APPLETON, WIS. — Pianist Ka Man (Melody) Ng edged three of her Lawrence University classmates to earn first-place honors at the 21st annual Concord Chamber Orchestra’s concerto competition Dec. 16 in Glendale.
Ng, a senior from Hong Kong, received a $500 scholarship for her winning audition and will perform Franz Liszt’s “Piano Concerto No. 1 in E-flat Major” with the Concord Chamber Orchestra on Saturday, March 10, 2007 at 8 p.m. at St. Matthew’s Evangelical Lutheran Church in Wauwatosa.
Sophomore pianist Scott Englund earned second-place honors at the competition for his performance of Bohuslav Martinu’s “Piano Concerto No. 4.” Senior Amanda Gessler, piano, and senior Megan Karls, violin, each received honorable mention honors. Ng, Englund and Gessler all study in the piano studio of Associate Professor of Music Anthony Padilla, while Karls is a student of Assistant Professor of Music Stephane Tran Ngoc.
Ng is the fifth Lawrence student in the past six years to win the CCO competition, joining saxophonist Sara Kind (2005), violinist Burcu Goker (2004), violinist Julien Poncet (2002) and violinst Charlotte Maclet (2001). Violinist Leslie Boulin-Raulet was the CCO competition runner-up in 2003.
The 2006 competition featured 13 performers in string, woodwind, brass and percussion categories. It is open to musicians 25 years of age or younger who are residents of Wisconsin or attend a Wisconsin high school, college or university.
Jamin Hoffman, music director of the Concord Chamber Orchestra, Ralph Lane, founder and music director of Philharmonia Racine and Milwaukee Summer Philharmonia, Shelby Keith Dixon, senior associate conductor of the Milwaukee Youth Symphony Orchestra and Brian Volkman, CCO board president and principal horn with the orchestra served as judges for the competition.
The Concord Chamber Orchestra, featuring volunteer adult players from various professions and age groups, was founded in 1975.
