(Posted
3 p.m., March 8)
Top students showcased at First Class Honours concert
By Fred Sherwin
Orléans Online
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Siblings
Alexandre, Emily and Charlotte Hou with their
GMTA First Class Honours awards following
last night's recital. Fred Sherwin/Photo
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The
Gloucester Music Teachers Association held its annual First
Class Honours recital at Orléans United Church Saturday
night, showcasing some of the GMTA's top students.
The
90-minute concert was kicked off by 13-year-old violinist
Nyah Lavoie who won the GMTA scholarship at last year's
Kiwanis Music Festival.
Lavoie
first started playing the violin when she was just four-years-old
and her dedication to her craft was evident for all to
hear during her performance of "Polish Dance"
by Edmund Severn.
Among
the performers on the First Class Honours program were
three siblings from Orléans who all share a passion
for music, and in particular, the piano. On Saturday night
they shared something else, they all received awards for
finishing at the top of their class in their respective
grade levels.
Charlotte
Hou, 7, received a 91 on her Grade 3 Royal Conservatory
of Music exam. Her brother Alexander, 10, received a 95
on his Grade 4 exam, and their older sister Emily, 13,
was the evening's only double recipient, receiving the
Grade 8 performamce award and the award for advanced rudiments.
Although
all three siblings had received First Class Honours awards
in the past, this is the first time that all three had
received them in the same year.
Other
First Class Honours award recipients included Vinutha
Dittakovi for Preparatpry A; Athena Liao for Preparatory
B; Grace Li received the Grade 1 award; Noah Lau the Grade
2 award; Maria Rechner the Grade 5 award; Micaela Taing
received the Grade award; Samuel Champagne, Bonnie Chin
and Camille Riopelle tied for the Grade 7 award; Yaying
Chi and Angelina Zhang tied for the Grade 9 award; and
Amy Li received the Grade 10 prize.
Most
of the recipients also performed during the recital. Some
of the highlights included Emily Hou's performance of
Chopin's Prelude in D-flat Major opus 28, #15; Irene Grose's
rendition of Liebestraum No. 3 by Franz Lizt; Yaying Chi's
interpretation of Romance op 24, no. 9 by Finnish composer
Jean Sibelius; and Reta-Anne McKay's vocal performance
of "The Path to the Moon".
My
personal favourites were Bonnie Chin's performance of
Divenire by contemporary Italian composer Ludovico Eiaudi;
Amy Li's rendition of Mozart's Sonata in C Major (I) K
309; and Kevin Yang's impeccable performance of Mendelssohn's
"Andante and Rondo Capriccioso" which brought
the magical evening to perfect denouement.
Many
of the young musicians who performed Saturday night will
be participating in the upcoming Kiwanis Music Festival
which will take place at various venuees around the city
between April 6 and May 2. For a list of dates and venues
visit www.ottawakiwanismusicfestival.com.
(This
story was made possible thanks to the generous support of
our local business partners.)
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