For Trudl Zipper Dance Institute student Mackenzie Carroll, move-in day last fall was full of excitement and anticipation for the year ahead. She knew it would be filled with opportunities to advance her dance skills and learn from the esteemed faculty and peers. But she wasn’t prepared to kick off the year by running into an old friend on day one. Then again, an elevator encounter with Yejoon Kwon wasn’t out of the ordinary. She first met the Music Academy violin student at the Interlochen Arts Camp when they were both 10 years old.
“We actually met again in the ninth grade while attending Walnut Hill School for the Arts in Natick, Mass.,” recalls Kwon. “There, we met on move-in day at the elevator!”
Fast Friends
While attending the summer camp nearly 10 years ago, Kwon and Carroll quickly discovered mutual interests and a natural friendship formed.
“I thought Joon was a really nice person, really funny, and good to hang out with,” says Carroll. “She’s also extremely talented, which was really cool to be around.”
“And Mackenize was really funny,” adds Kwon.
After camp wrapped, they separated ways until running into each other again at Walnut Hill and immediately renewed their friendship. However, after a year, Kwon transferred to the Colburn Music Academy.
“I wanted to focus more on music and felt like the Music Academy would be a more fitting school for me,” she says.
Then this fall, Carroll chose to finish her high school experience at the TZDI Dance Academy.
“Joon and I had another friend who was at the Dance Academy, so I asked her about the school and it seemed like a really cool place,” she says.
Support Network
Although the friends didn’t share classes together this year, they enjoy each opportunity to see each other on campus.
“I occasionally bump into Mackenzie on the fourth or fifth floor while she does schoolwork,” says Kwon. “She inspires me to do my schoolwork.”
“It’s been really nice having Joon here, knowing she’s here and she’s a good friend,” adds Carroll.
Of course, throughout their time at Colburn, both have found friendships with fellow students and faculty mentors, and agree these connections have prepared them for the next stage of their performing arts careers. Kwon will attend the San Francisco Conservatory of Music on full scholarship and Carroll heads to the University of Oklahoma School of Dance.
And who knows, where and when these friends will encounter each other again.
“Well, the San Francisco Ballet is very close to the conservatory, so maybe I’ll see Mackenize walking by some day,” says Kwon.
Creative. Varied. Accomplished. Influential.
These are just a few adjectives describing the extensive career of Jim Walker, a founding flute faculty member for the Colburn Conservatory of Music.
By the time he joined the School in 2007, Walker had composed an eclectic career, which only added to the value he has imparted on upon his students.
“My career proved to be multi-tiered and multi-faceted in ways I never planned or hoped for in my younger years,” he says.
Now, Walker readies to embark on a new journey: retirement.
An Unexpected Path
Walker’s musical escapade began under the tutelage of his father, a jazz clarinetist and public school band director, and his mother, a church organist. In addition to the flute, the young musician played around with bass clarinet, piano, and saxophone. After high school, he moved on to the University of Louisville in his home state of Kentucky before seeking professional performance opportunities, which included a stint with the U.S. Military Academy Band at West Point Military Academy and an appointment as Associate Principal Flute in the Pittsburgh Symphony. Eight years later, he headed west for the Principal Flute position with the LA Philharmonic. (Below: Jim Walker with the LA Phil Principal Winds in 1979.)
But Walker’s artistic wanderlust wouldn’t be quieted. After his tenure with LA Phil, he explored a longstanding inclination for jazz by forming Free Flight. The jazz-classical fusion quartet delivered television appearances and a number one record. He also ventured into the realm of studio recording, working with a variety of producers and musicians, including luminaries Paul McCartney and John Williams. Throughout his career, however, Walker has always been a teacher.
“My role clearly has been to mentor classical flutists who dream of a career as a performer or teacher,” he says. “Having a career that covered more bases than normal has allowed me to speak somewhat knowingly about those career areas that are not often a part of the traditional conservatory setting.” (Below: Free Flight during a soundcheck for the Johnny Carson Show in 1981)
Before arriving at Colburn, Walker taught at Duquesne University, Carnegie-Mellon, and the University of Pittsburgh as well as served as Senior Lecturer and Coordinator of Flute Studies at the University of Southern California’s Thornton School of Music. Of course, for the past 18 years, Walker taught Flute and Chamber Music at the Colburn Conservatory of Music.
“Truthfully, being a part of the Colburn School Conservatory meant I was rubbing shoulders with some of the most talented musicians, both teachers and students,” says Walker. “I also loved getting to know the production staff well enough to be taken into their Fantasy Football league!”
Now, Walker looks forward to devoting his time and attention to more personal matters.
“I will do my best to learn to slow down and smell any roses that still exist in my orbit. I have two grandsons turning one year old (five weeks apart) and I plan to spend much more time watching them grow into hockey-playing flute players,” he says. “Also, golf with Richard Beene is a very big part of my retirement plan! Currently, our decades-old betting games have me down $10. I have to turn that around to get my head above sea level asap.”
On Saturday, April 26, the Colburn community celebrated Walker’s eclectic and impactful career, including performances with both current and former students. Walker’s finale will be as Keynote Speaker for the Conservatory Commencement on May 5, which is open to the public and will be livestreamed. (Below: Jim Walker and students from the Conservatory and Music Academy perform on the Celebration Concert in April.)
A New Era
Colburn School also welcomes Demarre McGill as Professor of Flute for the Conservatory and Music Academy for the upcoming 2025-26 and 2026-27 school years.
McGill is a recipient of the Avery Fisher Career Grant and Sphinx Medal of Excellence and is a co-founder of Art of Élan, an organization dedicated to innovative programming. Additionally, he is a celebrated soloist and chamber musician, including Principal Flute for the Seattle Symphony and appearances with leading orchestras. McGill is a founding member of the Myriad Trio and former member of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center’s Bowers Program.
As an educator, McGill was Associate Professor of Flute at the University of Cincinnati College Conservatory of Music and artist faculty member for Aspen Music Festival and School, as well as presenting master classes internationally.
“I am honored and excited to join the faculty at the Colburn School, an institution known for its commitment to artistic excellence and the cultivation of outstanding musicians,” says McGill.
As a cellist, every time Samantha Adams-Blanco draws her bow across the strings, she brings notes etched onto musical manuscripts to life. She never envisioned being the one to put those notes to paper. That is, until she began to explore composition. Adams-Blanco is one of numerous Colburn students to explore their talents and musical point of view as part of the LA Phil’s Composer Fellowship program over the past eight years.
Founded by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Steven Stucky and administered by Program Director Andrew Norman and Teaching Artist Daniel Allas, the fellowship offers high school-aged students a tuition-free opportunity to express themselves through the process and production of creating original music.
While attending Colburn Community School of Performing Arts, Adams-Blanco started to explore the idea of writing music. “I had written a piece for a dance that was for solo cello,” she recalls. “My friend saw it and thought that I might be interested in the program, so I applied with that piece.”
She also submitted a video of a Colburn performance for the Fellowship application and was selected for the two-year program, which follows a traditional school calendar. Adams-Blanco attended from 2022–24. During her first year, she concentrated on orchestration. The next year, she composed a piece titled Limina. However, the experience entailed more than writing a melody and coming up with chord changes. Each fellow’s piece is performed by members of the LA Philharmonic, chamber groups, or other orchestras, including reading sessions with the musicians. They also attend more than 20 concerts and interact with many guest artists and contemporary composers.
“Once your piece was read through, you had a short amount of time to give comments, but that was the really difficult part of it,” says Adams-Blanco. “You spent so long …thinking about how it would sound like, and there would always be things that could be better. … You have to think what would be the most critical feedback that could take it to where you want it to be.
“I always found it really difficult to give those comments, to think about and hear my own music, but when I look back, I think it was an extremely valuable experience,” she said.
Now studying at the San Francisco Conservatory, Adams-Blanco incorporates many of the skills and lessons she gained in the fellowship while advancing her musicianship as a cellist.
“I think being in the program really encouraged me to be curious about all aspects of life and art,” she says. “It taught me how to look through another lens to critically analyze music.”
Fellowship Roster
From cello to horn, piano to trombone, flute to Jazz Workshop, a variety of talented Colburn School students have enhanced their musical education through the LA Phil Composer Fellowship Program.
2024–25 Emma Siebenaler, Cello Chloe Kirk, Piano and Cello Charlie Cohn, Jazz Piano
2023–24 Samantha Adams-Blanco, Cello Alexis Cai, Flute Bryan Chiu, Horn
2022–23 Samantha Adams-Blanco, Cello Bryan Chiu, Horn
2021–22 Norah Fong, Cello
2020–21 Elijah Alexander, Trombone Norah Fong, Cello Joey Karz, Piano
2019–20 Elijah Alexander, Trombone Stanford Fram, Piano Micangelo Ferrante, Composition William Jae, Piano Joey Karz, Piano Apsara Kasiraman, Piano and Violin Leo Major, jazz workshop
2018–19 Apsara Kasiraman, Piano and Violin Leo Major, Jazz Workshop
The latest addition to the School’s stellar fleet of pianos—a Steinway & Sons direct from the manufacturer—recently traveled more than 2,700 miles, crossed three time zones, and left an East Coast winter for its new home on the West Coast. Indeed, it has had an interesting journey, which was carefully overseen by Neema Pazargad, Colburn’s Director of Piano Technology.
Finding the right fit for Colburn began with a preliminary visit to Steinway & Sons in Astoria, New York, last fall. Geoff Rich and Jerry Kohl accompanied Colburn President and CEO Sel Kardan for a behind-the-scenes tour of the manufacturing facility. Then the painstaking work began. The following timeline explains the expert attention required to select and prepare a piano for the caliber of musicianship demonstrated by Colburn’s students, performing faculty, and guest artists.
January: Careful consideration
Pazargad and Carol Colburn Grigor Piano Chair Fabio Bidini arrived at the manufacturer’s selection room to evaluate newly crafted pianos.
“They had five concert grands prepared, and we spent a few hours playing them,” says Pazargad. “It’s always a fun experience, but a little bit of a nervous and pressure-filled experience, too. We’re trying to pick a piano for a venue but we don’t get to actually hear it in the venue until it arrives.”
After putting each piano through a series of assessments—judging mechanical functions, tonal performance, and its ability to sustain sounds—the duo made their selection.
“I was leaning towards the piano that had the most tonal output,” said Pazargad.
Early February: The piano arrives at Colburn
Brand-new instruments aren’t immediately top performers. After traveling cross-country, it needed time to acclimate and stabilize.
“Everything is new: The strings are new and still stretching. The action is still new, so it goes through several rounds of tunings and regulation. Once the strings and action are where they’re going to be we can really dive into the voicing,” Pazargad explains. “By the time it was ready for its inaugural concert it had probably maybe close to 40 hours of my work on it.”
Late February: The Steinway takes up residence in Zipper Hall
After a couple weeks in the Piano Technology workshop, the team transferred the Steinway to Zipper Hall. Finally, Pazargad could listen to how it coupled with the space.
“On stage in Zipper Hall it really was like, ‘Wow, this is a great sounding piano.’ It is just a beautiful, beautiful sounding piano,” he says.
To experience the piano’s first performance in the space, the generous donors who made it possible arrived for a mini-concert. Terri and Jerry Kohl and Koni and Geoff Rich listened to performances by Conservatory and Community School students, and Geoff Rich treated the group to a performance of his own! Now the piano is part of the School’s collection, and you may see it onstage at an upcoming performance in Zipper Hall.
The Steinway & Sons concert grand is a gift from Terri and Jerry Kohl and Koni and Geoff Rich. We are grateful for their generosity, which is creating remarkable opportunities for our students to develop their artistry at the Colburn School.
Live performances will always create a unique and intimate connection between performers and audience members. Embracing today’s technology, however, allows the Colburn School to introduce our programs, students, faculty, and guest artists to individuals near and far who want to experience the arts. Livestreaming welcomes audiences from around the world to many of our performances. Colburn’s YouTube channel allows viewers to watch past events at their convenience. Now, as a partner with Bloomberg Connects, we welcome even more visitors to virtually explore the world of the Colburn School.
Created by Bloomberg Philanthropies, the free app connects users with curated content and guides to more than 760 museums, galleries, parks, gardens, and other venues located in more than 30 countries. Millions of people from around the world use it to browse through text, video, and audio content of exhibits, collections, artwork, city landmarks, performances, and more. Plus, the technology has been designed with accessibility features, such as voiceover, captions, and audio transcripts.
As part of the Connects community, app users who venture to the Colburn School profile can read about the Music Academy, Conservatory of Music, Community School of Performing Arts, and Trudl Zipper Dance Institute. They can spend time on the “Performances” section to read about the Colburn Orchestra, Colburn Chamber Music Society as well as the Colburn Contemporary Ensemble or the Colburn Baroque Ensemble. They can click around to watch our students dance on stage and listen to highlights of select performances.
The app allows users to “Explore Our Spaces” and view the Grand and Olive buildings as well as enjoy various perspectives within our prestigious Zipper, Thayer, and Mayman performance halls. They can take an exclusive “Behind the Scenes” peek inside the Heifetz Studio, which is typically closed to the public. Also, experience a glimpse of campus life through a gallery of photos of students, faculty, and community members gathering in the courtyard or inside the Colburn Café, and even a photographic sampling of the Café’s mouth-watering menu items.
Bloomberg Connects also offers an opportunity to share news of the School’s community initiatives and explain how our supporters, through their generosity, provide the next generation of artists access to excellence in performing arts education.
“Being a partner with Bloomberg Connects matches Colburn’s commitment to bringing the world of performing arts to all who wish to enjoy the magical moments created on stage through music and dance,” said Jennifer Kallend, Colburn’s Vice President of Communications. “It enhances our reach, but more importantly, enhances people’s lives by sharing the arts without restriction.”
Quick Facts About Bloomberg Connects 4.3 million users 766 partners 32 countries 44 languages
The app is free and can be downloaded to iOS and Android systems.
Download the app
At Colburn, students transform passion and dedication into excellence in all that they do, and that translates to professional success. In the short time since the Conservatory of Music was founded in 2003, over 400 orchestral instrument alumni have graduate, and over 140 hold professional orchestra positions with at least 75 in principal, associate, assistant, or other comparable positions.
Since the start of the 2024-25 school year, our Conservatory students and alumni have made news over and over as they win prestigious positions in orchestras worldwide. Keep an eye out at a concert hall near you. The newest orchestra member on stage just might be from Colburn!
Recent Positions:
See recent accomplishments for students in all units here.
“To sing is an expression of your being, a being which is becoming.” — Maria Callas
Acclaimed soprano Maria Callas was an enigma throughout much of her career. The press zoomed in on her personal life while critics exalted her stage presence and, at times, labeled her voice as “unconventional” or “flawed.” Perhaps that complexity is what drew Academy Award-winning actress Angelina Jolie to the lead role in Maria. The biopic was released in limited theaters last month and is currently streaming on Netflix.
Becoming the iconic Callas posed more than just another acting role for Jolie. The film’s director, Pablo Larrain, pushed her to sing like Callas along with actual recordings.
“I thought, ‘Oh, I’ll pretend-sing and I’ll get through this. Then it was very clear to me that you can’t pretend opera and then I was scared,” Jolie explained during the New York Film Festival this fall, reports USA Today.
To recreate Callas’s operatic performances, the movie’s vocal coach, Eric Vetro, tapped his friend Michael Stevens, Chair of the Vocal Department for Colburn’s Community School of Performing Arts.
“He asked me to help with the language and voice teaching because he doesn’t really do opera,” says Stevens. “And since, potentially, we were going to be singing in Italian, French, and German, it was important to have a person who could do voicing and language.”
In addition to teaching at Colburn since 1996 and chairing the department for 16 years, Stevens has carved out a comprehensive career as an artist. He’s performed as a chorister for the LA Opera and sung with the Santa Barbara, San Diego, and Long Beach operas along with other ensembles and choirs around Southern California.
Not only was Maria his first foray into filmmaking, but his challenge was to instill Jolie with enough knowledge of opera performing and Callas’s style and idiosyncrasies in a short seven months. For example, Stevens notes that Callas’s breathing didn’t always occur where one might expect it.
“She certainly had amazing breath control and could sing a note for a long time. But sometimes she was fairly frail, especially as she started to age. When you see her take a big breath, you really see the chest come up and then collapse at the end, which is sort of a no-no in singing. However, it was definitely something I wanted Angelina to notice and use as part of her own technique,” he explains.
“We tried to make sure the pronunciation was correct, and there are some places where Callas didn’t pronounce things exactly like maybe she ought to. So, we had to listen carefully to all of the recordings,” Stevens adds. “One of the main things was making sure Angelina’s mouth looked like what a singer’s mouth looks like. By the end, the postures of her face and lips were very similar to what Callas did, and they definitely looked like a singer.”
Of course, Stevens relied on the teaching techniques he’s devised from years of training aspiring young performers, such as singing in different languages.
“We just went over the Italian language like I would with one of my Colburn students; we very slowly plotted it out,” says Stevens.
Although scheduling sessions meant accommodating both the film production and Jolie’s multiple commitments, Stevens commends her devotion to learning the genre.
“We actually got a lot done in relatively little time and she is such a busy person. She really did work hard at this, practicing every day,” he says. “I think she did great and I was very proud of the results.”
While promoting Maria, Jolie explains how cathartic the experience became for her personally.
“For anybody here who hasn’t sung at the top of their lungs, it’s a crazy thing to do,” she said at the Film Festival. In a video interview with Larrain for Vogue, she added, “ I found [opera music] so deep in the human experience. It’s very grounding so I put it on now to just kind of think and settle.”
Stevens also found a new appreciation for Callas, which he highlights for his Colburn students.
“It’s nice to be able to use Callas as someone who’s doing the same sort of thing that I’m teaching, and I can use her as a demonstration model,” he says. “Knowing that it really affected the performance with Angelina is a good reason for me to incorporate that in my own teaching.”
Presenting Dance as Visual Music
The quote “see the music, hear the dance” is widely associated with legendary choreographer and dance educator George Balanchine. As founder of the School of American Ballet and artistic director of the renowned New York City Ballet company, he challenged dancers, musicians, and audiences to open their eyes and ears to a new way of experiencing the relationship between dance and music.
However, the quote most likely stemmed from Glenway Wescott in a review of Balanchine’s work for the December 1963 issue of Show magazine: “Suddenly I see the music; suddenly I hear the movements of the dancers.”
Trudl Zipper Dance Institute’s 2024–25 Artistic Director Janie Taylor says Balanchine believed the audience would hear music differently if he accentuated every nuance with movement. Adopting this perspective creates a more intimate experience, one that’s been celebrated for more than a decade with Colburn’s annual See the Music, Hear the Dance performance. This year’s event takes place on November 3 at the 2245 studio, home to the LA Dance Project.
“This space is a studio theatre that allows the audience to have a very up-close, intimate experience. I felt this was a perfect setting for the purpose of dissecting a work and being able to see and feel every detail demonstrated,” says Taylor. She selected the duet from Appassionata, a ballet by Benjamin Millepied, set to music by the same name composed by Beethoven.
In addition to enjoying a top-caliber performance, audiences are treated to unique, behind-the-scenes perspectives when musicians and dancers share the process of collaboration through discussions and demonstrations. This year, TZDI faculty and dance historian Dr. Jill Nunes Jensen leads the conversation with guest dancers Jennifer Stahl and Steven Morse, both of whom appear through the courtesy of San Francisco Ballet, Tamara Rojo, Artistic Director.
Stahl is a principal dancer and performs a wide array of repertoire, including originating featured roles in works by some of today’s top choreographers. Morse hails from Southern California and trained at the Long Beach Ballet Arts Center, Lauridsen Ballet Center, Maple Conservatory of Dance, and the San Francisco Ballet School. He joined the San Francisco Ballet in 2009 and was named a soloist in 2017.
They are joined by pianist Hyejin Park, who is an Artist Diploma candidate at the Colburn Conservatory of Music. She has received numerous awards including at the Amigdala International Competition, the Orbetello Competition in Italy, the ICA International Competition in Vietnam, and the YMIC Competition.
“I am thrilled to share this year’s program with you,” says Taylor. “I have no doubt that you will leave feeling enlightened and inspired.”
See The Music, Hear The Dance take
s place this Sunday, November 3 with performances at 2 pm and 5 pm at L.A. Dance project’s studio and performance space: 2245.
May 2025
Lisandro Attencio, percussion, won First Prize in the Brass and Percussion Category of the Sphinx Orchestra Partners Competition.
Michael Banks, double bass, won Assistant Principal Bass with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra.
Quartet Integra (Kyoka Misawa, violin; Rintaro Kikuno, violin; Istuki Yamamoto, viola; Ye Un Park, cello) won third place at the Wigmore Hall International String Quartet Competition, as well as The Sidney Griller Award for the best performance of Judith Weir’s The Spaniard – String Quartet No. 2 in the Preliminary Round of the Wigmore Competition.
Yun Chai Lee, harp, won Principal Harp with the Kansas City Symphony.
December 2024 and January 2025
Sam Glicklich, piano, won First Prize in the Taiwan International Maestro Piano Festival.
En-Chun (Eugene) Lin, cello, won Section Cello with the Philadelphia Orchestra.
September and October 2024
Yanfeng (Tony) Bai, piano, won the Grand Prize at the Valencia International Performing Arts Summer Festival.
Gabriel Crist, piano, won the Grand Prize at the Malaga International Piano Festival in the 18+ category, and was selected as a winner of the Concerto Competition at the Malaga International Piano Festival and performed Schumann’s Piano Concerto with the Malaga Symphony Orchestra.
SoJung Kim, bass, won the position of Associate Principal Bass in the San Francisco Ballet.
Sze Hei (Victor) Lee, double bass, won a Fellowship with the Hyogo Performing Arts Center Orchestra.
Gracie Potter, trombone, won Principal Trombone in the Richmond Symphony.
Yoomin Seo (alumna ’23), violin, was appointed concertmaster of the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra and has begun her first season with the group.
Yu-Ping Tsai, violin, won Associate Concertmaster with the Jacksonville Symphony.
Christy Wu, piano, won first prize at the Valencia International Performing Arts Summer Festival, as well as the Grand Prize at the Malaga International Piano Festival in the 18+ category.
Emily Wu, piano, was selected as a winner of the Concerto Competition at the Malaga International Piano Festival and performed Chopin’s Piano Concerto No. 2 with the Malaga Symphony Orchestra.
Enhan Li, flute, won first prize in the Woodwind Category of the Pasadena Showcase.
Evangeline Lien, piano, won the Grand Prize in the Classical Instrumental category of the Music Center’s Spotlight Competition.
Caden Lin, piano, was the gold medal winner of the 2025 Palm Springs International Piano Competition and received the Whittier Trust Confidence Foundation Award.
April 2025
Joshua Ho, harp, was a 2025 Spotlight Semifinalist.
Kimberly Tsou, flute, won the Grand Prize at the 2025 Pasadena Showcase House Instrumental Competition.
Evangeline Lien, viola, was a Semifinalist of the 2025 Spotlight Program at the Music Center, won the third prize 2025 Shkolnikova Concerto Competition, and won first prize in the 2025 Camerata Artists International Concerto Competition.
Eiline Tai, cello, won second place in the Johansen International Competition, Best Performance of Commissioned work, and was the winner of the 2025 Burbank Philharmonic Hennings-Fischer Young Artist Competition.
Samuel Tatsuki, viola, won third prize in the Johansen International Competition.
March 2025
David Choi, piano, was a National YoungArts Winner, and won first place in the Kaufman Music Center International Youth Piano Competition. He also won the State and Southwest divisions in the Music Teachers National Association Competition and will compete as a National Finalist in mid-March.
Joshua Ho, harp, was a 2025 Spotlight Award Semifinalist.
Angela Rose Padula, cello, received a 2025 National YoungArts Award in Classical Music.
Eiline Tai, cello, won the 2025 National YoungArts Award with Distinction and was invited to the YoungArts National Week in Miami. She also won the Silver Award at the YoungArts National Week.
November 2024
David Choi, piano, Kayden Kelly, piano, and Rubi Lee, violin, received YoungArts Awards in the YoungArts 2025 competition in November 2024.
Eiline Tai, cello, was awarded the title of ‘Winner with Distinction’ at the YoungArts 2025 Competition and will go on to perform at the 2025 National YoungArts Week in Miami in January 2025.
James Birch, violin, was awarded a Career Grant from the Salon De Virtuosi, and will be featured on the Salon De Virtuosi Gala Awards Concert at the Kosciuszko Foundation in New York.
Evangeline Lien, viola, won Best Baroque Performance, Best Classical Performance, Best Concerto Performance, Best Prelude Performance, and the Gold Star Award at the Music and Stars Awards, as well as the Wiener Klassik Prize of the 5th 4Seasons Musician Competition of the Vienna Classical Music Competition.
Pinyi Lin, piano, won first prize at the Valencia International Performing Arts Summer Festival and the Absolute First Prize at the Malaga International Piano Festival in 2024.
Eiline Tai, cello, won the Virtuoso & Belcanto Concerto Competition in Lucca, Italy, and will perform as a soloist in Europe next summer. She will also perform Shostakovich Cello Concerto No. 1 with the Southern California Philharmonic as a featured soloist.
Lilia Cerna, voice, received honorable mention with a merit award in the Spotlight Competition for non-Classical Voice division.
Kento Ishikawa, piano, received second place in the Edith Knox Concerto Competition.
Jasmine Ji, piano, received third place in the Parness Concerto Competition.
Aaron Ko, piano, received second place at the Bellflower Symphony Concerto Competition.
Daniel Liao, piano, was a medal winner of the a Southern California Jr. Bach Festival, Orange County West Branch.
Nicole Lin, violin, received first prize at the Bellflower Symphony Concerto Competition.
Hope Roth, bassoon, was accepted to Tanglewood and Interlochen for the 2025 Summer program.
Saoirse Sipes, Big Band and Jazz Workshop, won the Grand Prize in the Contemporary Instrumental category of the Music Center’s Spotlight Competition.
Alex Wang, piano, received first prize at the Bellflower Symphony Concerto Competition, and will perform as soloist with the orchestra.
Emily Wang, violin, won the junior category of Glendale MTAC VOCE, as well as tied in junior category of the Culver City Symphony Orchestra Concerto Competition.
Rachel Won, violin, and Lucas Lee, cello, both Herbert Zipper Scholars, performed works by Coleridge-Tayler and Tchaikovsky at Symphony Center in Chicago under the direction of Colburn alumnus, Kyle Dickson.
Brennan Wuchner, violin, received first place in the Inland Empire Rotary Competition and performed at the Rotary Youth Showcase Gala.
Gavin Yang, violin, won the senior category of Glendale MYAC VOCE.
Dora Yu, viola, received second place in viola at the Amici International Music Festival.
Isabella Zhou, violin, won the junior category of Glendale MTAC VOCE, as well as tied in junior category of the Culver City Symphony Orchestra Concerto Competition.
Trio Brilliante (Seaena Kim, violin; Elizabeth Hayden, viola; and Collin Gee, cello) have advanced to the State Finals of the VOCE competition (Intermediate Ensemble Division).
Mira Brophy, piano, won first and second place in the Elite International Music Competition.
Saskia Brophy, piano, won first and second place in the Elite International Music Competition.
Henry Chung, voice, won the Spotlight Competition Merit Award.
James Cole, piano, won first and second place in the Elite International Music Competition.
Chloe Dahm, piano, won first and second place in the Elite International Music Competition.
Kai Canton, piano, won third prize in Category D of the District IX California Association of Professional Music Teachers (CAPMT) Concerto Competition.
Trio D’Amici (Liam Thomas, violin; Abraham Kim, cello; and Simon Yao, piano) received first prize in the Amici Chamber Music Competition, as well as first prize in the GCC Best Mendelssohn Competition.
The Doxa Quartet (Jiyu Lee, violin; Lena Kim, violin; Kayla Kim, viola; Noah Choi, cello), were the Grand Award Winners in the Jumior Dividion of the Coltman Chamber Music Competition.
Lena Hong, piano, won first and second place in the Elite International Music Competition.
LA Brio Trio (Nesya Fertel, violin; Jessica Zhang, cello; and Amy Liu, piano) advanced in the Junior Division – String & Piano category live semi-final round of the 12th Annual Coltman Chamber Music Competition.
Ashley Li, cello, won second place in the Amici Solo Competition.
Daniel Liao, piano, received third prize in the International Best Mozart Performance Competition, Age Group II (ages 8-10).
Matisse McChesney, piano, won first and second place in the Elite International Music Competition.
Ailis Nguyen, piano, won first prize in Category B of the District IX California Association of Professional Music Teachers (CAPMT) Honors Competition and will participate in the State Finals.
Andrew Peng, violin, received first prize in the Young Prodigy division of the US International Open Music Competition.
Julia Pereira, piano, won first and second place in the Elite International Music Competition.
Sophia Pereira, piano, won first and second place in the Elite International Music Competition.
Taavi Sirota, flute, Julia Kleindorfer, cello, and Olivia Larco, piano, advanced in the Junior Division of the Coltman Chamber Music Competition.
Harrison Suh, piano, won first and second place in the Elite International Music Competition.
Liam Thomas, violin, performed with the Southern California Philharmonic as the first prize winner of the Concerto Competition (Prodigy category) and received second prize in the CAPMT8 Concerto Competition.
Jean Won, cello, won second place in the Amici Solo Competition.
Rachel Won, violin, earned a From the Top Learning and Media Lab Fellowship, and performed on From the Top NPR Broadcast.
Kevin Yi, piano, received Honorable Mention in Category C of the District IX California Association for Professional Music Teachers Contemporary Competition.
Cincy Yi, piano, won first prize in Category B of the District IX California Association of Professional Music Teachers (CAPMT) Contemporary Competition and will participate in the State Finals.
The Doxa Quartet (Jiyu Lee and Lena Kim, violin; Kayla Kim, viola; Noah Choi, cello), was the Grand Award Winner at the Junior Division of the Coltman Chamber Music Competition. Two other Community School groups advanced to the semi-finals of the competition: Nesya Fertel, violin; Jessica Zhang; cello; and Amy Liu, piano; and Taavi Sirota, flute; Julia Kleindorfer, cello; and Olivia Larco, piano.
Liam Thomas, violin; Abraham Kim, cello; and Simon Yao, piano won first prize at the Amici Solo Music Competition for Strings & Piano
Nathan Baham, piano, won Fourth Place in Division IIIb at the XVIII Los Angeles International Liszt Competition, as well as Second Place in Category D of the California Association for Professional Music Teachers Honors Competition, District 3.
Ethan Cheung, piano, was selected to perform at the California Association for Professional Music Teachers Southern Festival Celebration.
Isaac Fujikawa, piano, received Second Place in the Rising Star category of the Los Angeles Youth Philharmonic Competition, and will perform with the orchestra this summer.
Joshua Gatus, piano, received Bronze Medal at Music Olympiad from MTAC (Los Angeles branch).
Kento Ishikawa, piano, was selected to be one of five finalists in the Edith Knox Concerto Competition.
Kayla Kim, viola, won Principal Viola in the California All State Orchestra.
Jasper Kugler, tuba, advanced to finalist for the President’s Own Concert Competition.
Jasmine Ji, piano, received First Prize Los Angeles International Liszt Competition.
Aron Khakimianov, voice, was cast in a featured youth role in L.A. Opera’s production of Las tres mujeres de Jerusalén.
Aaron Ko, piano, received Second Place in category C at California Association for Professional Music Teachers honors competition.
Alex Lee, trumpet, was invited to the Semi-Final Live Round of the 2025 National Trumpet Competition (Junior Solo Division), was well as accepted into the 2025 California All-State Ensemble and the 2025 All-Southern Honor Band.
Ashley Li, cello, received First Place in the Elite Music Competition.
Allis Nguyem, piano, won First Prize in Category B of the District IX California Association of Professional Music Teachers (CAPMT) Honors Competition and will participate in the State Finals.
Emmanuel Ree, piano, received the Gold Medal at Music Olympiad from MTAC (Los Angeles branch), as well as First Place at Golden Classical Music Awards. He will get to perform at Weill Hall in Carnegie Hall.
Jemma Ree, piano, received the Bronze Medal at Music Olympiad from MTAC (Los Angeles branch).
Iris Xiong, piano, received Second Place in the Rising Star category of the Los Angeles Youth Philharmonic Competition, and will perform with the orchestra this summer.
Rachel Won, violin, was a Semifinalist in the Spotlight Competition.
Gavin Yang, violin, won the Glendale MTAC Contemporary Festival in violin division.
Jason Yang, piano, received the Gold Medal at Music Olympiad from MTAC (Los Angeles branch), as well as First Place at the Golden Classical Music Awards.
Cincy Yi, piano, won First Prize in Category B of the District IX California Association of Professional Music Teachers (CAPMT) Contemporary Competition and will participate in the State Finals.
Raymond Cai, piano, received first place as well as a gold medal at the 2024 Southern California Junior Bach Festival Complete Works Audition.
Kai Canton, piano, received third place as well as a bronze medal at the 2024 Southern California Junior Bach Festival Complete Works Audition.
Ella Choi, Music Composition, received first prize in Chamber Music Composition for “Harlequin’s Dance” in the Vivaldi International Music Competition, as well as the gold prize in Chamber Music Composition for “Harlequin’s Dance” in the Berlioz International Music Competition.
Jasmin Ji, piano, received first prize in the Moments of Music Competition.
London Knight, guitar, received first place in Division 1 at the American Guitar Society – Vahdah Olcott Bickford Competition.
Ashley Li, cello, received a medal in Junior Cello at the 2024 Southern California Junior Bach Festival Complete Works Audition.
Rocco Li, piano, received first place in the 2024 American Protégé International Romantic Music Competition.
Isabelle Lu, piano, received first place in the 2024 American Protégé International Romantic Music Competition, Young Musicians category (ages 5-10).
Astrid Lindquist Newman, violin, received second prize in The Art of Instrumental Performance Competition.
Ailis Nguyen, piano, received second prize in the Young Pianist 1 category as well as third prize in the Piano Open Baroque 4 category of the SYMF Piano Competition.
Joaquin Park, guitar, received second place in Division 1 at the American Guitar Society – Vahdah Olcott Bickford Competition.
Noah Park, guitar, received second place in Division 2 at the American Guitar Society – Vahdah Olcott Bickford Competition.
Andrew Peng, violin, received the platinum prize in the 21st Century Prominent Musicians Award, the gold prize in the 2024 European Concert Artists Award, as well as the silver award in the Singapore International Music Competition.
Mina Ree, piano, received third place in the Etude Festival (MTAC-LA Category 3).
Julian Siever, violin, advanced to the final round of the Grand Concours International Competition.
Jeff Shin, piano, received second place in the Etude Festival (MTAC-LA Category 1).
Elaina Stuppler, voice, was a YoungArts award winner with distinction in the Voice/Singer-Songwriter category.
Lev Sakae Taira, violin, was a winner in the YoungArts competition.
Liam Thomas, violin, received first prize in the Prodigy Instrumental Category at the Southern California Philharmonic Young Artists Competition, and second prize in High School Division at the American Prize Competition.
Rachel Won, violin, was appointed Concertmaster of the Equity Arc Pathways Orchestra.
Gavin Yang, violin, performed a solo in a contemporary version of Vivaldi’s “Winter” (arr. and directed by Mark Wood) as the Concertmaster of Arcadia High School.
Ashlyn Zheng, piano, received third place in the Etude Festival (MTAC-LA Category 2).
Isabella Zhou, violin, received the silver medal in the Junior category at the 2024 Southern California Junior Bach Festival Complete Works Audition.
Raymond Cai, piano, won second place in the Piano Open Baroque category in the Southwestern Youth Music Festival.
Kai Canton, piano, received first place in the Piano Open Chopin Shorter Works and Piano Open Complete Classic Work categories at the Southwestern Youth Music Festival.
Daphne Gobron-Pesheva, piano, was selected to perform at the closing ceremony at the Orbiford Festival in Palazzo Adriano, Sicily, Italy, receiving high praise from the mayor and local press.
Anthony Gobron-Pesheva, piano, was selected to perform at the closing ceremony at the Orbiford Festival in Palazzo Adriano, Sicily, Italy, receiving high praise from the mayor and local press.
Caden Guo, piano, received second place in the Piano Open Solo and third place in the Piano Open Baroque category in the Southwestern Youth Music Festival.
Ailis Nguyen, piano, received second place in the Young Pianist category and third place in the Piano Open Baroque category at the Southwestern Youth Music Festival.
Mia Safdie, piano, received an honorable mention at the Thomas Hulbert International Piano Competition.
Rachel Won, piano, is a finalist in the From the Top Learning and Media Lab Fellowship.
John Wu, piano, received first prize in the Ventura College Henry Schwab Competition.
Ryan Yang, cello, won the Junior Cello Category of the CalASTA State Solo Competition.
This year’s 2023-24 Dance Academy students will continue their training at top dance programs nationally and internationally, including:
Chloe Oronoz, dance, is currently performing George Balanchine’s Serenade with LA Ballet.
2023–24 Student Accomplishments
2022-23 Student Accomplishments
Ask Jeffrey Lavner, the former chair of the Piano Department at the Community School of Performing Arts, about his earliest memories of the Colburn School, and he colorfully recalls the warehouse facility on the University of Southern California (USC) campus in the early 1980s. He remembers the Knabe pianos and teaching during hot summer days without air conditioning. He also vividly recollects how much the School had accomplished by the time he joined the faculty in 1981 after completing his Master of Music degree from USC.
“I had taught at other neighborhood music schools in other cities, but they were nothing like Colburn. It was already a well-established school with a respected reputation and famous alumni, such as Michael Tilson Thomas,” says Lavner.
Those experiences set the stage for Lavner’s 40-plus-year career at Colburn. He’s had a front-row seat to the many transformations the School has undergone, growing from classrooms in a warehouse to breaking ground on the Colburn Center this year. Although, he sometimes wondered whether the dream of moving off the USC campus would come to fruition.
“Truthfully, I really never thought they would build the new building on Grand at that time. I didn’t believe the parking lot across the street would be built in my lifetime,” admits Lavner.
In 1989, after eight years of teaching, he moved on, but never completely stepped away. Lavner maintained his relationships with colleagues and occasionally was asked to teach Colburn students who were financially disadvantaged, thus carrying on the School’s mission of access to excellence for all.
Then he saw the finished Grand Avenue building.
“I was invited back to see it and I was blown away. I asked, ‘Will you take me back?’” he says. “Here, we have state-of-the-art pianos—it’s amazing to hear a beautifully tuned piano. Also all three performance halls are world-class, which is another feather in the School’s cap. There’s also more communal space like the café and the plaza, which encourages camaraderie.
“I appreciate the vision of those steering these efforts. It’s really amazing what Colburn has built. Plus, I’m looking forward to the new performance halls in the Colburn Center,” Lavner says.
Not only did he rejoin the Community School faculty in 1999, Lavner became Piano Chair in 2005. Under his direction, the department continued to expand its offerings for students, parents, and audience members.
The change that most impresses Lavner, however, is the ever-increasing caliber of talent.
“Everyone who comes to Colburn is motivated, but the level of musicianship has changed. That freaks me out to this day because the jumps are amazing,” he explains. “The students are more committed now and the parents are more committed, too. We still have fun, but the kids are serious, and it’s great. It’s a blessing to have students who are so committed, and as a teacher, you couldn’t ask for anything more. What we have at Colburn cannot be replicated anywhere else.”
Lavner, who also taught in Colburn’s Jazz program, has watched students follow successful career paths. Some of his pupils perform professionally, including jazz pianists Donald Vega, Eric Reed, and Isaac Wilson. Musician and composer Connie Han, Nicholas Méndez Del Valle, and Jonathan Lucas also attended Lavner’s studio.
“What is as exciting for me is seeing all the students who went on to study law, medicine, and other professions. They still really love to play. Actually, they’re maniacs about it. When I see them, they just want to talk about music,” says Lavner.
“I believe every teacher just wants their students to enjoy the music,” he adds. “Really, our job is to get them to love music so the thread keeps going to the next generations.”
While Lavner no longer leads the Piano Department, he still teaches at the Community School and remains as excited about Colburn’s impact on young artists as he was back in 1981.
“We have fantastic faculty and I have the greatest respect for all my colleagues. The new chair, Ivana Malo, will do a great job,” he says.