Classical Futures performers

 Dec. 4, 2011

John Chan studies piano with Professor Marilyn Engle of the University of Calgary. He has been a member of Conservatory's Academy for Gifted Youth since 2005. In May of 2011 he participated in the 2011-2012 Pro Musica Society's Young Artists Development Program, and has been highly successful in numerous local and national competitions including taking first place 3 times in the Canadian Music Competition. In 2010 and 2011, John participated at the Academie de Musique Internationale (ACMUIN). Through this program, he performed frequently in Vaison la Romaine, France.

John has a great passion for French music, especially that of Franck and Faure, and is also interested in the music of Edvard Grieg and Scriabin. He spends his free time admiring the wilderness (especially in winter), and studying dreams and philosophy. 

Luka Coetzee, age 6, was born in Brooks, Alberta and began playing cello at age one, with ‘lessons’ provided by her two older sisters and their teacher, Christine Bootland. At three Luka joined the Medicine Hat Junior String Orchestra and a year later, the Mount Royal Conservatory Academy program, with John Kadz as her teacher. Luka currently splits her time between Medicine Hat and Calgary, taking lessons with both Christine and John. She also plays in the Pre-Chamber String orchestra and participates in chamber groups, recitals, master classes, and in various summer string camps in BC and Alberta.

Luka also studies piano, beginning lessons at three with Shauna Kohls-Walters and now with Derek Chiu in Calgary. Luka has participated in local, provincial and national festivals for both cello and piano, winning numerous awards and scholarships. 

Yan Li, age 12, has been studying violin since she was five years old. When she turned nine, she joined the Academy program at the Mount Royal University Conservatory and began studying with William van der Sloot. Although still very young, she has participated in concerts, chamber music, orchestra ensembles, summer camps, competitions, and master classes. She was a featured performer for the Feast of Sound & Song and this year won first prize in the junior division at the Alberta Provincial Festival and second prize in the Canadian Music Competition. In 2011 she was one of the few young violinists selected from Canada to participate in the prestigious Morningside Music Bridge Program in Calgary.

Besides playing the violin, she enjoys acting, going to concerts, playing soccer, and swimming.

Stephen Nguyen, 14 year-old pianist, studies at the Mount Royal Conservatory with Glen Montgomery and participates in the Academy of Music program for the past four years.

In the past two years, Stephen has earned the highest marks of any pianist in any age category for the Canadian Music Competitions. He was winner of the Alberta Provincial Music Festival, and was recently awarded a $10,000 scholarship from the Alberta Foundation for the Performing Arts. Stephen began his studies at the Mount Royal Suzuki program at age five and in 2005 started lessons with Glen Montgomery, professor at the University of Lethbridge and Mount Royal Conservatory.

Stephen's is honoured to be performing as guest artist at the Festival of the Sound in Ontario 2012.

Angela Ryu is 12 years old and began playing the violin at the age of five. She started in the Suzuki method with Daphne Hughes in New Denver B.C., and at the age of five years later, when her family moved to Calgary, she began to study with Aleksandra van der Sloot at the Mount Royal Conservatory. This year she is studying with William van der Sloot, and participating in the Academy for gifted youth.

Angela likes to draw, read, and get involved with many sports. 

Joshua Ryu is a 14-year-old violinist. He began his violin studies in the Suzuki method with Daphne Hughes in New Denver, BC and at the age of 11 began studying with William van der Sloot at the Mount Royal Conservatory. A year later, his family moved from New Denver to Calgary, and he auditioned for and enrolled in the Academy program for gifted youth, in order to allow him to study music full time.

Besides Violin, Joshua enjoys swimming, sports and watching movies.

Alicia Venables, 18, studies violin at the Conservatory with William van der Sloot, is participating in the Advanced Performance Program, and in her first year of the Music Performance Diploma at Mount Royal.

In addition to her violin studies, Alicia has also studied the piano since the age of three. She has competed well in Provincial Music Festivals, Silver Medal Recipient, Selected to National Arts Centre, Young Artists Programme and the winner of the Kamloops Symphony (KSO) Award resulting from the winning concerto competition at Kamloops Performing Arts Festival. Her performances have earned her critiques "A Concerto's Equal" and "The Virtuoso's Triumph". As a well-rounded musician, she also plays Celtic, Swing Ethnic music in a family trio which has been annually scheduled on the Kids Stage of Interiors Provincial Exhibition.

Paul van der Sloot, age 16, was born in Medicine Hat, AB, and has lived in Calgary for the past 13 years. He comes from a musical family, with four siblings, two of whom are studying for their music degrees in the USA.

Paul started studying cello at seven years with John Kadz at the Conservatory. He has won many awards and scholarships ranging from local festivals, to provincial and national competitions. He is an active member of many chamber ensembles and has participated in the prestigious Morningside Music Bridge program for the past few summers.

Praised for his sound and colourful interpretations, Paul has attracted many with his playing. Paul also has a keen interest in producing electronic music, as well as video gaming, mountain biking, hockey, and football. 

Colleen Venables, 15, studies violin with William van der Sloot at the Conservatory, and piano with Lucy Feldman of the Vernon Community Music School. She has participated in many provincial and national festivals and competitions and has recently been accepted into the 2012 Beijing Menuhin Competition.

Colleen participated in the 2009 Young Artists Programme in Ottawa as well in 2009, 2010 and 2011 in the Morningside Music Bridge. Colleen’s solo performances include: featured guest artist with the Vancouver Symphony, Okanagan Symphony “Our Future” Production, Canada Day Orchestra in Kelowna and as a guest performer at the 2010 “Canada’s Rising Stars” concert in Canmore with pianist Susanne Ruberg-Gordon. She performed at the 2010 Western Canadian Music Awards Concert with pianist, Alicia Venables and at 2011 International Children’s Games opening ceremony in the host city Kelowna.

Jenny Zhong, 14, began playing the piano at five in her homeland of China and continued her studies when her family moved to Canada two years later.

Jenny has studied with several different teachers, and for the last three years, her teacher has been Alexandra Andrievsky and is a student in the Academy for gifted Youth. Jenny had participated in many festivals and competitions, including Kiwanis, featured as a Start of the Festival in 2010 and Canadian Music Competition, where she placed second. Jenny is currently working towards her ARCT (Diploma) in Piano Performance.

In school, Jenny plays clarinet in her grade 9 band, is the Intermediate band librarian, and a member of the music council of the band. Other than music, Jenny also enjoys swimming, reading, and ping-pong.

Feb. 5, 2012

Vivian Mark, 15, began playing violin at age five and viola at age 10. She is a senior violist at the Academy for gifted youth, and studies with Bill van der Sloot and Akiko Tominaga. Additionally, she has studied with Mr. Gerald Stanick and host of international artists through her participation in the Academy and the Morningside Music Bridge.

Recipient of the Stuart Holland Memorial award at Music Bridge, Vivian has received many awards in both provincial and national competitions including 2011 the Calgary Rotary Medal, best performance in strings solo, eighteen and under.

An active youth, Vivian wrestled in the Alberta Winter Games 2010 and 2012 and as a Junior Dino at the U of C, she is training to qualify at the Cadet/Juvenile Nationals in Fredericton, NB and becoming an Olympic hopeful. Member of the Alberta Kung Fu Association she performs in many demonstrations in Forms and Sparring across Alberta.

Bryn Wiley was born in March of 1994 in Calgary. He began music studies at age 5, and completed his ARCT with the Royal Conservatory of Music in 2009. His past musical achievements include winning many Kiwanis music festival scholarships and awards including the GE Porterfield Memorial Medal for contemporary music and recommendation to the Alberta Provincial Music Festival 2011. He also placed second in the national finals of the Canadian Music Competition last year. He was selected to play in the Honens Masterclass Series in 2006, and as a Winner of the 2010 C3 concerto competition was selected to play with the Calgary Civic Symphony. He has also recently played with the Calgary Civic Symphony in their most recent Christmas concert. Bryn is currently studying with Mr. Dale Jackson and is a senior at the Mount Royal Music Conservatory Academy program. Bryn’s other interests include cross country and long distance track and field running. He is presently in grade 12 at William Aberhart High School in Calgary.

Eva Aronian, 16, was born in Montreal, Quebecand moved with her family to Calgary in 1997. She began studying the violin at age four with Fiona Carnie and is now studies with William van der Sloot at the Mount Royal Conservatory.

For the over 10 years, she has participated annually in both the Kiwanis Music Festival and the Canadian Music Competition (CMC), winning many national awards and scholarships. In March of 2010, Eva won the Calgary Concerto Competition and had the privilege of playing the Saint-Saens Concerto in B minor as a soloist with the Calgary Civic Symphony.

Eva has spent her summers studying with the internationally respected violinsts; Pinchas Zukerman, Agnes Grossman, Raffi Armenian and David Visentin.

Eva is an Academy student at the Conservatory, and is a member of the Calgary Youth Orchestra. In June of 2011, she received her Royal Conservatory of Music ARCT Performer’s Diploma.

Mari Coetzee, 15, began playing cello at age five with Christine Bootland. For the last five years she has also been studying with John Kadz at the Conservatory and is currently in the Advanced Performance Program at Mount Royal University.

Mari has participated in many local, provincial and national festivals winning numerous awards. Last May, Mari won first prize in cello 16 and under in Alberta's Provincial music festival. In 2010 her quartet won the Medicine Hat Rotary Music Festival Rose Bowl trophy and this year Mari was runner up for this award. Twice she also received a silver medal for RCM grade 6 and 8 examinations. Mari participated in the Canadian Music Competition three times making it to the national round each time and has performed twice with an orchestra. In 2011 Mari was accepted in the prestigious Morningside Music Bridge program in Calgary.

She also loves playing piano, reading, swimming and going to concerts.

Claire Yu, 16, began studying piano at the age of five, studies with Colleen Athparia and is a senior Academy student. She has studied with world-class musicians such as Anton Kuerti, Stephen Kovacevich, Jean-Paul Sevilla, Jean-Efflam Bavouzet, and Jon Kimura Parker. Claire completed her ARCT RCM exam at 14 and received first class honours with distinction. She has won numerous awards and scholarships at the Kiwanis Music Festival, and has been recognized at the national level as a finalist for the past four years at the Canadian Music Competition. Claire also excels academically as a student in the International Baccalaureate programme at Sir Winston Churchill High School and was selected as the Master of Ceremonies for the Remembrance Day Assembly. She is a member of her school’s Model United Nations team where she was awarded Honourable Mention by the U of C in 2011. Last May, Claire made her orchestral debut with the Calgary Civic Symphony as one of the winners of the Calgary Concerto Competition.

Sarah Bleile ,16, has been playing violin since she was 3. She studies with Bill van der Sloot and is enrolled in the Advanced Performance Program. Sarah has participated in the Kiwanis Festival for many years and has won numerous awards including the Alberta Provincial Finals. Sarah has worked with such outstanding artists as Gwen Hoebig, Rennie Regher, Gerardo Ribiero, Ian Swensen, Elaine Klimasko, Tadeusz Gadzina, Ani Kavafian, Jonathan Crow, and Mark O’Connor and is in demand as a chamber musician. She has participated in the Canada Music Competitions and has advanced to the national finals for 9 consecutive years. Sarah’s summers have been spent at the Young Artists Program in Ottawa, the Meadowmount School of Music in upstate New York, and the Morningside Music Bridge program at Mount Royal. May 2011 Sarah made her orchestral debut with the Calgary Civic Symphony upon winning the Calgary Concerto Competition. In November 2011 she was invited to perform at the Alberta Music Education Foundation gala concert in Red Deer. Sarah joined the Red Deer Symphony Orchestra as a member of the first violin section upon winning the audition in December 2011.

Natalie Wiebe, 17, began studying violin at the age of three with Mel Martin in London, Ontario. Having moved to Calgary in 2004, Natalie is now enrolled in the Academy program at the Mount Royal Conservatory, studying with Bill Van der Sloot, and has had the opportunity to perform for a variety of artists including James Ehnes, Gerardo Rebeiro, Kai Gleusteen and Pinchas Zukerman. Last year she placed second of her age category at the national level in the Canadian Music Competition. She has won numerous awards and scholarships through the Kiwanis Music Festival, also placing first in the Provincial level for her age category in 2008. Last year she was nominated to represent Calgary’s string category at the Kiwanis Provincials, placing first and advancing to represent Alberta at Nationals this past summer.

Angela (Szu-Hsuan) Wu, age 16, began her musical studies at the age of 4 in her native country, Taiwan. Winning many competitions and awards, she immigrated to Canada in 2008 and began studying with Dale Jackson. Currently a senior Academy student at the Mount Royal Conservatory, she has studied with world-class musicians, such as Jean-Paul Sevilla, Georgy Tchaidze, and Yuja Wang. Some of her past achievements include winning all her classes in the Kiwanis Festival and receiving numerous scholarships. Also, she was a winner of the C3 Concerto Competition in 2011 and has performed with the Calgary Civic Symphony. Last December, Angela had the opportunity to be engaged as a soloist to perform Saint-Saen’s Carnival of the Animals with orchestra and with the mayor of Calgary, Naheed Nenshi, as narrator. Besides being able to play the piano, Angela is also an accomplished flutist and is a member of the Calgary Youth Orchestra.