The 2008 Neale-Silva Young Artists' Competition
Winners' Recital Program and Artist Information
Michael Smith, Piano
Chromatic Fantasy by Johann Sebastian Bach
Sonata No. 3 Op. 14: Mvt. 1 – Allegro Brilliante by Robert Schumann
Brian Viliunas, Clarinet
(accompanied by Christina Lalog)
Set: Mvt. 1 & 2 by Donald Martino
Premiere Rhapsodie by Claude Debussy
Amy Lauters, Piano
Sonata in C Major No. 60 Hob. XVI/50: Mvt .I by Franz Joseph Haydn
Nocturne in C# minor, Op. 27, No.1 by Frederic Chopin
Jeux D’eau by Maurice Ravel
String Quartet – violinists: Danielle Simandl & Katie Ekberg; violist: Sarah Bellmore & cellist: Max Hero
String Quartet No. 8, Op. 110 by Dmitri Shostakovich
Mvt. I -- Largo
Mvt. II – Allegro Molto
Mvt. III – Allegretto
William Martin, Piano
(accompanied by Anthony Padilla)
Rhapsody in Blue by George Gershwin
Michael Smith, 19, is a sophomore studying with Michael Kim at Lawrence University and has been playing piano since the age of five. Originally from Davis, California, he has won awards in numerous competitions, including first prize in the California Association of Music Teachers Honors Competition and first prize in the Music Teachers Association of California Memorial Scholarship Competition. Michael is also an accomplished collaborative pianist, and has toured Europe with a Children’s choir, accompanied voice studios, and currently holds an Accompanying Fellowship at Lawrence University where he plays for the University Choral. Aside from piano, Michael runs the Intramural Soccer League at Lawrence, and is a Residence Advisor.
Twenty-six year old clarinetist Brian Viliunas has given performances in seven states and seven countries. He has played with orchestras in Houston, Racine, and Waukesha, and also the Bergen Philharmonic in Norway, while living there for the past year as a Fulbright Scholar. While in Norway, Brian gave solo recitals and appeared as guest soloist with the Lignum Clarinet Ensemble of Holland. He was also active as an educator and clinician for bands in Bergen and Voss, and frequent guest conductor and performer with the 2007 Norwegian Grand Champions, Dragefjelletmusikkorps. Brian is a member of the Youth Orchestra of the Americas, and accompanied them on their first European tour, where he was principle clarinet on their DVD recording of Verdi’s Requiem with conductor Placido Domingo. He has also performed with Lorin Maazel, Benjamin Zanber, and Andrew Litto and has been able to study with excellent teachers, most notably Russ Dagon, Danny Granados, Haakon Nilsen, Dan Roberdeau, and Michael Webster. A native of Greendale, Wisconsin, Brian has been successful in numerous competitions ranging from the Milwaukee Youth Symphony Orchestra’s concerto competition in 2000 to being the furthest advancing American in the 2005 Carl Nielsen Clarinet Competition in Odense, Denmark. Brian holds degrees from Northwestern University and Rice University and is currently a free-lance musician and teacher in southeastern Wisconsin.
Amy Lauters has been playing piano for twelve years. She is a graduate of the Interlochen Arts Academy in Michigan where she studied with Yoshikazu Nagai and Thomas Lymenstull. She also attended the Interlochen Arts Camp and performed in a master class for Olga Kern. She was on the Dean’s High Honors List and served as an ambassador during the school year and returned in the summer to do an internship. Amy was chosen to perform in the Interlochen Honors Recital and also accompanied many vocalists and instrumentalists. She is a freshman at Lawrence University and studies with Anthony Padilla.
Danielle Simandl is currently a junior pursing her B.M. violin performance with Wen-Lei Gu at Lawrence University. She is the co-concertmaster of the Lawrence Symphony Orchestra and also a member of the Fox Valley Symphony and the Marquette Symphony. She won honorable mention at the Concord Chamber Orchestra Concerto Competition this past December. She has attended the following music festivals: Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp, Interlochen, Green Lake Chamber Music Festival, Meadowmount School of Music, and the Beijing International Music Festival.
Katie Ekberg, a junior at Lawrence University is pursuing her B.M. Violin Performance with Wen-Lei Gu. Other primary instructors have included Anthea Kreston and Carolin Johnson. She is the Principal Second Violin of the Lawrence Symphony Orchestra.
Sarah Bellmore, a senior at Lawrence University, is a student of Matthew C. Michelic and is a candidate for the Bachelor of Music degree in viola performance and instrumental/general music education. While at Lawrence, Sarah has been active in Sigma Alpha Iota, serving as President during the 2007-2008 school year, and has worked with students as a viola and violin teacher through the Lawrence Academy of Music and the ASTA String Project. In 2007, she was named as ArtsBridge scholar and teaches geography and music to fifth graders at Edison Elementary School in Appleton. Sarah is also a member of the Fox Valley Symphony Orchestra and the Lawrence Symphony Orchestra. Former teachers include Roland Vamos and Kin Chau.
Max Hero is a sophomore at Lawrence University pursuing a cello performance/physics double degree, and is studying with Janet Anthony. He has attended the green Mountain Chamber Music Festival and the Milwaukee Chamber Music Festival.
Will Martin is a sophomore at Lawrence University and studies under the direction of Anthony Padilla. He is currently working on a Bachelor of Music in piano performance and a Bachelor of Arts in English literature, and hopes to continue study in both areas. Will has performed live on WFMT-FM 98.7, Chicago’s classical radio station, for the Impromptu series; and at the Harris Theater of Millennium Park in Chicago for the Coffee Talk series. He was also the featured performer at An Evening with James Conlon presented by Sherwood Conservatory of Music in Chicago, where he studied under Ivana Bukvich and Gerald Rizzer. Will has participated in master classes with Cliff Colnot and Pawel Checinski, and last March he toured with Andrew Mast and the Lawrence University Wind Ensembe for the College Band Directors National Association concert in Omaha, NE.
