Posted Friday, July 17, 2009 — This evening at 6:00 p.m., ten piano students from the Eastern Music Festival perform at Millennium Stage at The Kennedy Center. A free live webcast of the performance can be viewed here.
Meet the students, and preview the selections each will play.
Robin Jenkins performs SCHUMANN: Sonata in G minor, Op.22 (So rasch wie moglich)
A native of House Springs, Missouri, pianist Robin Jenkins has been a top prizewinner in several national and international competitions, including the Fite Family Competition, the Lennox International Young Artists Competition, and the regional MTNA Yamaha Competition. She has soloed with the Washington University, Webster, Alton, Belleville, and University City Symphonies, as well as with the St. Louis Symphony Youth Orchestra at Powell Hall. Former teachers include Jack Winerock and Zena Ilyashov. Robin currently studies under Alvin Chow at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music.

Daniel Anastasio performs MOZART: Sonata in D Major, K.576 (Allegro)
Daniel Anastasio is an Arts and Sciences sophomore at Cornell University, where he studies piano with Xak Bjerken. He has studied the piano since the age of five, and currently lives in San Antonio, Texas. He performed with the San Antonio Symphony as a winner of its 2007 “Future Stars” Competition, and was also a soloist with Youth Orchestras of San Antonio. He was Student Leader of the Junior Tuesday Musical Club in San Antonio and received the 2005 “Bowman Award” as first place winner of that club’s annual competition. Daniel attended the Tanglewood Institute’s Young Artist Piano Program for three summers and is attending Eastern Musical Festival for a second summer. He enjoys playing chamber music and jazz in addition to his solo work.
Yuiko Ohoka performs LISZT: Sonetto 104 del Petrarca
Yuiko Ohoka started studying the piano at the age of six in Japan. She moved to the United States in 2001 and continued her study with Ms. Nancy Daggett Jensen, Ms. Yumi Tayama, and Dr. Gwendolyn Mok, who is the chair of the music department at San Jose State University. Yuiko has just finished her freshman year at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, where she is currently studying with Mr. Yoshikazu Nagai.
Grace Ma performs MUCZYNSKI: Desperate Measures (Paganini Variations) for Piano, Op.48
Grace Ma is 17 and currently resides in Phoenix, Arizona. She attends Desert Vista High School as an upcoming senior. She has won several competitions such as first place in the 2004 MTNA Junior Competition and the Stravinsky International Competition. She has played piano for 13 years, and she also enjoys writing, reading, and spending time with her friends.
Stephanie Chan performs CHOPIN: Etude in C-Sharp Minor, Op.10 no.4
Stephanie Chan, age 20, began studying piano at the age of six. She has just completed her second year at the University of Houston’s Moores School of Music, where she is pursuing a degree in piano performance under Mrs. Nancy Weems. In May 2007 she appeared on the national radio show From The Top, which showcases young musicians from across the country. Stephanie has performed with numerous orchestras as winner of their young artists competitions, and she has worked with such renowned pianists as Steven Kovacevich, Olga Kern, Yoheved Kaplinsky, Antonio Pompa-Baldi, and Peter Frankl.
Jeong Eun Choe performs CHOPIN: Etude in G-flat Major, Op.10 no.5
Jeong Eun Choe, 19, began her piano studies at age six. She has been recognized in numerous competitions and festivals including the NW Chopin Festival, Seattle Young Artists Music Festival, Washington Music Educators Association State Competition, and the MTNA Washington State Competition. Jeong also performed with Skagit Valley Symphony and Seattle Symphony. Jeong currently attends the Eastman School of Music as a student of Nelita True.
Chien-Lin Lu performs SCHUMANN: Fantasy in C Major, Op.17 (Massig.Durchaus energisch)
Chien-Lin Lu, a native of Taiwan, began studying piano at the age of 7. He moved to the States in 2002 and later attended Interlochen Arts Academy and studied with Yoshikazu Nagai. He is now a senior at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, studying with Angela Cheng. Chien-Lin has received numerous awards from competitions in both Taiwan and the United States, including Taiwanese Vienna Music Education Association Competition, Chinese American Education Association Piano Competition, Lennox Young Artists International Competition, Ft. Collins Symphony Orchestra National Young Artist competition, and Crescendo Music Awards Competition. In 2006, he was a Gilmore Fellow and performed in Ingrid Fliter’s master class. Chien-Lin has also performed in the master classes of Stephen Hough, Angela Hewitt, Martin Katz, MingQiang Li, and Nelita True. In 2008, Chien-Lin was awarded the Rudolf Serkin Prize for excellence in piano performance.
Kara Huber performs JOAN TOWER: From No Longer Very Clear Holding a Daisy and “Or Like a…an Engine”
Originally from Oakland, Illinois, Kara Huber is a senior at the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music under the tutelage of Frank Weinstock . Beginning piano lessons at the age of five, Ms. Huber also spent two years as a scholarship student at the Interlochen Arts Academy. Her most recent accomplishments include the Steinway Scholar at Eastern Music Festival, New York Piano Competition, and appearances with the Eastern Music Festival Orchestra and Interlochen Arts Academy Orchestra. While working towards a career as a concert pianist, Ms. Huber is also the pianist for the CCM Orchestras and Contemporary Music Ensemble as well as accompanist for vocalists, instrumentalists, and ballet classes.
Christopher Goodpasture performs LISZT: Valse-Impromptu
A Los Angeles native, Christopher Goodpasture is currently entering his junior year as a scholarship recipient of the Thornton School of Music at the University of Southern California where he has continued his studies with Norman Krieger and Dr. Stewart Gordon. A frequent performer and recitalist, he has won awards in several local, national and international piano competitions, including top prizes in the American Fine Arts Festival and the Los Angeles International Franz Liszt Competition. Christopher has given critically acclaimed performances throughout the state of California, and, most recently, debut performances at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. and Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall in New York City. He has received reviews in both the San Mateo Journal and the Washington Post. Christopher returns to Eastern Music Festival for his second summer.
Fang-Wei Hsu performs LIEBERMANN: Garygoles, op.29 (IV. Presto feroce)
Fang-Wei Hsu, born in Taipei, Taiwan, began her piano studies at the age of six. Following years of study, she attended the Interlochen Arts Academy for her high school education and continued her piano studies with Yoshikazu Nagai and Michael Coonrod. She will attend the Eastman School of Music this fall.
Chan, Goodpasture, Choe, Anastasio perform SOUSA arr. Mack Wilberg: Stars and Stripes Forever.
For more, visit the Kennedy Center’s website.