VC LIVE | 2024 Primrose Viola Competition

Tune in from June 21 at 2 PM (ET) to watch the chamber music final round and June 22 at 7 PM (ET) for the concerto final round

We're coming to you LIVE from Los Angeles, California, for the 17th Primrose International Viola Competition. Presented by The Colburn School and the American Viola Society, the competition will take place on June 17-22, 2024 at Colburn School’s Zipper Hall. All rounds of the competition are open to the public, with tickets on sale in early 2024.

The winner will be announced during the awards ceremony held on June 22. The first prize winner will receive USD $15,000 as well as invitations to perform at the 2026 American Viola Society Festival and to participate in the semi-finals of the Concert Artists Guild Competition. The second prize winner will receive USD $10,000; the third prize winner will receive USD $5,000; the transcriptions prize winner will receive USD $1,000; and the Illumination Prize winner will receive USD $1,000 for best performance of a work by an underrepresented composer demographic.

The 3 finalists for this year's competition are:

• Andy Park (United States, 22, Yale University)
• Kinga Wojdalska (Poland, 25, Zurcher Hochschule der Kunste)
• Emad Zolfaghari (Canada, 19, Curtis Institute of Music)

More information for the competition can be found here.

 

COMPETITION SCHEDULE

FRIDAY, JUNE 21, 2024 | FINAL ROUND (CHAMBER MUSIC)

• 2:00 PM - 2:30 PM (ET) | Andy Park, viola | Denis Bouriakov, flute | Cristina Montes Mateo, harp
• 2:30 PM - 3:00 PM (ET) | Kinga Wojdalska, viola | Denis Bouriakov, flute | Cristina Montes Mateo, harp
• 3:00 PM - 3:30 PM (ET) | Emad Zolfaghari, viola | Denis Bouriakov, flute | Cristina Montes Mateo, harp    

The finalists will perform the entire Claude Debussy Trio for Flute, Viola, and Pedal Harp.

 

SATURDAY, JUNE 22, 2024 | FINAL ROUND CONCERTO & AWARDS CEREMONY

• 7:05 PM - 7:40 PM (ET) | BARTOK Viola Concerto | Emad Zolfaghari, viola 
• 7:50 PM - 8:25 PM (ET) | WALTON Viola Concerto | Andy Park, viola
• 8:25 PM - 9:00 PM (ET) | WALTON Viola Concerto | Kinga Wojdalska, viola
• 9:30 PM (ET) | AWARDS CEREMONY

The finalists will perform either the Bela Bartók Viola Concerto (ed. Serly) or William Walton Viola Concerto with the Primrose Festival Orchestra, conducted by Elias Peter Brown.

 

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 19, 2024 | SEMI FINAL ROUND

12:30 PM - 1:30 PM (ET) | Xunyu Zhou, viola | Barry Tan, piano

• J.S. BACH | Cello Suite No. 3, BWV 1009 (Prelude & Sarabande)
• NOKUTHULA NGWENYAMA | Remembrance
• REBECCA CLARKE | Sonata for Viola and Piano

1:30 PM - 2:30 PM (ET) | Otoha Tabata, viola | Inyoung Huh, piano

• NOKUTHULA NGWENYAMA Remembrance
• J.S. BACH Cello Suite No. 4, BWV 1010 (Prelude & Sarabande)
• JOHANNES BRAHMS Sonata for Viola and Piano No. 1 in F Minor, Op. 120

2:30 PM - 3:30 PM (ET) | Andy Park, viola | Barry Tan, piano

• NOKUTHULA NGWENYAMA Remembrance
• J.S. BACH Cello Suite No. 4, BWV 1010 (Prelude & Bourrèe I/II)
• JOHANNES BRAHMS Sonata for Viola and Piano No. 2 in E-flat Major, Op. 120

4:30 PM - 5:30 PM (ET) | Emad Zolfaghari, viola | Vivian Fan, piano

• NOKUTHULA NGWENYAMA Remembrance
• J.S. BACH Cello Suite No. 2, BWV 1008 (Prelude & Courante)
• YORK BOWEN Viola Sonata, Op.18 No.1

5:30 PM - 6:30 PM (ET) | Katie Liu, viola | Barry Tan, piano

• JOHANNES BRAHMS Sonata for Viola and Piano No. 2 in E-flat Major, Op. 120
• J.S. BACH Cello Suite No. 6, BWV 1012 (Allemand & Gigue)
• NOKUTHULA NGWENYAMA Remembrance

6:30 PM - 7:30 PM (ET) | Laura Liu, viola | Mitsuko Morikawa, piano

• NOKUTHULA NGWENYAMA Remembrance
• J.S. BACH Violin Sonata No. 1 in G Minor, BWV 1001 (1st & 2nd movements)
• GEORGE ROCHBERG Sonata for Viola and Piano

8:00 PM - 9:00 PM (ET) | Mao Konishi, viola | Ken Nakasako, piano

• NOKUTHULA NGWENYAMA Remembrance
• J.S. BACH Sonata for Violin Solo No. 1, BWV 1001 (1st and 2nd movements)
• PAUL HINDEMITH Sonata for Viola and Piano, No. 3

9:00 PM - 10:00 PM (ET) | Kinga Wojdalska, viola | Mitsuko Morikawa, piano

• NOKUTHULA NGWENYAMA Remembrance
• J.S. BACH Partita No. 2, BWV 1004 (1st & 2nd movements)
• SERGEI PROKOFIEV Romeo and Juliet (arr. Vadim Borisovsky) (Introduction, Juliet as a Young Girl, Dance of the Knights, Mercutio, Dance of Five Couples (Masks/Carnival), Death of Juliet)

 All semi-finalists will perform any two contrasting movements of a solo work by J.S. Bach, a commissioned work for viola and piano by composer Nokuthula Ngwenyama, and a major complete sonata for Viola and Piano.

 

COMPETITION SCHEDULE

MONDAY, JUNE 17, 2024 

1 PM - 4 PM (ET) | QUARTER FINAL ROUND

5 PM - 8 PM (ET) | QUARTER FINAL ROUND

8:30 PM - 10:30 PM (ET) | QUARTER FINAL ROUND

All quarter finalists will perform one major work for solo viola from the following list (Hindemith Viola Sonata No. 1, 2, 3 or 4, Any of the three Reger Suites for Solo Viola, or Krenek's Sonata for Viola Solo, Op. 92), one piece with piano accompaniment (either self-transcribed work or transcription by William Primrose, or any virtuosic piece), and one piece for viola by a BIPOC composer.

 

TUESDAY, JUNE 18, 2024 

1 PM - 3 PM (ET) | QUARTER FINAL ROUND

5 PM - 6 PM (ET) | QUARTER FINAL ROUND

All quarter finalists will perform one major work for solo viola from the following list (Hindemith Viola Sonata No. 1, 2, 3 or 4, Any of the three Reger Suites for Solo Viola, or Krenek's Sonata for Viola Solo, Op. 92), one piece with piano accompaniment (either self-transcribed work or transcription by William Primrose, or any virtuosic piece), and one piece for viola by a BIPOC composer.