WVS Youth Concerto & Composition Competition
Every year, the Willamette Valley Symphony celebrates the talent and creativity of young musicians through our Youth Concerto & Composition Competition.
Three outstanding young performers are selected as concerto competition winners and awarded a monetary prize, along with the opportunity to perform as a soloist with our orchestra.
Our competition also celebrates young composers. Through our Youth Composition Competition, selected student composers have the opportunity to hear their original music performed live by a symphony orchestra—bringing their musical ideas from the page to the concert stage.
Whether performing a beloved concerto or hearing an original composition come to life, this program gives young musicians an experience they can carry with them for years to come.
We are proud to support the next generation of musicians, composers, and artists in our community.
2026-2027 Season's Youth Competition
This year's Youth Concerto and Composition concert will be held on February 6 & 7, 2027. Video audition is due November 1, 2026. Finalists to perform a live audition on November 8 at Ashbrook Independent School.
General Guidelines
Who is qualified: School-age youth from the central Willamette Valley (Corvallis, Albany, and surrounding towns) of intermediate or advanced playing level. Able to perform one movement of a standard concerto for solo instrument and orchestra.
Audition Requirements: Students must be available to perform with the orchestra on February 6 & 7, 2027. Students must be able to rehearse with the orchestra for at least 3 rehearsals, which are held at Ashbrook Independent School on Sundays from 6-8:30 pm. Dress rehearsal is February 5 at 7 pm (required).
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Students will prepare a video of themselves playing one movement of a concerto for their instrument with piano accompanist.
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Deadline for video audition: November 1, 2026.
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Finalists will play live in front of a panel of judges on November 8, 2026.
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The audition piece should be the same piece that the student will be performing with the orchestra. Music choice is subject to approval by WVS Artistic Director. Music must have a published orchestral accompaniment and ideally 15 minutes or under.
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Memorization is encouraged, but not required.
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We are also encouraging young composers to submit a composition for symphony orchestra for consideration. Please contact WVS Artistic Director for guidance. (artisticdirector@willamettevalleysymphony.org)
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Application Email: Interested students should email Jim Martinez at executivedirector@willamettevalleysymphony.org and include:
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Name, age, and instrument
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Parent or guardian name (and cc: them on all emails)
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Title of concerto piece/composer/movement and length
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A statement that you will be eligible to perform with the orchestra on February 6th and 7th.
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A link to the YouTube video
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Concerto Competition Winners - 2025
David McDonald – Forsyth viola concerto (mvmt. I)
David McDonald first picked up the viola in 4th grade after his dad taught him how to hold it (possibly so David wouldn’t hold it like a guitar). Since then, he’s been trying very hard to convince people that the viola isn’t just a big violin.
Over the years, David has studied with several wonderful teachers — Nicole Atkinson, Abigail Stoughton, and now Anthea Kreston — who have all helped him become good enough to play pieces that make his parents cry (sometimes from emotion, sometimes from the practice hours). He currently holds the title of principal violist of the Corvallis Youth Symphony, which is a fancy way of saying he gets the best chair in the viola section.
David has been to All-State, got into All-Northwest (but didn’t go because of Oregon weather, naturally), and once took third place at state with a sextet — which, for the record, is six musicians playing together, not what you were thinking.
When he’s not practicing or going to 2–3 music camps a summer, David is also taking college classes at LBCC to graduate high school early, because apparently viola solos and regular school weren’t enough of a challenge.
He would like to thank his many teachers, parents, grandparents, and especially Blake and Sarah Perkins for welcoming him to Oregon and the music community. Without their support, he’d probably still be trying to tune his C string.
Tzippora Kreston-Duckles – Elgar cello concerto (mvmt. I)
When Tzippora was four, she was already a violinist. One day her mom ordered a pink cello on Amazon and Tzippy simply couldn’t go back. She played her little pink cello until she got good enough that her dad bought her a real cello. Tzippy and her family lived in Germany from 2016 to 2020 where she took lessons from her dad, Jason Duckles.
Right now, Tzippy plays in the Corvallis Youth Symphony as well as the Camerata Orchestra at Corvallis High School. Tzippy also plays in her family quartet, the Quartissimos, who perform together many times throughout the year. She doesn’t like to practice and she often puts it off until late at night, or “forgets” entirely, but she loves playing with her family and peers.
When she’s not playing cello, Tzippy likes to make ceramics, play video games, and cut her own hair. She also likes to sleep in and eat donuts, but everyone likes to do that so it doesn’t really count.
Tzippy spends summers playing in music camps like the Delgani String Quartet Academy, Inside Music Academy Chamber Music Workshop, and the Xenia Camp in Italy. Tzippy would like to thank her dad for introducing her to cello and conducting her youth symphony every Monday, Victoria Wolff for being her first real cello teacher after Covid, Sarah Perkins for being an amazing orchestra teacher during school and for choosing such cool pieces to play and Anne Ridlington for being a wonderful cello teacher, even though they spend most of their lessons gossiping and talking about true crime podcasts.
Tzippy would also like to thank all of her friends, family, teachers, and guinea pigs Poppy and Ophelia.
Shane Ong – Bruch violin concerto (mvmt. III)
Shane is an 11th-grade violinist at Crescent Valley High School and the Assistant Concertmaster for the Corvallis Youth Symphony. He started learning violin at age eleven, beginning his musical journey in the Elementary Strings program and has been a dedicated member of CYSA programs since. He has been selected for OMEA All-State and NAfME All-Northwest Orchestras and was a winner at the OMTA Baroque Festival for three consecutive years (2023-2025). Shane placed first at the 2025 OMEA District Solo and went on to compete at state level. He gives back to the music community as an Elementary Strings Assistant Teacher, and enjoys playing in the pit orchestra of CSD Theaters productions as a musician such as Cinderella, Newsies, and Oliver. Shane also enjoys playing chamber music and frequently attends summer ensemble programs.
Composition Competition Winner - 2025
Flash Inouye – "Thunder Mountain"
Flash is a sixth grader at Sellwood Middle School and a passionate young musician. His first original work, "Look at the Stars," was premiered by the Willamette Valley Symphony in 2024. A singer with Pacific Youth Choir, he represented his school in the PPS Honor Choir last year. As a cellist, he performs with the Metropolitan Youth Symphony and frequently appears with the Lewis & Clark Orchestra. In March 2025, he performed in the principal role of Danny in Portland Opera's production of the The Shining, Flash studies cello with Corey Averill, enjoys soccer and Taekwondo. "Thunder Mountain" serves as the overture to his in-progress opera, Thunder Rolling on the Mountain, a historical fiction tale about the Nez Perce tribe's quest for survival and freedom.
Concerto Competition Winners - 2025
Jason Han – Cello, Lalo Cello Concerto in D minor 1st Movement
Jason Han is a freshman at Crescent Valley High School in Corvallis, Oregon. He has been playing the cello for nine years and served as a principal in the Willamette Valley Junior Honor Symphony (2021-23) and is currently in the Corvallis Youth Symphony. An accomplished soloist, Jason won first place in the American Protégé International Piano & Strings Competition and first prize in the New York Laureate International Music Competition. He received second place at the Oregon Mozart Players Competition and earned a Silver medal in the Grand Metropolitan International Music Competition. In addition, he has won at several Oregon Music Teacher Association festivals and has performed as a soloist with Salem Philharmonia Orchestra.
Bethany Christensen – Violin, Lalo’s Symphonie Espagnole, 1st Movement
Bethany Christensen is a senior at Corvallis High School. She began playing the violin at the age of five, and has studied with an array of teachers, of which most recently is Jessica Lambert for the past four years. She has played in a variety of ensemble groups, including OMEA All-State and All-Northwest Symphonies; the Corvallis Youth Symphony, where she currently serves as Concertmaster; her school’s Honors Camerata Orchestra; and group ensembles, such as trios and quintets, that served as Corvallis High School’s representatives for competitions. Bethany has also competed in various contests including ASTA’s Solo Competition; OMTA’s Ensemble Festival, where she placed first; OMEA’s High School Solo Competition, where she ranked second at districts and tenth at state; and OMEA’s High School Ensemble Competition, where her ensemble placed third at state.
Bastian Sorenson – French Horn, Morceau De Concert by C. Saint Seans
Bastian Sorenson (French Horn) is a driven performer who is at home on the stage. A senior at Crescent Valley High School, Bastian is a Drum Major for the marching band. He has performed with numerous ensembles, including the Corvallis Youth Symphony, the Young Musicians and Artists summer band and orchestra camp, and the All-State Wind Ensemble. This summer, he toured Spain and Portugal with the Metropolitan Youth Symphony. When he’s not playing the horn, he’s likely to be found singing, dancing, acting, or doing all three at once in one of CSDTheaters’ yearly musicals at Corvallis High School. Bastian is also recognized nationally for his singing by the National Association of Teachers of Singing.
Composition Winners - 2024
Flash Inouye – Look At All the Stars
Ten year old Flash Inouye is a musician, athlete, and adventurer. Flash wrote his first composition at age 8 and has been composing avidly ever since. He plays the cello, is a member of the Metropolitan Youth Symphony, the Young Composers Project, and recently debuted in the cello section of the Lewis and Clark Orchestra. Flash also plays soccer and basketball and practices Taekwondo. He couldn’t be more excited about the world premiere of his original composition “Look at all the Stars.”
Abe’s love of sharing music began as a boy, performing violin for his great-grandmother. Along his musical journey, he has played in numerous honor groups, including the OMEA All-State Orchestra and NaFME All-Northwest Symphony Orchestra. He has competed at the state level for both violin and oboe, and recently performed Vieuxtemps’ 4th violin concerto as the winner of Corvallis Youth Symphony’s Young Soloists Competition. Abe has also appeared as a featured artist on All Classical Radio’s “On Deck With Young Musicians.” Currently, he serves as assistant concertmaster of CYS and concertmaster of the Corvallis Camerata Orchestra. As long as he’s been playing violin, Abe has also been writing melodies. He began his formal training in composition as a fellow in the Newport Youth Symphony Young Composers Symposium, and has had the honor of playing his pieces alongside the Camerata Orchestra, the Newport Symphony festival, and most recently, at the OSU PRaX Soundbox 7 International Music Festival.
Abe Tsai, Composer – La Esperanza
