Grand Jury
Dr. Mélanie Clapiès, Yale School of Music
Born in Paris, violin soloist Mélanie Clapiès was named a Zonta Club laureate, and was the recipient of the Broadus Erle Prize, the Yale School of Music Alumni Association Prize, and the Philip Francis Nelson Prize from Yale University.
A passionate educator, she is currently violin faculty at Butler University in Indianapolis. She has previously been on faculty at the Conservatories in Toulon and Bordeaux as well as the Ecole Normale de Musique in Paris. Mélanie studied at the Conservatoires Nationaux Supérieurs de Musique in both Lyon and Paris. She received her M.M. and A.D. from the Yale School of Music before completing a Doctoral degree at the Manhattan School of Music in the studio of Mark Steinberg.
Julia Bullock, The Juilliard School
Hailed as the “Essential soprano of our time” by the Los Angeles Times, and “The impressive diva who we’ve been waiting for” by The New York Times, Julia has held positions including collaborative partner of Esa-Pekka Salonen and 2019-20 Artist-in-Residence at the San Francisco Symphony, 2018-19 Artist-in-Residence at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art. Bullock’s opera debuts include San Francisco Opera in the world premiere of Girls of the Golden West; Santa Fe Opera in Doctor Atomic; Festival d’Aix-en-Provence and Dutch National Opera in The Rake’s Progress; the English National Opera, Teatro Real, and Bolshoi Theatre in the title role of The Indian Queen; and Dutch National Opera, Bregenzer Festspiele, and Park Avenue Armory in the premiere of Michel van der Aa’s Upload. In concert, she has collaborated with the New York Philharmonic, Boston Symphony, Los Angeles Philharmonic, NHK Symphony, Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester, and London’s Philharmonia and London Symphony Orchestras, while her recital highlights include appearances at New York’s Carnegie Hall, Boston’s Celebrity Series, Washington’s Kennedy Center, London’s Wigmore Hall, and the Mostly Mozart and Ojai Music festivals.
Prof. Dominic Lam, Harvard University
Eye doctor by practice and harmonicist-visual artist by trait, Prof. Lam obtained a post-doctoral fellowship at Harvard University before joining the faculty at Harvard Medical School. Lam invented a novel painting process "Chromoskedasic Process", a color generating process that uses only black and white photographic paper and solutions. Lam received the "Outstanding Achievement Award" and "Outstanding Product Designer Award" by the Hong Kong Art and Design Festival, and was invited to exhibit his gold and platinum "Doves of Peace" at the Louvre where he was awarded the Prix d'honneur for Sculpture by "Societe Nationale des Beaux Arts".
Invited by President George H.W. Bush, Lam was a member of the "Presidential Committee on the Arts and Humanities", and its "Education Subcommittee" in charge of evaluating the US education system and its future strategic outlook.
Jenny Ney, The Juilliard School
Upon completing her Master’s at The Juilliard School, Jenny has performed in numerous venues, including Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center. For two years she had the chair at Radio City Music Hall.
She has played in the New York City Ballet’s spring showcase as well as for the American Ballet’s spring recital. She played at the Adele concert, which was broadcast on NBC, and on a video concert release of Roger Waters, cofounder of Pink Floyd.. She has also played with the New York Philharmonic, Harrisburg Symphony, Stamford Symphony, and Orchestra of St Luke’s.
Dr. Joseph Yungen, The Juilliard School
Winner of the “Audience Favorite” and “Best Performance of the Music of Szymanowski” awards in the 2008 Seattle International Piano Competition, Joseph received First Prize in the 88th Annual Bruce P. Carlson Schubert Club Piano Competition in Minneapolis, the Ann Fehn Pianist’s First Prize in the 14th Annual Jessie Kneisel Lieder Competition, and the Barr Award for Excellence in Accompanying.
Joseph studied with Jonathan Feldman at The Juilliard School, where he earned the Doctor of Musical Arts degree. He received Master of Music degrees in Piano Performance & Literature and in Accompanying & Chamber Music from the Eastman School of Music, where he studied with Jean Barr and Douglas Humpherys.
Johnathan Stone, Cambridge University
Jonathan Stone, Senior Advisor, Asia Pacific and Asian Art at Christie’s, joined the company in 1989 as a trainee which turned out to be a successful decades-long career. Stone served in London for 10 years as a specialist and then Head of Department before relocating to Tokyo as Representative Director of Christie’s Japan. He was appointed International Business Director for Asian Art in 2005 and chairman in 2011. Based in Hong Kong since 2007, Stone took on his current role in 2022.
Antonio Roig Tarros, Stanford University
Cellist Antonio Roig began his musical education in his hometown Carlet, and was selected to participate at the Mstislav Rostropovich cello Masterclasses in València, Spain.
He studied Chamber Music Master at the Hochschule für Musik, Theater und Medien under the supervision of Ulf Schneider, Oliver Wille, and the virtuoso pianist Prof. Markus Becker. Same year, he was invited with full-tuition scholarships at the St. Lawrence String Quartet Seminar at Stanford University, San Francisco, USA and at the Piano Trio Masterclasses in Académie Musicale de Villecroze with Prof. Menahem Pressler in Nice, France.
Maestro Chad Goodman, New World Symphony
With a flair for inventive programming and a bold presence on stage and in the community, Chad Goodman has been praised for "bringing innovation to classical music" (Forbes).
In addition to being the Conducting Fellow of the New World Symphony, Goodman has served as an Assistant Conductor to the San Francisco Symphony since 2018, assisting Michael Tilson Thomas, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Manfred Honeck, Daniel Harding and Simone Young, among others. Goodman holds a Bachelor of Music degree from the Eastman School of Music in Trumpet Performance and a Master of Music degree from San Francisco State University.
Dr. Tiffany Valvo, Eastman School of Music
Dr. Valvo is the former Assistant Professor of Clarinet at Virginia Commonwealth University and the has been a lecturer of music at both Nazareth College and Syracuse University. She has performed at the Sante Fe Chamber Music Festival, the Kennedy Center, as a soloist with the Richmond Symphony, and with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra and Tallahassee Symphony Orchestra. She has performed all over the US and in Belgium, England, Italy, and Germany, in addition to being a participant in the Brevard Music Festival, Boston University Tanglewood Institute, the Eastern Music Festival, and the CCM Spoleto festival.
Dr. Valvo received her Doctor of Musical Arts from Eastman School of Music.
Melanie Genin, Paris Conservatorie
Hailed as “a globe-trotter” and “singular harp virtuoso” by L’Union France and the Epoch times of New York, Mélanie Genin is known for her “desire to re-shape and re-invent classical music” (Justine Philippe, L’Union,).
Born in France, Ms. Genin received her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris, where she studied with Isabelle Moretti. She was then selected as one of only two recipients of a Bruni-Sarkozy Foundation scholarship to study at The Juilliard School in New York with Nancy Allen. She subsequently became the first harpist to ever be admitted into the Artist Diploma program at The Manhattan School of Music, where she studied under the guidance of the late Deborah Hoffman and Mariko Anraku.
Dr. John Taylor Ward, Yale School of Music
Dr. Ward’s performances have been praised for their “Stylish abandon” (Alex Ross, The New Yorker) and their “finely calibrated precision and heart-rending expressivity” (Washington Post). He performs regularly with the world’s finest baroque musicians and ensembles, including L’Arpeggiata, the English Baroque Soloists, and Les Arts Florissants, and he appears as a soloist on Grammy-nominated recordings by the Boston Early Music Festival and the Seattle Symphony. Taylor holds a BM from the Eastman School of Music and an DMA from Yale School of Music. He is a founding artistic director of the Lakes Area Music Festival of Minnesota, a member of Roomful of Teeth, an associate artist of Heartbeat Opera, and a founding core member of Cantata Profana.
Catherine Gregory, Ensemble Connect
The New York Times has called Australian flutist Catherine Gregory’s playing “magically mysterious,” also writing that “Ms. Gregory left a deep impression… her sound rich and fully present.” Based in New York City, she has performed at Carnegie Hall, The Kennedy Center, Alice Tully Hall, and at the Lincoln Center Festival.
Catherine is an alumna of Ensemble Connect: a program of Carnegie Hall, The Juilliard School, the Weill Music Institute and the New York City Department of Education.
Born Lau, Curtis Institute
Praised for his “immaculately refined” playing (The Philadelphia Inquirer), violist Born Lau has appeared internationally both as a soloist and chamber musician. Lau has served as Principal Violist of the Curtis Symphony Orchestra, as well as Shanghai Symphony and Guest Principal Violist of San Diego Symphony. Lau is a prizewinner at the 2014 Primrose International Viola Competition. As an educator, Lau has given viola master classes throughout the world, including the Royal Academy of Music, Melbourne Conservatorium of Music, Soochow University, the New World School of the Arts, Washington Conservatory of Music, and the Hong Kong Baptist University. He is currently the Distinguished Professor of Viola at the China Conservatory of Music in Beijing.
Colin Stokes, The Juilliard School
Colin Stokes is a New York and Berlin based cellist, composer, electronic artist and educator performing and recording extensively in the United States, South America, Europe, Africa and Asia. Current projects include the genre-defying Berlin-based Symphoniacs, contemporary classical ensemble Zohn Collective. Recent performances have found Colin Stokes sharing the stage with Chaka Khan in London and performing for nearly one million people at the New Year’s celebration at Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate.
'His music can be heard on more than 15 albums from Universal Music Germany, Warner Music Japan, EMI and Albany Records.'
Bobby Cheng, l’Orchestre National du Capitole de Toulouse
Bobby CHENG is currently the Principal Oboe of l’Orchestre National du Capitole de Toulouse, where he was appointed unanimously in 2016 under its musical director, Tugan Sokhiev. Mr. Cheng has appeared regularly as guest prinicpal oboe with BBC Symphony Orchestra, l’Orchestre National de France, l’Orchestre de Paris as well as London Symphony Orchestra. He has worked under the baton of Sir Antonio Pappano, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Tugan Sokhiev, Trevor Pinnock, François-Xavier Roth, Sakari Oramo, Cristian Măcelaru, Klaus Mäkelä, Lahav Shani among others
Mr. Cheng is a roster artist of the renowned French brand Buffet Crampon; he plays on the “Legende” model oboe.
Markiyan Melnychenko, Melbourne Conservatorium of Music
Mr. Melnychenko has served as Lecturer in Violin at the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music and Principal 1st Violin with the Melbourne Chamber Orchestra.
Awarded the Dr Iain C. Medgett Churchill Fellowship, he has performed in 17 countries and has made a number of solo appearances with orchestras. In 2013 he was selected to perform in a quartet at the US Capitol for the Inaugural Luncheon at Barack Obama's Presidential Inauguration. He is a multiple 1st prize winner in international competitions including the Melbourne Recital Centre's National competition and the Oleh Krysa International Violin Competition.
Hedy Chan, Royal College of Music
Soprano Hedy Chan received her Master of Performance at the Royal College of Music in London in 2021 and is currently part of the David Seligman Opera School in Cardiff.
She studied under the tutelage of world-acclaimed singers, including Suzanne Murphy, Nancy Yuen, and Sally Burgess. She has been selected to attend masterclasses with various famous singers, including Renée Fleming, Dennis O’Neill, Nuccia Fucile, and Nelly Miricioiu.
Hedy has also performed the complete opera roles of Pamina by Mozart in Die Zauberflöte, Adele by Strauss in Die Fledermaus, Blanche by Poulenc in Dialogues des Carmélites, Sister Angelica by Puccini in Suor Angelica and Guilietta by Offenbach in Les Contes d’Hoffman.
Dr. Ken Luk, Eastman School of Music
Dr. Luk serves as faculty for guitar and mandolin at Alfred University and SUNY Geneseo, and Balinese gamelan at the Eastman Music School. Born and raised in Hong Kong, Dr. Luk is an active performer, educator, and arranger. He received his Doctor of Musical Arts in classical guitar with Professor Nicholas Goluses at the Eastman School of Music where he also earned a master’s degree in music theory pedagogy.
Carson Moody, Eastman School of Music
A Denver-based percussionist and performing artist, Carson Moody is a founding member of the internationally performing music group, Tigue. With Tigue, Carson has released two records of original music "Strange Paradise" (NNA Tapes and New Amsterdam Records) and "Peaks" (New Amsterdam Records). Carson also plays percussion with Ensemble Signal, a "new music dream team" (Time Out NY) that performs works of Steve Reich, Michael Gordon, Julia Wolfe amongst many other new music greats. Constantly exploring collaborations in dance as a mover and musician, Carson has worked with students and professionals all over NYC. Carson is a graduate of The Ohio State University and the Eastman School of Music and is on the prestigious artists roster with Vic Firth.
Stephen Hung, Royal Academy of Music
Stephen Hung specialises in J. S. Bach’s keyboard music and Baroque music in general - he studied with Colin Stone and Daniel-Ben Pienaar at London’s Royal Academy of Music and also had lessons on the harpsichord and the organ there. He has published a collection of piano transcriptions from Bach’s organ, choral and violin works. Hung performs regularly both as a soloist and as a chamber musician. Some of the recital programmes he played over the years include the complete Well-Tempered Clavier, the Art of Fugue and the complete Two-part and Three-part Inventions.
Prof. Trish Gianakis, St. Peters University
Trish Gianakis is an immersive, award-winning artist, professor, professional art director, and user experience/interface designer for 20-plus years. She teaches at FIT in NYC, St. Peter's University, and at BronxNet TV.
Her artworks have been exhibited nationally and internationally. With a Master’s Degree in Computer Art Installation from the School of Visual Arts in NYC, Gianakis has always been at the forefront of digital art and technology. Creating immersive art experiences and combining technology with her physical sculptures is her passion.
Summer of 2022 Trish Gianakis was selected as artist in residence at Bronxnet TV to collaborate on building a state-of-the-art XR/VR/AR Lab and Video Production Studio. Gianakis’ art project for New York and The Bronx will be an augmented reality tour showcasing the rich history of the city.
Elias Popa, Zachary Elyas Gallery
Elias worked as a curator and manager of the esteemed Waterfall Mansion and Gallery in New York City, as well as the founder of the Human Rights Network. He was the recipient of CFW’s artist vocational intensive, held at Princeton University. He also was selected on an Interfaith and Arts Panel at Columbia University, as well as regular participates in speaking engagements.
CheHo Lam, Eastman School of Music
Forbes Under 30 violinist-producer CheHo Lam was invited to perform at President Barack Obama's Inaugural Luncheon in 2013 with the presence of then-Vice President Joe Biden. CheHo has appeared as violin soloist at Carnegie Hall, the United Nations Headquarters, and concert halls across the globe. Founder of The Quintessential, he has led the brand in collaboration with Louis Vuitton (LVMH), UN Women, Christie’s, 30Under30 Film Festival, and fundraised for New York Youth Symphony.
photo credit: Dario Acosta, Kate Lemon, Gerry Szymanski, Emma Hsieh, Lee Tsz Wah, Jiyang Chen, Boko