News

Janoathan Vinocour wins First Prize 2006 HAMS Competition
After a lengthy jury deliberation, violist Jonathan Vinocour was awarded the First Prize of the 2006 HAMS Competition on Dec 3, 2006. Eric Nowlin won Second Prize and Melissa Reardon was awarded the Third Prize. Ms. Reardon also won the prize for best performance of the newly commissioned piece by Alexandra Karastoyanova-Hermentin.

HAMS Competition 2006 for Viola announced
The HAMS Competition 2006 for Viola will take place December 3, 2006, at DePaul University in Chicago. Click here for more information.

read more...

Joshua Roman wins Principal Cello Seattle Symphony
Cellist Joshua Roman, Second Prize Winner of the HAMS Competition 2005, recently was appointed Principal Cello of the Seattle Symphony.

Patrick Jee wins Lyric Opera job
Cellist Patrick Jee, First Prize Winner of the HAMS Competition 2001, recently was appointed to the cello section of the Lyric Opera of Chicago. Chicago has become the hometown of two HAMS prize winners; Patrick Jee and Kenneth Olsen (Asst. Principal Cello of the Chicago Symphony).

Kenneth Olsen Wins Asst. Principal CSO job
We are pleased to announce that Kenneth Olsen, the 2nd Prize Winner in the 2002 HAMS Competition for Cello, has won the position of Assistant Principal Cello in the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. This achievement brings Ken back to Chicago permanently. We are proud to have identified this rising star first!

Christina Castelli wins Sphinx Competition

After winning the 2004 HAMS Competition, violinist Christina Castelli went on to win the 8th annual Sphinx Competition in Michigan. This will give her the opportunity to perform with nearly every major orchestra in the United States during the next few years. In addition to performing in Europe and Asia during the fall of 2004, Christina gave her Carnegie Hall recital debut in October to a full house, earning critical acclaim for her interpretations of Ravel, Beethoven, Prokofiev, and Gershwin. More information on Christina can be found on her new website www.christinacastelli.com.

Teng Li appointed Principal Viola of Toronto Symphony

At the young age of twenty-one, violist Teng Li was appointed Principal Viola of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra. She was awarded 1st Prize in the 2002 HAMS Competition.

2005 HAMS Competition Results
Four finalists were admitted to the finals of the 2005 HAMS Competition for Cello. After a lengthy deliberation, the HAMS jury decided not to award a First Prize. Joshua Roman and Angela Park won shared Second Prize, and Jonathan Lewis and Alice Yoo won shared Third Prize.

HAMS Competition 2004

Christina Castelli wins first prize of HAMS 2004

A WEALTH OF TALENT ON DISPLAY AT THE HAMS COMPETITION: Juilliard Graduate Wins Violin Category

Twenty-five year old violinist Christina Castelli, one-time student of the legendary Dorothy DeLay, has won the coveted first-prize award in the HAMS Competition 2004 held April 25, on the campus of DePaul University in Lincoln Park. As the first place winner, she has been awarded the full-time use of a highly-valued contemporary Dutch violin for one year, in addition to a traditional cash prize. The opportunity to practice and perform on an instrument of this caliber is a priceless experience for a young musician. Ms. Castelli will also be presented in various performing venues in and around Chicago throughout the coming year, and produce a compact disc on the Holland-America Music Society label.

Christina Castelli has received several honors in recent years, including the first prize in the National Federation of Music Clubs Competition; the Violin Award, Samuel Gardner Prize at the Juilliard School; Laureate in the Queen Elizabeth Competition; and grand prize in the William Primrose International Viola Competition.

Six semi-finalists in the violin category were invited to participate in this year’s HAMS Competition. Following a semi-final round, three finalists were chosen. After almost an hour of deliberation by the four judges—Deborah R. Card, Gregory Fulkerson, Sydney Harth, and Katinka Kleijn—Ms. Castelli was deemed the winner. Twenty-three-year-old Yvonne Lam, a student at the Curtis Institute, and 26-year-old Nathan Cole, a member of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra’s first violin section, shared second place.

read more...