“If
you’re looking for exciting, polished performances, this
is a not‑to‑be‑missed concert,” says
Chris Warsaw, Arizona Musicfest chairman. “The wow‑factor
will continue as we welcome fresh faces.”
The
Young Musicians Showcase is a series of four, free, Friday
evening concerts in collaboration with the St. Barnabas
Society. The performances are at St. Barnabas Episcopal
Church in Scottsdale and feature gifted young musicians
from throughout the Valley. The first concert in the series
was held on Sept. 29.
The
second concert is 7 p.m. on Nov. 17 and features Mia Laity
(violin), winner of the grade 7‑8 division of Musicfest’s
2006 Young Musicians Competition, and the ensemble division
winner The Topaz String Quartet (Loren Stallcop and Thalia
Coombs on violin, Garrett McDaniel on viola and Ruth Wenger
on cello). Frequent Musicfest performer Belinda Chiu (piano)
will round out the show.
The
Young Musicians Competition started in 2002 and is held
every spring. Judged by professionals from major universities
and symphony orchestras, each student gets a chance to
experience the discipline of performing in front of peers
and critics.
In
the Nov. 17 concert, Laity will play Wieniawski’s “Scherzo‑Tarantelle”
and Chiu will perform the “Sonata in E Major” by Beethoven.
The Topaz String Quartet is scheduled to present several
Spanish pieces. The third concert will take place on Jan.
26 with the final concert on April 27.
The
other upcoming Musicfest youth initiative event is its
14th Annual Young Artists Concert which gives talented
young musicians the chance to perform for an audience.
The
concert will be held at 3 p.m. on Nov. in the Chapel at
Pinnacle Presbyterian Church in Scottsdale. The concernt
showcases participants and winners of the Young Musicians
Competition, and welcomes several performers new to Musicfest.
Laity (violin) and her fellow competition winner, pianists
Ilina Mitra (grade 9‑10 division) and Roman Rojas
(grade 11‑12 division), will be performing. The
Topaz String Quartet will play at this concert as well.
Performing
will also be a competition finalist, Caitlin Poupard (clarinet),
along with newcomers Jessica Waithe (trumpet), Tyler Richardson
(trumpet) and Chaz Salazar (flute).
There
will be a “Meet the Musicians” reception following both
concerts.
