra, first violin section
student of Donald Weilerstein

Second Place, $450
Rose Lombardo, flute
18 years old, resident of Norwell, student Norwell High School
NEC Youth Philharmonic Orchestra principal flute
student of Nina Barwell

Third Place, $350
Hyun Ji Kim, piano
17 years old, resident of Seoul, Korea, student NEC at Walnut Hill School
student of Wha Kyung Byun

Third Place, $350
Audrey Wright, violin
16 years old, resident of E. Harwich, MA, student NEC at Walnut Hill School
Youth Philharmonic Orchestra principal second violin
student of Magdalena Richter

Honorable Mention
Yundu Wang, piano
16 years old, resident of Paxton, MA, student Laurel Springs School
student of Julia Bernstein

For more information, call the NEC Concert Line at (617) 585-1122 or visit NEC on the web at www.newenglandconservatory.edu/prep

ABOUT NEW ENGLAND CONSERVATORY

Recognized nationally and internationally as a leader among music schools, New England Conservatory offers rigorous training in an intimate, nurturing community to 750 undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral music students from around the world. Its faculty of 225 boasts internationally esteemed artist-teachers and scholars. Its alumni go on to fill orchestra chairs, concert hall stages, jazz clubs, recording studios, and arts management positions worldwide. Nearly half of the Boston Symphony Orchestra is composed of NEC trained musicians and faculty.

The oldest independent school of music in the United States, NEC was founded in 1867 by Eben Tourjee. Its curriculum is remarkable for its wide range of styles and traditions. On the college level, it features training in classical, jazz, Contemporary Improvisation, world and early music. Through its Preparatory School, School of Continuing Education, and Community Collaboration Programs, it provides training and performance opportunities for children, pre-college students, adults, and seniors. Through its outreach projects, it allows young musicians to engage with non-traditional audiences in schools, hospitals, and nursing homes—thereby bringing pleasure to new listeners and enlarging the universe for classical music and jazz.

NEC presents more than 600 free concerts each year, many of them in Jordan Hall, its world- renowned, 100-year old, beautifully restored concert hall. These programs range from solo recitals to chamber music to orchestral programs to jazz and opera scenes. Every year, NEC’s opera studies department also presents two fully staged opera productions at the Cutler Majestic Theatre in Boston.

NEC is co-founder and educational partner of “From the Top,” a weekly radio program that celebrates outstanding young classical musicians from the entire country. With its broadcast home in Jordan Hall, the show is now carried by National Public Radio and is heard on 250 stations throughout the United States.