FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE! NEWS from Young Concert Artists, Inc. FOUR WINNERS CHOSEN AT 14TH EUROPEAN YOUNG CONCERT ARTISTS AUDITIONS IN LEIPZIG, GERMANY After 132 artists from 37 countries were heard, the Jury of the Finals of the European Young Concert Artists Auditions in Leipzig’s historic Hochschule für Musik und Theater “Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy,” announced four First Prize Winners: Quatuor Hermès from France (24-year-old violinist Elise Liu, 22-year-old violinist Omer Bouchez, 26-year-old violist Yung-Hsin Chang, 27-year-old cellist Anthony Kondo); 26-year-old American violinist David McCarroll; 23-year-old Ukrainian violinist Oleksii Semenenko; and 22-year-old Japanese cellist Yuki Ito. Each received a $1,000 prize, performed in the Prize Winners’ Concert in the Music Room of Felix Mendelssohn’s House in Leipzig, and will be brought to New York City to participate in the final rounds of the Young Concert Artists International Auditions from November 6 to 10. The Young Concert Artists European Auditions are co-sponsored by the Hochschule für Musik und Theater “Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy” and Young Concert Artists, Inc. The Jury - From Left to Right: Robert Ehrlich, Christoph Hankel, Bronze The Winners - From Left to Right: violinists Oleksii Semenenko and David Bust of Felix Mendelssohn, Elina Vähälä, Phillip Moll, Naoko Shimizu, McCarroll, Quatuor Hermès ( Omer Bouchez, Elise Liu, Yung-Hsin Chang, Susan Wadsworth, Joel Shapiro Anthony Kondo), and cellist Yuki Ito European Winners - The Quatuor Hermès won First Prize in the 2011 Geneva International Chamber Music Competition. The quartet is working with Gregor Sigl at the University of Arts Berlin and at The Conservatory of Paris with Miguel Da Silva. - Violinist David McCarroll is a graduate of the New England Conservatory of Music and the Hanns Eisler Academy of Music in Berlin. - Violinist Oleksii Semenenko, a graduate of The Cologne University of Music, won Third Prize in the 2010 International Paganini Competition in Moscow and Second Prize in the Alois Kottmann Awards in Frankfurt. - Cellist Yuki Ito is currently at London’s Royal College of Music. He has won First Prizes in the Windsor Festival String Competition in England and the International Johannes Brahms Competition in Austria . -1- YOUNG CONCERT ARTISTS, INC. 250 West 57 Street New York, NY 10107 Telephone (212) 307-6655 www.yca.org FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE! NEWS from Young Concert Artists, Inc. 14TH EUROPEAN YOUNG CONCERT ARTISTS AUDITIONS (Page 2) The Jury was comprised of Chairman Susan Wadsworth, four YCA Alumni: American pianist Joel Shapiro , Finnish violinist Elina Vähälä , German cellist Christoph Henkel and Japanese violist Naoko Shimizu , as well as flutist and Rector of the Hochschule, Robert Ehrlich, American collaborative pianist Phillip Moll , German cellist Peter Bruns and German hornist Bernhard Krug . The European Young Concert Artists Auditions were initiated in Leipzig in 1994 by Joel Shapiro to offer accessibility to musicians from European countries who might not otherwise be able to participate in the final rounds of the Auditions, which are held in New York City. The Semi-Finals of the Young Concert Artists International Auditions take place at Merkin Hall from November 6 to 8, 2012. The Finals are held in New York on November 10 at the 92nd Street Y with an invited audience. Winners are added to the current YCA roster, are presented in New York and Washington D.C. debuts and receive ongoing career management services from Young Concert Artists, including concert engagements throughout the U.S and abroad. Young Concert Artists, Inc., a non-profit organization founded by Susan Wadsworth in 1961, has launched the careers of many renowned musicians including violinist Pinchas Zukerman, pianists Murray Perahia, Richard Goode, and Emanuel Ax, soprano Dawn Upshaw, the Tokyo, Chilingirian, Borromeo, Endellion and St. Lawrence String Quartets. For further information and photos, contact: Jamiesyn Aliano, Publicity Coordinator (212) 307-6655 [email protected] -2- YOUNG CONCERT ARTISTS, INC. 250 West 57 Street New York, NY 10107 Telephone (212) 307-6655 www.yca.org .