Tuesday Musical announced today that 21 college and university music students in Ohio have won its 2023 Annual Scholarship Competition and will receive awards totaling $33,300.
Now in its 67th year, the 2023 adjudicated competition — held today at The University of Akron and Westminster Presbyterian Church (the latter for the organ category) — drew more than 120 applicants. Categories included music education, brass, marimba/classical steel pan, organ, piano, strings, voice, woodwinds, and classical guitar.
Tuesday Musical’s annual competition is widely recognized as the best of its kind in Ohio. Since starting the competition in 1955 with support from generous donors and volunteers, Tuesday Musical has awarded hundreds of scholarships ranging from $500 to $2,000 to talented students embarking on careers as music educators and performers.
Composer and pianist Jamie Wilding, a Tuesday Musical board member and faculty member at The University of Akron School of Music, chairs Tuesday Musical’s scholarship committee.
The first- and second-place winners in the performance categories are invited to perform in the competition’s Final Round/Winners Concert on Sunday, May 21, 2:30 p.m. at The University of Akron’s Guzzetta Recital Hall, 157 University Ave. Two additional adjudicated scholarships — one for $1,000 and one for $2,000 — will be awarded. The audience will also pick the winner of the John M. Ream Jr. DDS People's Choice Award of $500.
The May 21 concert and post-concert reception are free and open to the public.
An anchor arts organization founded in 1887, Tuesday Musical presents concerts by world-acclaimed musicians as well as education and community engagement programs throughout northeast Ohio. More at www.tuesdaymusical.org.
This year's applicants came from the colleges and universities pictured at right.
Tuesday Musical’s 2023 Scholarship Competition Winners
Brass — adjudicated by Hakeem Bilal, West Virginia University
1st Place, Arden J. Yockey Scholarship, $2,000: Alisa Crueger-Cain, trumpet, Cleveland Institute of Music
2nd Place, Tuesday Musical Scholarship, $1,500: Austin Cruz, trumpet, Cleveland Institute of Music
3rd Place, Tuesday Musical Scholarship, $1,000: Curtis McHenry, tuba, The University of Akron
Piano — adjudicated by Caroline Oltmanns, Youngstown State University
1st Place, Marilyn Fischer & Joan Marie Scherer Scholarship, $2,000: Matias Nestor Cuevas, Cleveland Institute of Music
2nd Place, Marguerite Thomas & Gertrude Lancaster Scholarship, $1,500: Bonhwi Kim, University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music
3rd Place, Clarenz J. Lightfritz Scholarship, $1,000: Jackson Hunt, Oberlin Conservatory of Music
Strings — adjudicated by Catherine Cosbey, Cavani String Quartet
1st Place, Drs. Frederick A. and Elizabeth M. Specht Scholarship, $2,000: Benjamin Mekinulov, cello, Cleveland Institute of Music
2nd Place, Tuesday Musical Scholarship, $1,500: Layang Ka, violin, University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music
3rd Place, Barbara Ainsworth Porter Scholarship, $1,000: Jocelyn Hartley, cello, Oberlin Conservatory of Music
Howard E. Leisinger Viola Prize, $2,000: Maureen Sheehan, viola, Oberlin Conservatory of Music
Voice — adjudicated by Misook Yun, Youngstown State University
1st Place, Arden J. Yockey Scholarship, $2,000: Kiana Lilly, soprano, Cleveland Institute of Music
2nd Place, Tuesday Musical Scholarship, $1,500: Lauryn Davis, soprano, University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music
3rd Place, Tuesday Musical Scholarship, $1,000: Stephen Stavnicky, bass baritone, Kent State University
Woodwinds — adjudicated by Robert Davis, Cleveland State University
1st Place, Arden J. Yockey Scholarship, $2,000: Alexander Miller, saxophone, Youngstown State University
2nd Place, Ann, Emily & Jeffrey Gleason/Travis & Caitlin Rea Scholarship, $1,500: Joshua Tuttle, saxophone, University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music
3rd Place, Tuesday Musical Scholarship, $1,000: AJ Neubert, bassoon, Oberlin Conservatory of Music
Classical Guitar — adjudicated by James Marron, The University of Akron
Margaret Watts Hunter Scholarship, $2,000: Nik Divall, Oberlin Conservatory of Music
Marimba/Classical Steel Pan — adjudicated by Tom Sherwood, The Cleveland Orchestra
Dr. Larry D. Snider Scholarship, $2,000: Dylan Catlin, The University of Akron
Organ — adjudicated by Daniel Laginya, St. Columba Cathedral
Audrey Mollard Scholarship, $2,000: Katherine Johnson, Oberlin Conservatory of Music
Music Education — adjudicated by Patricia Boehm, The University of Mount Union
Gertrude Seiberling Scholarship, sponsored by the Ohio Federation of Music Clubs, $1,400: Bethany Westphal, Case Western Reserve University
Winifred Collins Scholarship, sponsored by the Ohio Federation of Music Clubs, $1,400: Mary Jo Johnson, Cedarville University