The Pasadena Community Orchestra is thrilled to announce the winners in this year’s Young Artist Competitions – and you can hear these outstanding young artists perform at this concert.  In the Senior Division, the winner is violinist Ezra Shcolnik. The Junior Division winner is pianist Nathan Pak. Our concerts are always free admission, and there is plenty of free parking.

Beethoven        Leonore Overture No. 3
Beethoven        Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-flat major, Op. 19, Allegro con brio
                 Nathan Pak, piano solo (2024 winner, Junior Division)
Tchaikovsky      Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 35
                 Ezra Shcolnik, violin solo (2024 winner, Senior Division)
Wagner           Overture to Die Meistersinger

About our soloists:

Pianist Nathan Pak is the winner of the Junior Division of the Young Artist Competition. He is a sophomore at Taft High School, has been studying piano under the guidance of Dr. Agnes Kim since 2019. Last year, he brought in several honorable titles including the 1st place winner at the renowned Music Teachers’ Association of California’s Southern California Regional Solo Competition and the honorable mention in Music Teachers National Association. Nathan has won first prize in open categories at Southwestern Youth Music Festival and Satori Competition, the Santa Clarita Valley Romantic Music Festival, and the Junior and Senior Division at the Antelope Valley Symphony Orchestra and Master Chorale Bach Competition.

Violinist Ezra Shcolnik is the winner of the Senior Division of the Young Artist Competition. He is pursuing a Bachelor of Music degree at the Colburn Conservatory of Music, where he studies with Robert Lipsett. This season, Ezra appears as a soloist with several orchestras in Southern California, including the Colburn Orchestra, the Peninsula Symphony as the top prizewinner of the 2024 Knox Competition, and the San Fernando Valley Symphony. Previously, he appeared with the New Mexico Philharmonic. Ezra is also a composer whose music has been performed by the Los Angeles Philharmonic, USC Thornton Edge, and Colburn Academy Virtuosi. Summers have found Ezra studying chamber, solo, and orchestral repertoire under the guidance of esteemed artist faculty at the Aspen Music Festival as the recipient of several fellowships, as well as at the Perlman Music Program.

You can read more about our winners on the Young Artist Competition web page.

The final concert of the season is our always-popular Concert in the Park, in Sierra Madre on Saturday, June 8, at 6:30pm. The Orchestra will be back in the fall for a new season of glorious orchestral music! Sign up for our our e-mail Newsletter for more details of the our concerts.