Students to Perform for Music Scholarships
Seven high school seniors will be competing for Westmont music scholarships at the Music Guild Competition on Saturday, March 2, at 7 p.m. at Westmont’s Deane Chapel. Following the finalists’ solo performances, the Siloam String Quartet will perform at 8:25 p.m. The performances are free and open to the public.
The winner of the Guild Scholarship will receive up to $10,000 in annual music scholarships fund (up to $40,000 over four years) to study at Westmont.
The finalists are Tiffany Backe from Laguna Hills High School; Ai My (Chyna) Charbonneau from the Dubai American Academy, Al Barsha, United Arab Emirates; Lalia Mangione from Belmont, Mich.; Sofiya Pyrkhitko of San Marcos High School; Anna Reiley from Wailea, Hawaii; Cole Syverson of Thousand Oaks High School and Katrina Whitman of Wenathcee High School in Washington state.
Backe has played the piano for 10 years and the violin for eight years and has twice placed first in the SYMF (South Coast Music Festival) competition. She also plays in the worship band for her home church
Charbonneau, principal oboist for the Modesto Symphony Youth Orchestra and currently the youngest member of the UAE Philharmonic Orchestra, will perform (via video stream) “Morceau de Salon” by Jan Kalliwoda.
Mangione, concert master of the Grand Rapids Youth Symphony for the past four years, will perform Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto, Op. 64. She is also one of 7 finalists in the Music Teachers National Conference Competition the next weekend in Anaheim.
Pyrkhitko, concertmaster with the Santa Barbara Youth Symphony, will perform Bach’s Sonata No. 1, presto, and Max Bruch’s Concerto in G minor, allegro moderato.
Reilly, who plays the piano for her choir and church band, will perform Rachmaninoff’s Prelude, Op. 32, no. 12, and Chopin’s Étude “Winter Wind” Op. 25, no. 11.
Syverson, principal cellist with the Thousand Oaks High School Orchestra, performs Luigi Boccerini’s Cello Concerto.
Whitman, assistant principal violist of the Wenatchee Valley Symphony for more than two years, will perform William Walton’s Concerto for viola and orchestra and Bach’s Prelude from Cello Suite No. 3.
The Siloam String Quartet includes Westmont students Madison Martin, violin, Isaac Kay, violin, Carson Rick, viola, and Rebecca Shasberger, cello.
The judges for this competition are Grey Brothers, professor of music, Steve Butler, professor of music and music department chair, Steve Hodson, professor of music, Philip Ficsor, associate professor of music, and Michael Shasberger, Adams professor of music and worship.
The Guild Scholarship program is funded by The Guild for Music at Westmont. For information about becoming a Guild member or any aspect of this competition, please contact the Westmont Music Office at (805) 565-6040.