Category: Alumni

“[Teaching] is one of the most important and gratifying professions, and I plan on continuing my new-found passion!” When violinist and Jack Kent Cooke Young Artist Gloria Ferry-Brennan appeared on our show this past February (Brunswick 247), she took us on a magical spoken tour of her hometown: the colorful and picturesque Whidbey Island (off […]

After an appearance on From the Top in 2008 (Show 192), violinist Ren Martin-Doike (now studying viola at the Curtis Institute) has been all about making connections with others through music. We’ve shared a number of these connections on our blog over the years, including a demonstration on the similarities between a string quartet and a rock band  for an […]

I learned that it is extremely effective to have kids teach other kids. I think they were able to really connect with me in a way that you can’t connect with an adult teacher. Pianist Arianna Korting (Show 145, Boston, Massachusetts; Show 241, Washington, DC) is passionate about showing younger kids how enjoyable and fun […]

I learned that I can make an impact on kids’ lives regarding the arts, and realized how passionate I am about helping others. I would definitely do this again. Having lived with a nonverbal learning disorder since age 4, now 17 year-old violist Alexia DelGiudice, (Show 245) a From the Top Jack Kent Cooke Young Artist) fully […]

Here at Crossing Strings, I am teacher, friend, and mentor. After having the chance to work with younger kids at a summer music festival, violinist and Jack Kent Cooke Young Artist Jisoo Kim (Show 240, Boston, Massachusetts) was inspired to start a lesson program in her own neighborhood. She created Crossing Strings: a program for […]

“I think that performing and sharing is crucial for young people like us. This concert definitely showed the parents and the greater Interlake community that its musical scene is full of life.” Dong Won (pictured above at his From the Top appearance in Washington D.C – Show 241) After receiving notice that the Interlake High […]

I have now been cancer free for 11 years. Music played an enormous part in my own healing process and has continued to be an incredibly important part of who I am. I can’t imagine my life without it. In January of 2001, six-year-old Hannah Moses (Show 241) was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s Lymphona. While being […]

Last week, we teamed up with the folks at NPR Classical to give a good look at the wide world of music for students and their families through their blog Deceptive Cadence. From practice tips to audition tips, we’ve had a lot of fun hearing from alumni and parents. We even had a couple of […]

Calling all Chicago fans! This Friday, violinist Kelly Talim (Show #246) and her brother Kai will be co-hosting the “Walk with Children 2012” benefit concert to help the Japanese children who were orphaned by the 2011 earthquake and tsunami. They created the following video announcement (with Kai speaking) to spread the word: Kelly and Kai […]

This May, two of our very own alums will be featured on HBO with critically acclaimed soprano Renée Fleming! Mezzo soprano Samantha Hankey (a Jack Kent Cooke Young Artist from Show #226 in Boston) and baritone Sean Plum (Show #201 in Boston) will be featured in HBO’s “Renée Fleming: a YoungArts MasterClass,” revealing the ambition […]

This month, 14-year-old pianist Marie Kelly debuted at Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall! Marie performed after winning first place in the American Protege International Piano and Strings Competition. This spring, Marie was also chosen to perform in the 59th Junior Bach Festival, which features concerts in March and April around Bach’s birthday. Just one month […]

Renowned classical guitarist Chaconne Klaverenga premiered the Concerto for Guitar and Orchestra by Rene Schiffer earlier this month, a performance the Lafayette Symphony Orchestra commissioned for her. Klaverenga, who appeared  on Show #194 in Buffalo, New York at age 16, received the piece as a gift from Mr. Schiffer (a member of Cleveland Baroque Orchestra’s […]

A lot of wonderful things have been happening for pianist Michael Davidman, who performed on Show 234 in Virginia Beach, Virginia last year! Michael recently took first place in the Fine Arts Orchestral Society of Yonkers’ Concerto Competition. As a result, he will be performing in a concert on May 19 featuring the Yonkers Philharmonic,  […]

“(This event) made me realize what kids can accomplish when given the necessary support from role models in their community. I feel honored to have had the opportunity to enrich the lives of…youth in my own community.” Bassoonist Sandra Bailey understands the value of outlining goals to help achieve one’s dreams. Wanting to share this […]

Friday, April 6th, began the 2012 Menuhin International Violin Competition, taking place in Beijing. Among the 42 competitors, From the Top was represented by 11 alumni, including: Among Senior competitors (under 22): 1. Hannah Cho (Show 209/Waimea) 2. Piotr Filochowski (Show 149/Mercersburg) 3. Eric Gratz (Show 177/New Albany & Show 180/Berkeley) 4. Zenas Hsu (Show […]

Cellist Bihn Park recently informed us that on April 14 he’ll be performing with the Philadelphia Orchestra in a concert  featuring conductor Cristian Macelaru and composer Nathaniel Stookey. The concert includes pieces by Dvorák and Stookey’s narration of his own work, The Composer is Dead. You can find out more about the concert and buy tickets here–the performance […]

17-year-old From the Top alum Conrad Tao is one to watch!  In addition to being profiled in the current issue of New York Magazine, Conrad’s first commercially available release is now on iTunes! His work is featured as part of “The Juilliard Sessions”–a series of CDs that’s a collaboration between Juilliard and EMI Classics that […]

Soprano Andrea Carroll, who performed on Show #172 at Daytona Beach, Florida in 2008, has more on her plate than her studies at the Manhattan School of Music. As a 2012 Filene Young Artist she will play Zerlina in the Wolf Trap Opera Company’s production of Don Giovanni this summer, and will also take the […]

If you followed all of the Grammy news from this past week, you may have heard that Robert Aldridge won the Grammy for best contemporary classical composition. As it turns out, he’s the father of alumna Micaela Aldridge, who recently performed an excerpt from his opera on From the Top’s Show 242 in Santa Fe, […]

Recently on Highlight Show 019, we hinted at an overarching concern in the musical world with composer Gunther Schuller: where has the spark in technically “perfect” musicians gone? Has it died out, or is it just dwindling? One of our listeners writes that he asked this question of his daughter, an opera singer and pianist, […]