Success Stories

Violinist Risa Hokamura (BM ‘24), a second year master’s student of Lucie Robert and Koichiro Harada, as well as a Young Concert Artist, has been named Career Grant Winner of Charlotte White’s Salon de Virtuosi 2025 in New York.

The Salon has discovered and supported an outstanding array of superb young artists through generous grants and unforgettable concerts at some of New York’s most exclusive and beautiful venues, including the consulates in New York City of many countries from around the world.

Past winners include musicians such as Gil Shaham, The St. Lawrence String Quartet, and Lang Lang.

At the age of 10, Risa Hokamura began capturing top prizes in competitions in Japan. She won the 2018 International Violin Competition of Indianapolis, and First Prize in the 2018 Young Concert Artists International Auditions at the age of 17.

More about Risa Hokamura here.

MSM alumni Ye In Kwak (MM ’24), Yeongtaek Yang (MM ’24), and Hannah Jeané Jones (MM ’24) have been selected to return for a second year to the prestigious Metropolitan Opera Lindemann Young Arts Development Program (LYADP).

Founded in 1980, the LYADP is regarded as one of the world’s most prominent training programs for emerging opera talent.

Meet the full roster of 14 talented artists for the 2025-26 season here.

Ariela stars as Elle Woods and also serves as a producer of the production. The cast features current MSM MT students Gianna DiTucci (BM ’26) in the ensemble; Aidan Olma (BM ’27) as Warner Huntington III; and Victoria Walker (BM ’26) as Serena.

Ariela helped transform Sceneworks from a family-run production house into a “full-blown local powerhouse.” In partnership with Bergen Community College, this production had just fourteen days or “two weeks to tumble, fly, memorize lines, harmonize, jump rope in sync, and rehearse with live dogs.” These jam-packed weeks even included a master class with the original Broadway Elle Woods, Laura Bell Bundy.

Read more about the production and get your tickets here!

MSM accompanying piano alumna Kimberly Grigsby (‘93) has been named as the inaugural Music Director of the new Sexton Institute for Musical Theatre. Grigsby will assume her role on August 1, as the Sexton Institute begins recruiting its first cohort of 10 students to commence classes in fall 2026.

In a news release, SMU Meadows School of the Arts writes:

“With an extensive professional history of participating in the development of original work, Grigsby will support the Sexton Institute’s mission of equipping students not only to perform established work, but also to create new works from the ground up.”

More information here.

MSM classical composition alumnus David Handler (BM ‘04), a contemporary composer and violinist, is featured this week in Entrepreneur magazine, talking about his successful and highly respected NYC music venue (Le) Poisson Rouge in Greenwich Village “a place to experience music unlike any other in New York City”, which he started in 2008 with another MSM alumnus Justin Kantor (BM ‘02), who studied classical cello at MSM.

Read the interview here.

MSM oboe faculty member Ryan Roberts has been appointed by the Los Angeles Philharmonic as the orchestra’s principal oboe and Carol Colburn Grigor Chair. A Santa Monica High School alum, he returns to Southern California after serving as solo cor anglais at the New York Philharmonic and principal oboe with the Festival Orchestra of Lincoln Center.

He has also played with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Philadelphia Orchestra, San Francisco Symphony, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, and National Symphony Orchestra.

As an educator, Roberts is a member of the oboe faculty at the Manhattan School of Music, Bard College Conservatory of Music and Mannes School of Music. Additionally, he has given masterclasses and seminars at The Juilliard School, San Francisco Conservatory of Music, New World Symphony, Lynn University, and more.

Learn more about the appointment here.
Learn more about Ryan Roberts here.

MSM Jazz Arts faculty member Jon Faddis along with trumpeter Randy Brecker share the stage at Tanglewood’s Seiji Ozawa Hall (in photo above) in Lenox, Massachusetts on July 20, along with MSM alumnus Benny Benack III (BM ‘13, MM ‘15) and Bria Skonberg – and with the trio of MSM alumnus and faculty member Ted Rosenthal (BM ’81, MM ’83).

On the program will be the music of trumpet legends Dizzy Gillespie, Miles Davis, Louis Armstrong, and others.

In addition, the concert will feature the vocals of Benack and Skonberg who have toured together with Jazz at Lincoln Center, and follow up here on last September’s sold-out Linde Center performance at Tanglewood of Rosenthal’s Bernstein & Bop: A Saxophone Colossus.

More information and tickets can be found here.

The acclaimed composer, conductor, and saxophonist Jim Saltzman has been appointed Dean of Jazz Arts at MSM, succeeding Ingrid Jensen who has led MSM Jazz Arts since July 2020 (Ms. Jensen will remain on the MSM faculty). He will assume the role effective July 1, 2025.

Hailed by the Boston Globe as a “postmodern jazz saxophonist [who] plays with passion and intensity” and by All Music as “a force to be reckoned with,” Dr. Saltzman has taught at MSM for 14 years (starting on the Precollege faculty in 2011 and joining the Jazz Arts faculty in 2015).

“A superb teacher with a durable track record on the MSM Jazz Arts faculty and an artist whose impressive musicianship and inventiveness continue to inspire, Jim will provide a smooth transition into a new era of Jazz Arts at Manhattan School of Music, one that builds on a learning environment characterized by generosity of spirit and artistic excellence,” says MSM President James Gandre.

Read the full news release here.

Violinist SoHyun Ko (BM ’27) a student at MSM of Pinchas Zukerman and Patty Kopec, was selected from 107 applicants to participate in the Paganini Competition (Premio Paganini). Only 24 individuals were chosen to take part in the competition; the first prize winner will receive €30.000, a series of engagements at many prestigious concert venues both national and international, and, for the first time, a recording contract with the Platoon label.

The 58th Premio Paganini International Violin Competition will be held in Genoa, Italy, from October 14 –26, 2025.

Learn more about the competition here.
Learn more about Sohyun Ko here.

MSM Vocal Arts alumnus, basso profondo Edwin Jhamaal Davis (MM ’17), is featured as the Commander in the cast in an off-Broadway production of Mozart’s Don Giovanni: A Rock Opera. Performances take place at The Cutting Room at 44 East 32nd Street; the production opens on June 30 and runs through August 26. Mozart’s Don Giovanni: A Rock Opera is sung in English and is backed by a rock orchestra.

Last season, Mr. Davis made his house débuts in X: The Life & Times of Malcolm X with The Metropolitan Opera as Garvey Preacher and with the Seattle Opera as Bass 2, a role he reprised in the previous season with Opera Omaha. He recently made his New Orleans Opera début as Angelotti in Tosca and returned to Seattle Opera as the Second Armored Man in Die Zauberflöte, and joined Opera Grand Rapids as the King in Aida.

Buy tickets and learn more here.
Learn more about Edwin Jhamaal Davis here.

MSM Orchestral Performance percussion alumnus Tarun Bellur (MM ’22, PS ’23) has been named Principal Percussionist of the New York City Ballet Orchestra.

Tarun Belluris a percussionist, timpanist, and educator based in New York City. A native of Dallas, TX, Tarun has performed with a variety of ensembles such as the New York Philharmonic, Harlem Chamber Players, Uptown Philharmonic, Civic Orchestra of Chicago, the Eugene Symphony Orchestra, and the Kansas City Orchestra, in a variety of venues including Carnegie Hall and Symphony Hall in Chicago. He spent summers with the Spoleto Music Festival and the Round Top Music Festival.

Clarinetist David Krakauer, who teaches in MSM’s Woodwinds and Contemporary Performance programs, is La Notte della Taranta’s 2025 guest “Maestro Concertatore” with the festival’s Orchestra Popolare.

The world-renowned festival tours municipalities in the Salento region of southern Italy for several weeks in August and culminates in a free concert on August 23 in the town of Melpignano with an audience of more than 150,000. The festival celebrated “the traditional Pizzica dance and music, fused with modern influences, creating an electrifying atmosphere.”

David will also be performing solo and chamber music performances and holding educational residencies in Italy and France in June and July.

For information on all of David Krakauer’s summer events, visit his website here. For details on Le Notte della Taranta festival tour, visit the event’s website here. For details on the final concert on August 23, visit this page.

MSM Musical Theatre alumna Jasmine Amy Rogers (‘19) won a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Lead Performance in a Musical for her role in BOOP! THE MUSICAL at the Drama Desk Awards 2025, presented on June 1.

Jasmine plays the iconic 1930s cartoon character Betty Boop in the production; she tied for the award with Audra McDonald, the star of GYPSY.

Jasmine is also nominated for a Tony Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical; the awards will be presented in New York on Sunday, June 8.

Read the full list of Drama Desk award winners here.

MSM faculty member, Susan Botti and five MSM students and alumni were hosted by the Conservatorio di Turin last month thanks to funding from the Italian Ministry of University and Research — MSM faculty and students participated in extended lessons, workshops, a special analysis class, and performed in a concert.

Student conductor Emily Frederick led a concert as well as a Brass Band rehearsal, receiving feedback from Turino faculty. Ariana Mascari and Tiffany Leard were featured performers in concert; they premiered two works, one by a recent graduate of the Turino Conservatorio and one by MSM faculty emeritus, Nils Vigeland.

MSM Composition students, Tongyu Lu and Daniel Powers had their compositions read by students from Turino Conservatory as well as extra lessons on their musical instruments.

 MSM is grateful to the Turino Conservatory, especially Director Francesco Pennarola and Faculty member Susan Botti for giving our students this enriching collaborative experience.

In photo, left to right:

Tongyu Lu, Tiffany Leard, Daniel Powers, Francesco Pennarola (Director, Torino Conservatory), Susan Botti, Ariana Mascari, Emily Frederick.

Recent MSM graduate Nathan McKinstry (MM ’24, PS ’25) from State College, Pennsylvania, studied classical trumpet at MSM with David Krauss in the Orchestral Performance program, and has been awarded the 2nd trumpet position with the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra. 

In photo: Nathan McKinstry, on left, poses with MSM faculty member David Krauss. David Krauss joined the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra as Principal Trumpet in 2001 and occupies the Beth W. and Gary A. Glynn endowed chair.

Nian-Yi Huang, third-year DMA candidate and long-time MSM piano student of MSM faculty member Jeffrey Cohen, won third prize at the respected Weatherford College International Piano Competition held in Texas last month.

“Nian-Yi was one of the 12 finalists selected from 207 pianists representing 25 countries. He gave a brilliant performance in the final round, and he represented our school with great distinction. Bravo to Nian-Yi!” says Jeffrey Cohen.

Nian-Yi’s previous awards include winning the Grand Prize at the 2019 International Academy of Music competition in Italy, and First Prize at the 2022 G. Gershwin International Music Competition. He became the youngest classical pianist signed by the leading Chinese piano company Hailun Pianos in 2020

Watch Nian-Yi’s performance at the competition here.
More information on the competition here.
Watch an interview with Nian-Yi after the competition results were announced here.

MSM Artist Diploma alumnus Itamar Zorman (AD ’10) appointment as Associate Professor of Music in Violin at The Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University Bloomington is effective on August 1. He was a 2013 recipient of the Avery Fisher Career Grant and silver medalist of the 2011 Tchaikovsky International Violin Competition.

Itamar performed as a soloist with such orchestras as the Mariinsky Orchestra, Israel Philharmonic, New World Symphony, KBS Symphony Seoul, Frankfurt Radio Symphony, and German Radio Philharmonic, among others. At MSM, he was a student of Sylvia Rosenberg.

Read more about the appointment in The Strad here.
Learn more about Itamar Zorman here.

Soprano Jasmine Ismail (MM ’21, PS ’22), a student of Ruth Golden at MSM, has been admitted to the 2025–26 class of the Academy of Vocal Arts (AVA) Resident Artists in Philadelphia.

Since 1980, more than 50 AVA alumni have joined the Metropolitan Opera’s roster and are heard in the world’s great opera houses every season.

See Jasmine’s Instagram post about the appointment here.

MSM student Xinchen Jia (BM ‘27) studies piano at MSM with Inesa Sinkevych, the Co-Head of the MSM Piano Department. At the inaugural Shanghai International Forte Yearly Music Festival and Competition held at Harvard University in Boston, on May 11, Xinchen Jia was awarded the Gold Prize in the piano category after performing at the festival opening concert at Lehman Hall. He also won a Grand Prize.

“Professor José Ramos Santana, piano professor at NYU Steinhardt and Chair of the Piano Department at The Hartt School, University of Hartford, as well as Professor Boaz Sharon, piano professor at Boston University and Director of the Piano Department at the Boston University Tanglewood Institute, gave me high praise and took commemorative photos with me,” reports Xinchen Jia about performing at the event.

More information about the festival here.

The jazz ensemble Kollage from Manhattan School of Music won “Best Billie Holiday Arrangement” in the 2025 Keep an Eye International Jazz Awards hosted by the Conservatorium von Amsterdam on April 16.

The MSM students forming Kollage are, from left to right in photo: Shogo Ellefson (BM ‘25), double bass;  Sarahfina Osei Nopper (MM ‘26), vocals;  Cameron Sewell-Snyder (MM ‘25), saxophone; Stone Cornelius (BM ‘25), percussion; and Olivier van Niekerk (MM ‘25), guitar.

The annual competition brings together outstanding young musicians from leading music institutions, this year showcasing Escola Superior de Música de Catalunya (Barcelona, Spain), Jazz Performance Programme NTNU (Trondheim, Norway), Berklee College of Music (Boston, USA), Manhattan School of Music (New York, USA), and the Conservatorium van Amsterdam.

The theme of this 15th edition was ’Celebrating Billie Holiday 110 years’; all bands arranged and performed their own version of one out of 10 selected compositions made famous by the American jazz vocalist and composer.

More information on the winners can be found here.

Award-winning composer and violist Jessica Meyer has been commissioned by the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra to write a composition for their orchestra. The world premiere will be held on October 25 at Carnegie Hall.

Jessica’s works have been performed in venues from the Kennedy Center to Carnegie Hall, by musicians of the Minnesota Orchestra and the New York Philharmonic, and by orchestras around the country. Upcoming premieres include a work for MET Opera tenor Paul Appleby and the Claremont Trio, a viola and piano work commissioned by Juilliard Pre-college, a new orchestral piece “Turbulent Flames” to be performed by a consortium of orchestras across the United States.

The Orpheus Chamber Orchestra is offering free tickets to all concerts in its 2025-26 season including the Carnegie Hall concert on October 25 featuring the premiere of Jessica’s commission. Visit the Orchestra’s website for more information here.

Learn more about Jessica Meyer here.

Metropolitan Opera violinist and MSM alumna Julia Choi (PS ‘17), who is also a MSM Precollege faculty member, is featured in the Spring 2025 issue of the health and wellness publication Real Woman. In the interview, Julia speaks about her career and perseverance to pursue her dreams as a professional violinist.

Julia tells the publication: “I always felt the need to prove myself every day. I always strived to be better than I was yesterday. And a little bit better than the next day. I think all my friends from college would tell you I was the hardest working friend that they knew.”

The magazine is published by Capital Health and is distributed to 55,000 readers in the affluent New Jersey and Pennsylvania suburbs of Princeton, Hopewell, Lambertville, Skillman, New Hope, Newtown, and Yardley.

Read the article here.

The Violin Channel reports about the new appointment of MSM Vocal Arts alumna Barbara Lynne Jamison (MM ‘98) to the leadership of Opera Colorado commencing on August 1, 2025:

“Barbara Lynne Jamison will succeed Greg Carpenter, who has led Opera Colorado as general and artistic director for nearly two decades. Carpenter will be stepping down at the end of the 2024/25 season.

Having served as CEO of Kentucky Opera for the past seven years, Jamison was selected following a national search conducted by Management Consultants for the Arts in partnership with Opera Colorado’s Board of Directors.

She will officially join Opera Colorado on August 1, 2025, but will begin working with the company during the leadership transition this spring and summer.

In previous roles, Jamison has served on the senior leadership teams at Seattle Opera and the Metropolitan Opera Guild. She is also an accomplished soprano, conductor, and educator.”

Learn more here.

On May 23, MSM piano faculty member Wael Farouk will be performing Rachmaninoff’s 3rd piano concerto with the renowned Xiamen Philharmonic Orchestra, one of the top orchestras in China, and the only non-state-owned and self-financing orchestra in the country. The image above is the promotional poster for the event.

Egyptian-American pianist Wael Farouk has performed internationally in such venues as the White Hall in St. Petersburg, Schumann’s House in Leipzig, and Carnegie Hall in New York, where his solo debut in 2013 was described as “absolutely masterful.” He has been a faculty member at MSM since 2021.

Learn more about Wael Farouk here.

Calder Failla (BM ’28) (in photo above on left) has been named the Regional Winner for the collegiate division of the NANM 2025 Scholarship Competition for Piano, and will be competing at the NANM National Convention that will be held in Detroit from July 12—17. Calder first won the local division in New York City, then went on to win the regional division on April 24.

The keynote speaker for the National Convention this year is piano alumnus Leah Claiborne (BM ‘12) (in photo on right) who studied at MSM with Marc Silverman.

The National Association of Negro Musicians, founded in 1919, is considered a significant organization for African American musicians. It has played a key role in supporting black musicians through scholarships, performance opportunities, and a focus on both classical and jazz traditions. NANM also aimed to preserve and encourage the music of the African Diaspora.

More information about the National Convention of the National Association of Negro Musicians here.
Information about the NANM competition here.

MSM Musical Theatre alumna Jasmine Amy Rogers (‘19) has been nominated for a Tony Award for “Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical” for her role as iconic 1930s cartoon character Betty Boop in BOOP! The Musical. The awards take place on June 8.

Jasmine has also received a Drama Desk Award nomination for “Outstanding Lead Performance in a Musical”; BOOP! The Musical leads the number of Drama Desk nominations at 11.

Read our blog post showcasing raves from the press for Jasmine’s performance here.

The prestigious Miami International Piano Festival is calling MSM piano student Dmitry Yudin (MM ‘25) “a master and astonishing virtuoso” in their online reviews. The article comes after his appearance at the Miami International Piano Festival.

“Dmitry Yudin’s debut surpassed all expectations. He tackled a terrifyingly virtuosic program with authority and musicality,” writes reviewer Giselle Brodsky. “His imagination and sensitivity were on display throughout the whole concert, creating one of the most memorable debuts in the festival’s history… His concert was unforgettable, and we eagerly await his return.”

Read the full review here.

MSM violin faculty member Lucie Robert has been named president of the jury of the newly launched 2025 Bogotá International Violin Competition that will be taking place in Colombia from October 31 to November 7 at the Auditorio Fabio Lozano and the Teatro Mayor Julio Mario Santo Domingo. The competition is open to violinists of all nationalities up to the age of 30 as of May 31, 2025.

The Bogotá International Violin Competition aims to promote excellence in violin performance, and position Bogotá as a leading classical music hub in Latin America; it also hopes to inspire the young people of Bogotá’s “Vamos a la Filarmónica” programs.

Lucie Robert has also been named president of the International Jury for Violin 2026 of the Concours International de Montréal, a prestigious competition where the international elite of the new generation of classical musicians compete.

Learn more about the Bogotá International Violin Competition here.
Learn more about the Concours International de Montréal here.

Essential Voices USA has released a new choral album entitled Listen to the World. The ensemble Essential Voices USA is led by Music Director and Conductor Judith Clurman, who teaches voice and ensemble voice for the MSM Musical Theatre program.

The recording features compositions by Judith Clurman, Matthew Sklar, and Robert Sirota, with texts by William Schermerhorn and Victoria R. Sirota, and as themes, addresses pressing global challenges including environmental preservation, immigration, and human connection.

The recording on Albany records can be streamed on all platforms. It was produced and engineered by Silas Brown. The published scores will be available at Hal Leonard this summer.

Learn more here.

Kyrese Washington (MM ’25) a classical flute student of Valerie Coleman has won first prize at the Atlanta Flute Club Young Artists Competition. The program performed included their original work, Poem.

Kyrese has had a number of high-profile accomplishments during their study at MSM, including winning first prize at the New York Flute Club in April ‘25, The Rochester Flute Association’s Young Artist Competition in 2024, and The Raleigh Area Flute Association Young Artist Competition in 2023.

Notes Valerie Coleman: “Special thanks to MSM Woodwind Chair Linda Chesis, who has played a big role in Kyrese’s growth through her leadership as chair, her coaching in chamber music and woodwind classes, and also to Monica Ellis!”

Upcoming events for Kyrese include performing in a winner’s recital at the New York Flute Club, a MSM graduation recital on April 24, a showcase performance at the National Flute Association Convention in August with the world premiere of a new flute ensemble composition.

Learn more about Kyrese here.