Klein International String Competition Announces 2024 Semi Finalists 

Eight semi finalists have been selected to compete from June 1–2, 2024, at the San Francisco  Conservatory of Music

Open to musicians aged between 15 and 23, the Irving M. Klein International String Competition has been championing the world’s finest young string players for the past 39 years. 

Held at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music’s Sol Joseph Recital Hall, the live semifinal round will begin at 10 AM Pacific PT on June 1; the live finals will start at 3 PM PT on June 2. 

The Klein Competition will stream worldwide and live here on The Violin Channel. 

Selected from 142 entrants, this year’s semifinalists are: 

• Pearl de la Motte, viola, 20 (New York) | Attends the Juilliard School and studies with Hsin-Yun Huang
• Wanxinyi Huang, viola, 23 (China) | Attends the Yale School of Music and studies with Ettore Causa
• Hannah Jeong, cello, 17 (Texas) | Attends College Station High School  and studies with Brinton Smith
• Evelyn Joung, cello, 16 (New Jersey) | Attends the Chapin School and the Juilliard School and studies with Clara Minhye Kim
• Yeji Lim, violin, 23 (Korea) | Attends the New England Conservatory of Music and studies with Nicholas Kitchen and Young-uck Kim
• Christian Luevano, bass, 20 (Philadelphia) | Attends Curtis Institute of Music and studies with Edgar Meyer and Hal Robinson
• Francis Tsai, violin, 18 (Alabama) | Attends Hope Christian School and studies with Jennifer Liu and Eric Tsai
• Amelia Zitoun, cello, 18 (Illinois) | Attends Shorewood High School and Music Institute of Chicago Academy and studies with Hans Jørgen Jensen

They will each compete for the $5,000 grand prize (funded by the MOCA Foundation) including performance contracts valued at $15,000 with the Peninsula and Santa Cruz Symphonies, and Gualala Arts Chamber Series, among others.

The $3,500 second prize — generously supported by Ruth Short in memory of Elaine H. Klein — will also include a performance opportunity with the San José Chamber Orchestra, valued at $5,500. 

More prizes include a $2,500 third prize (given in memory of Milton Preves by Judith and David Anderson), and two fourth prizes of $1,500 each, with one given by Maria Klein in memory of Jerry Lee Klein.

Semi-finalists not awarded a named prize will each receive $1,000. Additionally, $500 will be given for the best performance of solo Bach, and of the commissioned work by John Wineglass.

Wineglass has written several scores for shows on MSNBC, CNN, NBC, CBS, and ABC. He holds seven EMMY nominations and has garnered commissions from the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music and the Kennedy Center Concert Hall.

Jury members will comprise Barbara Day Turner, Daniel Stewart, Hal Robinson, Ian Swensen, John Wineglass, Mark Kosower, and Paul Yarbrough.

The 2016 Klein third prizewinner, violinist Alina Kobialka, is one of the competition’s mentors this year and will be co-hosting the event with Klein Artistic Director Mitchell Sardou Klein. 

“The 2024 Klein Competition Semifinalists were selected from a record high number of extraordinary applicants, each one with a distinctive voice and remarkable musicianship,” Klein said in the press release. “We are thrilled to present these future leaders of the next generation of brilliant musical artists.”

Past Klein award winners have included Alban Gerhardt, Francesca dePasquale, Frank Huang, Jennifer Frautschi, Jennifer Koh, Vadim Gluzman, Mark Kosower, and VC Artists Nikki Chooi, Tessa Lark, and Zlatomir Fung. 

Virtuoso chamber musician and cello teacher Irving M. Klein founded the California Music Center (CMC) in 1974 as a summer music institute and chamber music series for young artists. In 1986, the CMC inaugurated the Irving M. Klein International String Competition (“the Klein”), which has since developed the careers of countless players, who have gone on to become renowned soloists, chamber musicians, teachers, and members in leading international orchestras.