About: The James Yannatos Concerto Competition, named in honor of HRO’s Music Director Emeritus, is held annually to select a soloist to perform a concerto with the orchestra in one of its concerts. The competition is only open to members of HRO, however, musicians outside of HRO who play non-orchestral instruments (piano, saxophone, guitar, etc.) are also welcome and encouraged to apply.
This year, the competition will be held in Paine Hall on Saturday, September 23rd, 2023 from 9 am to 6 pm.
Concerto performance: The winner of the James Yannatos Concerto Competition will play with HRO in the second concert of HRO’s 216th season, on Saturday, November 11, 2023, in Sanders Theatre. Depending on various musical and logistical considerations that are not yet finalized, the winner may also perform on the HRO international tour to South Korea over Spring Break (March 8th through March 18th). Any piece for soloist and orchestra is permitted, although HRO reserves the right to disqualify any concerto for logistical reasons (e.g. length of the piece or instrumentation).
What to prepare: All candidates must be prepared to play the entire concerto of their choosing. Judges may ask candidates to play any portion of their selected concerto.
Application procedure:
Google form application:
All candidates must submit the google form above by 5pm on Wednesday, September 13, 2022. There will be no exceptions to this rule. Applications must be filled out completely and accurately; changes to the proposed audition repertoire must be communicated in writing to the HRO and its music director no later than a week prior to the competition date (Saturday, September 16th).
Auditions:Once all of the applications have been received, candidates will be notified of their audition time by Friday, September 15th. Audition times are difficult to reschedule. If you are absolutely unable to make your audition time, please reach out to the HRO as soon as possible to work out a solution. All pianists will use the same piano. For all candidates, an accompanist is advisable but not required; each candidate is responsible for arranging their own accompanist for their audition if desired. Music must be memorized, and each soloist is required to provide three scores of their concerto for the judges.
Contact
Please contact hro@hrorchestra.org with any questions or concerns about the concerto competition.
Past Winners:
2022/23 - Lucas Amory, piano
2021/22 - Kevin Miura, violin
2020/21 - Cancelled due to COVID
2019/20 - Cancelled due to COVID
2018/19 - Alex Zhou, violin
2017/18 - Brian Zhao, cello
2016/17 - Audrey Chen, cello
2015/16 - Jacob Tilton, saxophone
