Lawrence University students captured three first-place honors at the recent 2016 Music Teachers National Association (MTNA) Wisconsin state competition conducted at UW-Stevens Point.
Senior Derrick Hahn of Milwaukee extended Lawrence’s remarkable streak in the piano division with his winning performance, becoming the 16th Lawrence piano student in the past 17 years to win the annual Wisconsin MTNA competition.
Lawrence students swept the piano division. Senior Ming Hu of Changsha, China was named first alternate while sophomore Nick Suminski of Williamsburg, Mich., sophomore Mayan Essak of Shorewood, senior Evan Newman of Plymouth, Minn., and freshman Gabrielle Claus of Lancaster, Pa., all earned honorable mention recognition.
Flutist Bianca Pratte, a sophomore from Walnut Creek, Calif., won the woodwind competition, marking the second year in a row a Lawrence flutist won the MTNA woodwind division.
Trio Arcia — junior Ethan Valentin of Chicago, piano, junior Meghan Murphy of Wauwatosa, violin, and junior Mikaela Marget of Stillwater, Minn., cello, was named winner of the chamber music division.
Each of the three winners will advance to the East Central regional competition Jan. 14-15, 2017 at Central Michigan University. Regional winners advance to the MTNA national finals in March 2017 in Baltimore, Md.
Hahn, who studies in the studio of Anthony Padilla, played Rodion Shchedrin’s “Basso Ostinato” and Brahms’ first published work, the massive “First Sonata in C major” for his winning performance.
Pratte, a student in Erin Lesser’s flute studio and the 2015 winner of the Wisconsin Flute Festival’s Collegiate competition and the National Flute Association Collegiate Flute Choir competition, played Frank Martin’s “Ballade for flute and piano,” Robert Muczynski’s “Three Preludes for Solo Flute” and Jules Mouquet’s “La Flute de Pan” in the finals.
Arcia Trio’s winning program consisted of the second movement of Dvorak’s “Dumky” and the first movement of Beethoven “Ghost.”
The MTNA performance competitions recognize exceptionally talented young artists and their teachers in their pursuit of musical excellence.
About Lawrence University
Founded in 1847, Lawrence University uniquely integrates a college of liberal arts and sciences with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, both devoted exclusively to undergraduate education. It was selected for inclusion in the book “Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About College.” Engaged learning, the development of multiple interests and community outreach are central to the Lawrence experience. Lawrence draws its 1,500 students from nearly every state and more than 50 countries.
