The Bonnie Cummins Fielder Grant for Career Advancement is awarded biennially to promising vocalists who are beginning a music career. This year’s finals were held on March 15 at the First Unitarian Universalist Church, 4700 Grover Avenue, Austin, Texas.
The judges were Suzanne Ramo, Assoc. Prof. of Voice at Texas State University and Darlene Wiley, Prof. of Voice (retired) at University of Texas at Austin. The accompanist was Dr. Maimy Fong.
Kathleen Felty, mezzo-soprano, holds a Master’s in Vocal Performance from the A.J. Fletcher Opera Institute of UNCSA. She recently performed the role of Mercedes in Carmen with the Santa Fe Opera.
Sara Kenedy, soprano, holds a Graduate Artist’s Certificate in Opera from the University of North Texas. This summer she will be performing the role of Donna Anna in Mozart’s Don Giovanni with the Camerata Bardi Vocal Academy.
Sarah Dyer, mezzo-soprano, is currently completing her certificate of Vocal Performance at the University of Houston. She Recently performed the role of Madame Larina in Eugene Onegin at the Music Academy of the West.
Bree Nichols, soprano, was a postdoctoral Fulbright grantee to the Czech Republic in 2021-22 where she prepared for the release of her debut solo album, Pure Morning, a celebration of Czech opera and art song. She is also the founder of Opera Arlington, an organization created to inspire the Dallas-Fort Worth area through opera while encouraging young singers.
Our President and Board are happy to announce that the club will resume limited meetings in Spring of 2021 – all meetings on Zoom. Three meetings are anticipated: Wednesday, February 3, Wednesday, March 3, and Wednesday April 7, all at 10 AM. There will be several performances per meeting though the program for each meeting has not yet been determined. The appropriate meeting links and content will be sent out as the dates approach.
Winner of first place in the Maurer Contest is violist Casey Boyer, student of Sara Driver. Casey just graduated from Regents High School, and will study viola performance in the Butler School of Music at U.T. Austin next year.
The recipient of the Putter Award for second place in the Maurer Contest for high school seniors is mezzo-soprano Katelyn Rodrigues, who studies with Liz Cass, winner of a Fielder Grant in 2007. Katelyn just graduated from Regents High School and will attend Princeton University next year, where she will major in Computer Science, and plans to earn Performance Certificates in Voice and Violin.
Kellen Cao, pianist, is the first place winner in the Wilcox Contest, and also the winner of the Rudd Supplemental Award. He will enter the 10th grade at Cedar Park High School, and studies with Dr. Susan Groves.
Sophia Amalia Ayer won second place in the Wilcox Contest for ninth through eleventh graders. She will be a senior at University of Texas High School, and studies violin with Pasha Sabouri.
The 2018 Winners of the High School Competition pictured here with Mary Parse (far left), High School Awards Chair and Janie Keys (far right), WMMC President. The four winners are (left to right) Kevin Yu, pianist; Eliot Kim, violinist; Lillian Sun, Violinist; and Claire Kim, pianist.
Meet the talented winners of the 2018 Wilcox, Maurer, Putter and Rudd Awards for High School Students
Claire Kim, Maurer Award winner, graduated this year from Cedar Park High School and plans to major in piano performance at UT Austin in the fall. She performed the Spanish Rhapsody by Franz Liszt. Her teacher is Shearon Horton.
Lillian Sun, the recipient of the the Putter Award for second place in the Maurer Contest, studies violin with Molly Emerman. Lillian graduated this year from Westlake High School and will attend Stanford in the fall. She performed the first movement of the Wieniawski Second Violin Concerto, with pianist, Alex Maynegre.
Eliot Kim, a ninth-grader, is the first place winner of the Wilcox Award. He attends Westwood High School, and studies with William Dick. He played the second movement of the Second Violin Concerto by Henryk Wieniawski, with pianist Kiyoshi Tamagawa.
Kevin Yu, also a ninth grader, is the second place winner of the Wilcox Award. He is a student at Westlake High School and studies piano with Susan Groves. He played Frédéric Chopin’s Ballade No. 2 in F Major.
The Wednesday Morning Music Club is proud to announce the 2017 recipients of the Wilcox, Maurer, Putter, and Rudd awards for outstanding high school performers. The awards were presented at a luncheon at the Austin Woman’s Club on May 17, 2017. Janie Keys, a member of the Awards Committee, served as program leader. See their individual bios and pictures below.
2017 High School Winners: (from L to R) Corbin King, MargaretSeo, Emma Bushing, and Eunice Lee. Marcia Edwards, WMMC president, is on the far right.
Eunice Lee, Pianist
The winner of the Maurer Award, First Place as well as the Rudd Supplemental award, was pianist Eunice Lee, a senior at Cedar Park High School. She will be a student at Northwestern University in Evanston, Chicago this fall.
Eunice received the Wilcox Award two years ago and has won many competitins since then. Among these was a concerto competition which resulted in a performance with the Austin Civic Orchestra and the Round Rock Symphony.
She has been an active member of the Austin Chamber Music Center for many years where she functions as the pianist for the Merit Scholarship Ensemble.
In 2014 she founded her own nonprofit music program, Music Eunited, an organization that aims to teach music to underprivileged elementary students. Recently, this organization has added an academic branch and is planning a Music Eunited Summer Camp to provide a public opportunity for any elementary student who wants to be exposed to music education.
Emma Bushong, Soprano
Emma Bushong, Soprano accompanied by Stephen Krahn
The Putter Award, Second Place, was awarded to Emma Bushong, soprano. Emma is a senior at Westlake High School. She plans to attend either Oklahoma City University or Belmont University to earn a degree in vocal performance.
Throughout her high school career, she has gained experience not only in musical theater and vocal solo and choir work, but also in dance and acting. She has been part of the musical productions at the Westlake Performing Arts Center, and recently had the starring role in their production of Mary Poppins. She also was a soloist in the Zach Scott Theatre production of Mixtape.
In 2016, she was chosen as soloist in the Westminster Choir College High School Vocal Institute. In the Texas UIL solo and ensemble competition, she was chosen as First Division Soprano 1 soloist in 2015 and 2016. In 2016 she also received the Texas UIL Outstanding Soloist Award.
Margaret Seo, Violinist
Margaret Seo, Violinist, accompanied by her mother, Sun Kyung Hur
The Wilcox Award (9th through 11th grade students) First Place winner was violinist Margaret Seo, a sophomore at Westwood High School.
Margaret’s achievements are many. In 2013, she won the Pearl Amster Competition, giving her the opportunity to perform with the Austin Civic Orchestra. ln 2016, Margaret won the Austin Symphony Youth Award, and toured with the Austin Symphony Orchestra to local high schools. Margaret also won the 7th Asian American Community Partnership Competition Junior Division in 2012, and performed her solo at the Long Center.
She is currently a member of Chamber Music in Public Schools (CHAMPS), and placed first in the Chamber division of the Asian American Competition with her Grieg Quartet in 2016. She is the concertmistress of the Westwood High School Orchestra.
Corbin King, Tenor
Corbin King, Tenor, accompanied by Cynthia Wilson
The Second Place winner of the Wilcox Award is tenor Corbin King, a junior at Vandegrift High School.
Since his freshman year, he has been performing with the VHS Chamber Choir and Chorale Choir under the direction of Michael Feris. Corbin is the Tenor section leader of both choirs. He develops his craft outside of school by singing with the Amphion Youth Choir and performing at church.
Corbin achieved First Chair, Tenor I in the TMEA Mixed All-State Choir in 2016 and 2017. He has won several vocal competitions including first place in the Texas area Schmidt Vocal Competition and first place in the SMART Opera vocal competition.
Corbin studies with Austin Bradley at Bradley Music Studio and is thankful to him and Natalie Cummings for their support and instruction.
The Wednesday Morning Music Club is proud to announce this year’s winners of the Wilcox, Maurer, Putter, and Rudd awards for outstanding high school performers. The awards were presented at a luncheon at the Austin Woman’s Club on May 18, 2016. Mary Parse served as Chair of the Awards Committee. The judges for this year’s competition were Paula Bird, Darlene Cluff, and Kiyoshi Tamagawa.
Dohyun Kim, Baritone
The winner of the Maurer Award, First Place, was Baritone, Dohyun Kim, the son of Jong Seo Kim. Dohyun is a graduating senior from James Bowie High School. He plans to attend the University of North Texas in the fall to pursue a major in opera performance. Dohyun’s teacher is Dr. Minkyung Lee, the Voice/Choir Instructor at Northwest Vista College in San Antonio. In addition to the Maurer Award, Dohyun also won the Sally Strawn Rudd Supplemental Award.
Rachel Cernosek, Flutist
The Putter Award, Second Place, was awarded to Rachel Cernosek, who plays the flute. Rachel is the daughter of Gary and Kerri Cernosek. Rachel is finishing her senior year at Cedar Park High School. This fall she will enter Texas Christian University to major in music education and flute performance. Her teacher is Ann Kjerulf Knien.
Jonathan Qi, Pianist
The Wilcox Award (9th through 11th grade students) First Place winner was Jonathan Qi, a student at Westwood High School and son of Song Jin and Zhuo Qi. His teacher is Dr. Betty Mallard.
Isabelle Hsiao, Pianist
The Second Place winner of the Wilcox Award was Isabelle Hsiao, who also plays the piano and is a fellow student at Westwood High School. Isabelle is the daughter of Julia Hsiao. Robert McDonald and Professor Anton Nel are Isabelle’s teachers.
Eliot Kim, a ninth-grader, is the first place winner of the Wilcox Award. He attends Westwood High School, and studies with William Dick. He played the second movement of the Second Violin Concerto by Henryk Wieniawski, with pianist Kiyoshi Tamagawa.
