WE WERE THRILLED TO RECEIVE MANY WONDERFUL ENTRIES FOR OUR 5TH ANNUAL SOLO COMPETITION!
Winners are determined through a blind adjudication process, meaning that the Elemental Music team pulls audio off of the video files so that the adjudicators can listen without any indication of who is playing.
Our adjudicators, Dr. Jacob Sustaita (HS Division) and Joni Swenson (MS Division) loved hearing every student who submitted a recording and provided feedback to every participant.
WE ARE PLEASED TO ANNOUNCE THE WINNERS BELOW.
HIGH SCHOOL DIVISION
1st Prize: Ian DiMundo, trumpet
student of Meghan Turner
2nd Prize: Ethan LaChapelle, cello
student of Ben Hong
3rd Prize: Emma Crawford, oboe
MIDDLE SCHOOL DIVISION
1st Prize: Mia Safdie, flute
student of Karen Lundgren
2nd Prize: Silas Tropea-Lester, alto saxophone
student of Emily Senchuk
3rd Prize: Jasmine Martinez, alto saxophone
student of Emily Senchuk
Each winner will receive a cash prize. Congratulations to our winners, and thank you to ALL students who submitted recordings! We’re so impressed by your skill and dedication to music.
About our adjudicators:
High School Division: Dr. Jacob Sustaita is the assistant conductor of Pacific Symphony. Since 2015, he served as director of orchestral studies at Sam Houston State University where he was responsible for conducting the symphony, chamber, ballet and opera orchestras.
Music education has always been at the forefront of his conducting interests. He regularly conducts the Link Up Concerts created by Carnegie Hall, and he continues to develop innovative platforms for youth and family concerts that provide a meaningful and exciting experience for all concertgoers. He is also a regular presenter at conventions and for teacher in-service and development workshops.
Middle School Division: Joni Swenson served as the Director of Orchestras at Santa Monica High School for 17 years before retiring in Fall 2020 and is proud to have been a part of the Santa Monica Malibu Unified School District. A graduate of UCLA, she taught in the Sacramento City Unified School District and in the San Jose Unified School District prior to her position at Samohi. Joni has served as guest conductor for many honor orchestras throughout California and has presented sessions at both the CMEA State and Bay Section Conferences, as well as at the Southern California School Band and Orchestra (SCSBOA) Fall Conference.