International Music Talent Competition Fall 2023
The American Protégé International Music Talent Competition is open to all instrumentalists (piano, winds, strings, brass, traditional, etc.), vocalists and traditional folk and jazz groups of all nationalities and countries. Participants are required to submit video recording materials for the audition. American Protégé is looking for genuinely talented people, who have creativity and stage charisma.
We invite talented performers of any age and genre to participate in the Competition.
All applicants who are signed with the manager or producer must submit via email a General Representation and Release Form signed by the Manager/Producer to be eligible for the Competition.
American Protégé Music Talent Competition Fall 2023 attracted a record number of very competitive applicants from 12 countries, including the United States, Argentina, Bahrain, Canada, India, Moldova, Philippines, Qatar, Russia, South Korea, Singapore and Thailand.
Awards
Winners will be offered to perform at the Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall, or to receive a Winner’s Package by mail.
Star Performer Award, Judges’ Favorite Award Trophy, Judges’ Distinction Award Trophy and other Special Awards may be granted based on the judges recommendations.
Judges
Three qualified judges evaluate audition materials. All judges are independent, their students are not allowed to apply this season.
American Protégé
International Music Talent Competition Fall 2023 Results:
Judges’ Distinction (Plaque Trophy) Award Winners
Krittapak Pankrut (Mimi), the 13-year-old girl, is studying in Year 8 at Harrow International School Bangkok. Mimi has loved singing since she was 5 years old. She likes musicals and pop songs. She achieved many awards from competitions, including 1 of 8 winners from the 5th Search for Talent Project (Year 2020-2021) and had a live performance with Royal Bangkok Symphony Orchestra (RBSO) in Lumpini Park, Bangkok in 2023; the winner of the EIMOC2023 music competition held in Taiwan and was selected to perform on stage in the winners’ concert; the winner of Vocal Musical and Music Youth category of the national round of 24th Osaka International Music Competition; the winner with highest score from the Bangkok Youth Singing Competition 2023 in Age 8-12 category and selected to perform on stage with the Bangkok Charity Orchestra in the winners’ concert.
Meet Surena Rahman – a young soul, deeply passionate about music and singing. She has been learning piano since she was six and has been singing since she was eight. As a small child, her voice would wake up everyone in the family and often our neighbors, too. She started humming tunes on top of her voice not much later than she had started walking and talking. Once she went to first grade, piano became a daily affair for her and later got deeper into the notes and tunes within a couple of years, she insisted on getting into vocal lessons at a local music school. A few years into her music journey, she became a big fan of BIllie Eilish and Celine Dion, amongst other leading singers. Suri is working on different types of music and developing her vocal skills. She aspires to be a professional singer and musician when she grows up.
Winners by Age Category
| Name | Age | City, state, Country |
| First Place Winners | ||
| Anton Xu, piano | 5 | Wellesley, MA |
| Student of Lydia Wang | ||
| Athena Huang, piano | 5 | Morgantown, WV |
| Student of Dr. Juliana Yap | ||
| Lisa Zhang, piano | 6 | Queens, NY |
| Student of Bernice Chan | ||
| Conrad Abrahams, piano | 7 | New York, NY |
| Student of Sohyun Ahn | ||
| Lynette Chun, piano | 7 | Phoenix, AZ |
| Student of Sherin Moustafa | ||
| Rebecca Li, piano | 7 | Kirkland, WA |
| Student of Grace Huang | ||
| Claire Gui, voice | 8 | Sussex, WI |
| Student of Chunfeng Li | ||
| Claire Shiqi Wang, dulcimer | 8 | Portland, OR |
| Student of Jing Lu | ||
| Keisha DSouza, voice | 8 | Singapore |
| Grace Zhang, voice | 10 | Clarksville, MD |
| Student of Chunfeng Li | ||
| Amber Lee, guzheng | 11 | San Jose, CA |
| Student of Yue Wang and Chiffon Fu | ||
| Seline Dai, dulcimer | 11 | Portland, OR |
| Student of Jing Lu | ||
| Seungyeon Sohn, violin | 11 | Seoul, South Korea |
| Student of Sooyeon Park | ||
| Adam Kim, cello | 12 | Hillsborough, CA |
| Student of Jonathan Koh | ||
| Christin Zhang, piano | 12 | Cary, NC |
| Student of Olga Urick | ||
| Hannah Kwon, voice | 12 | Draper, UT |
| Student of Eugene Kang | ||
| Juho Paek, violin | 12 | Seoul, South Korea |
| Student of Min, Yoo Kyung and Eun Young Lee | ||
| Lucy Wang, piano | 12 | San Ramon, CA |
| Student of Yingwen Lewis | ||
| Surena Rahman, voice | 12 | Los Altos, CA |
| Student of Kendrick Hyunn and Jinifer Ann Corcoran | ||
| Mandy Teng, voice | 12 | Woodstock, MD |
| Student of Chunfeng Li | ||
| Jon Yang, piano | 13 | Oro Valley, AZ |
| Student of Svetlana Arakelova | ||
| Joseph Sanso, violin | 13 | Morrison, CO |
| Student of Heather Gruis and Christopher Luther | ||
| Krittapak Pankrut, voice | 13 | Thanyaburi, Thailand |
| Student of Jay Veerayano and Juthathip Phengnun | ||
| Selina Dong, piano | 13 | Draper, UT |
| Student of Ya Liu | ||
| Chelsea Chen, piano | 14 | Irvine, CA |
| Student of Miranda Wu | ||
| Dayeon Kim, cello | 14 | Seoul, South Korea |
| Student of Haglyun Kim and Hannah Bae | ||
| Ivana Jan, piano | 14 | Berkeley, CA |
| Student of Shu-Yi Pai | ||
| Brian Lim, violin | 15 | Tenafly, NJ |
| Student of Yu Jeong Lee | ||
| Crystal Huang, voice | 15 | Singapore |
| Student of Helen Lin | ||
| Yixuan Chen, flute | 15 | Sugar Land, TX |
| Student of Rebecca Powell Garfield | ||
| Lady Reajane Nerona, voice | 16 | Luna, Philippines |
| Student of Jeffry O. Sales and Unibelle C. Bersamina | ||
| Viola Huang, piano | 16 | Singapore |
| Student of Helen Lin | ||
| Narine Tamrazova, piano | 22 | Moscow, Russia |
| Student of Julia Mikhailovna Chernyavskaya | ||
| Nayul Kyung, flute | 29 | New York, NY |
| Student of Judith Mendenhall | ||
| Changpeng Ti, piano | 37 | Lexington, KY |
| Student of Irina Voro | ||
| Guzheng and Drums Quartet: | ||
| Grace Ma, guzheng | 13 | San Diego, CA |
| Student of Cindy Chen | ||
| Nicole Ying, guzheng | 16 | San Diego, CA |
| Student of Chen Tingting | ||
| Lily Guo, drums | 15 | San Diego, CA |
| Ethan Guo, guzheng | 17 | San Diego, CA |
| Strings Duo: | ||
| Jiwon Chung, viola | 14 | Irvine, CA |
| Jiwoo Chung, violin | 14 | Irvine, CA |
| Students of Solim Shin | ||
| Piano Duo/Four Hands: | ||
| Gloria Zhai, piano | 14 | San Diego, CA |
| Alexander Zhai, piano | 17 | San Diego, CA |
| Students of Tatiana Stignev | ||
| Second Place Winners | ||
| Anaya Mehta, piano | 4 | Bethesda, MD |
| Student of Dr. Valerica Maican | ||
| Time Kanajanawisitphon, piano | 6 | Chonburi, Thailand |
| Student of Dr. Patchara Phurivanish and Dr. Pakkanat Chanthanavaranont Sompongtam | ||
| Annabelle Garcia, piano | 7 | Los Angeles, CA |
| Student of Jesica Yap | ||
| Adam Jiang, piano | 8 | Houston, TX |
| Student of Yan Shen | ||
| Alice Chen, piano | 8 | Flushing, NY |
| Student of Bernice Chan | ||
| Ella Lin, piano | 8 | Fresh Meadows, NY |
| Student of Bernice Chan | ||
| Gina Chuai, voice | 8 | Boyds, MD |
| Student of Chunfeng Li | ||
| Hanson Shen, piano | 8 | Austin, TX |
| Student of Yunzhi Guan | ||
| Jessica Cui, dulcimer | 8 | Portland, OR |
| Student of Jing Lu | ||
| Laurie Wang, piano | 8 | Whitestone, NY |
| Student of Bernice Chan | ||
| Madison Chiang, marimba | 8 | San Jose, CA |
| Student of Tammy Chin-Ping Chen | ||
| Roy Byun, piano | 9 | Irvine, CA |
| Student of Young Sook Kang | ||
| Valentina Montesino, violin | 9 | Homestead, FL |
| Student of Fidel Garcia | ||
| Alvin Li, piano | 10 | Flushing, NY |
| Student of Bernice Chan | ||
| Ella Chow, piano | 10 | Dublin, CA |
| Student of I-Ling Chen | ||
| Evelyn Yao, piano | 10 | San Ramon, CA |
| Student of I-Ling Chen | ||
| India Abrahams, piano | 10 | New York, NY |
| Student of Sohyun Ahn | ||
| Isaac Chang, piano | 10 | San Ramon, CA |
| Student of Yingwen Lewis | ||
| Maximilian Lele, piano | 10 | New Canaan, CT |
| Student of Evelina Puzaite | ||
| Nathan Lin, piano | 10 | Fresh Meadows, NY |
| Student of Bernice Chan | ||
| Preston Tsai, cello | 10 | San Diego, CA |
| Student of Luyan Guo | ||
| Tae-Eun Hong, piano | 10 | Lubbock, TX |
| Student of Hye-Gyung Ji | ||
| Arnav Kukar, piano | 11 | Amherst, NY |
| Student of Diana Kezerashvili | ||
| Emily Zhao, piano | 11 | Armada, CO |
| Student of Yu McLoughlin | ||
| Lewis Hu, piano | 11 | Dublin, CA |
| Student of I-Ling Chen | ||
| Pinyapat Fuangkasem, voice | 11 | Bangkok, Thailand |
| Student of Rattikan Chockvittayanukul | ||
| Ron Huang, piano | 11 | Singapore |
| Student of Helen Lin | ||
| Sophia Huang, piano | 11 | Solon, OH |
| Student of Xiao Ling Anderson | ||
| Tianze Liu, piano | 11 | Commack, NY |
| Student of Di Jiao | ||
| Allison Guan, guzheng | 12 | Los Altos, CA |
| Student of Chiffon Fu | ||
| Andrew Kartman, piano | 12 | Edgewater, NJ |
| Student of Sohyun Ahn | ||
| Jason Jin, piano | 12 | Glen Allen, VA |
| Student of Maria Yefimova | ||
| Anna Kuck, piano | 13 | Park City, UT |
| Student of Ya Liu | ||
| Ben Liu, piano | 13 | Honolulu, HI |
| Student of Bichuan Li | ||
| Kaden Wu, piano | 13 | San Diego, CA |
| Student of Tatiana Stignev | ||
| Nathan Yuen, piano | 13 | Hong Kong |
| Student of Alex Stokes | ||
| Ronnie Ilyeon Wang, cello | 13 | Los Angeles, CA |
| Angela Ouyang, piano | 14 | American Fork, UT |
| Student of Ya Liu | ||
| Ashlyn Choi, flute | 14 | Cupertino, CA |
| Student of Amk Kim | ||
| Austin Lam, piano | 14 | Arcadia, CA |
| Student of Lin Liu | ||
| Brandon Wu, voice | 14 | Clarksville, MD |
| Student of Chunfeng Li | ||
| Coco Kim, violin | 14 | Honolulu, HI |
| Student of Mariko Yuen | ||
| Elaina Tian, piano | 14 | Orinda, CA |
| Student of Elena Bai Pang | ||
| Iris Hai, voice | 14 | Ellicott City, MD |
| Student of Li Chunfeng | ||
| Jinha Park, viola | 14 | Fort Lee, NJ |
| Student of Yu jeoung Lee | ||
| Lauren Kim, violin | 14 | Seoul, South Korea |
| Student of Sunghee Park | ||
| Olivia Xia, piano | 14 | San Diego, CA |
| Student of Tatiana Stignev | ||
| Sophia Li, violin | 14 | Mason, OH |
| Tracy Jiang, piano | 14 | Bethpage, NY |
| Student of Xuran Zhao | ||
| Vivienne Chen, piano | 14 | San Ramon, CA |
| Student of Yingwen Lewis | ||
| Aadarsh Vikram, piano | 15 | Scottsdale, AZ |
| Student of Lesli Hanson | ||
| Amber Woytowitz, voice | 15 | Towson, MD |
| Student of Chun Feng Li | ||
| Crystal Huang, piano | 15 | Singapore |
| Student of Helen Lin | ||
| Emily Chun, violin | 15 | San Diego, CA |
| Student of Hee Jeong | ||
| Eric Junseo Choi, marimba | 15 | Boston, MA |
| Student of Greg Simonds and Arin In | ||
| Jessie Zichen Qiang, guzheng | 15 | San Jose, CA |
| Student of Chiffon Fu | ||
| Jim Xia, piano | 15 | Chandler, AZ |
| Student of Yan Zhang | ||
| Joy Liu, piano | 15 | Leander, TX |
| Student of Julia Hsiao | ||
| Junseo Lee, clarinet | 15 | San Jose, CA |
| Student of Hye Min Yun | ||
| Richard Lin, piano | 15 | Chandler, AZ |
| Student of Yan Zhang | ||
| Rishab Ray, piano | 15 | Pleasanton, CA |
| Student of Sofia Biktimir | ||
| Claire Meng, flute | 16 | Bothell, WA |
| Student of Bonnie Blanchard | ||
| David Guo, piano | 16 | Singapore |
| Student of XiaoYun Yao | ||
| Eunseo Ryu, piano | 16 | San Jose, CA |
| Student of Jaclyn | ||
| Grace Liao, piano | 16 | Moraga, CA |
| Student of Elena Bai Pang | ||
| Gwyneth Tenn, violin | 16 | Honolulu, HI |
| Student of Mariko Yuen | ||
| Minseo Ryu, flute | 16 | San Jose, CA |
| Student of Teresa Orozco | ||
| Patrick Shi, violin | 16 | Mclean, MA |
| Student of Ying Fu | ||
| Gia Kwon, flute | 17 | Hoffman Estates, IL |
| Student of Haymee Ann | ||
| Jaclyn Judge, voice | 17 | Boca Raton, FL |
| Student of Kent Taylor and Marina Renee Hogue-Nuñez | ||
| Nathan Li, piano | 17 | Boise, ID |
| Student of Suzanne Clive | ||
| Xinyi Zhu, guzheng | 19 | Fremont, CA |
| Student of Chiffon Fu | ||
| Sansanee Techateerawat, voice | 41 | Pak Kret, Thailand |
| Student of Teeranuch Kaewkungwal | ||
| Kayoko Kuchiishi, piano | Flower Mound, TX | |
| Piano Duo/Four Hands: | ||
| Ashley Fang, piano | 13 | San Diego, CA |
| Amelie Nguyen, piano | 14 | San Diego, CA |
| Students of Tatiana Stignev | ||
| Third Place Winners | ||
| Seungwon David Lee, piano | 7 | New York, NY |
| Student of Sohee Hwang | ||
| Sophia Zhiyao Chen, violin | 7 | San Jose, CA |
| Student of Qi Sheng | ||
| Brent Amado, piano | 8 | Manama, Bahrain |
| Student of Azalea Nas and Maya | ||
| Emma Shi, voice | 8 | Wellesley, MA |
| Student of Chunfeng Li | ||
| Olivia Qu, piano | 8 | College Point, NY |
| Student of Bernice Chan | ||
| Yuchen Liu, piano | 8 | Woodstock, MD |
| Student of Yifei Xu | ||
| Abigail Campiglia, piano | 9 | Boca Raton, FL |
| Student of Olga Romoff | ||
| Athena Chakrabortty, voice | 10 | Summit, NJ |
| Student of Tharanga Goonetilleke | ||
| Mariia Merezhana, piano | 10 | Millburn, NJ |
| Student of Victoria Merezhana | ||
| Xiaoqi Wang, piano | 10 | Sunnyvale, CA |
| Student of Jessica Wei | ||
| Andrew Lao, voice | 11 | San Jose, CA |
| Student of Lina Jiang | ||
| Annabella Sakunkoo, piano | 11 | Reno, NV |
| Student of Dr. Christopher McKiggan and Thawanhathai Rujichaitammakul | ||
| Lucia Chan, piano | 11 | Flushing, NY |
| Student of Bernice Chan | ||
| Pranshi Mehta, piano | 11 | Austin, TX |
| Student of Julia Hsiao | ||
| Rachel Jeanna Kim, violin | 11 | Los Angeles, CA |
| Student of Pauline Gehai Yi | ||
| Ron Huang, voice | 11 | Singapore |
| Student of Helen Lin | ||
| Sophia Kim, piano | 11 | Los Angeles, CA |
| Student of Yun Hee Lee | ||
| Yuzuki Olson, piano | 11 | Hanscom AFB, MA |
| Student of Yuna Lee | ||
| Claire Kim, violin | 12 | Cresskill, NJ |
| Student of Helen Kang | ||
| Elizabeth Guo, voice | 12 | Glen Mills, PA |
| Student of Chunfeng Li | ||
| Grace Rhim, violin | 12 | Los Angeles, CA |
| Student of Pauline Gehai Yi | ||
| Kira Shim, violin | 12 | Tenafly, NJ |
| Student of Hanna Shin | ||
| Leehenry Mao, piano | 12 | Floydada, TX |
| Student of Dr. Hye-Gyung Ji | ||
| Maryam Al Thani, piano | 12 | Doha, Qatar |
| Student of Dr. Sohyun Ahn | ||
| Seyoung Park, piano | 12 | New York, NY |
| Student of Sohyun Ahn | ||
| Tony Chen, piano | 12 | Torrance, CA |
| Student of Mei Cao | ||
| Anthony Pan, piano | 13 | Boston, MA |
| Student of A. J. Collins | ||
| Cailyn Zhang, piano | 13 | Missouri City, TX |
| Student of Dr. Yan Shen | ||
| Kaya Mew, piano | 13 | Vancouver, Canada |
| Student of Jeannie Lee | ||
| Ada Buricea, piano | 14 | Sunnyvale, CA |
| Student of Katie Gueorguieva-Ledford | ||
| Claire Su, violin | 14 | Tempe, AZ |
| Student of Xiaolin Li | ||
| Emmy Guo, voice | 14 | Singapore |
| Student of Carolina Kurnia and Hratsjuhi Aramian | ||
| Isabel De Pool, piano | 14 | Weston, FL |
| Student of Yadelia Leyva | ||
| Jialin Peng, piano | 14 | San Ramon, CA |
| Student of I-Ling Chen | ||
| Jinhao Zhang, voice | 14 | Princeton Junction, NJ |
| Student of Chunfeng Li | ||
| Siyuan Huang, piano | 14 | San Dimas, CA |
| Student of Eve Yi Ping Chen | ||
| Corrina McNevin, piano | 15 | Pasadena, CA |
| Student of Lin Liu | ||
| Zimeng Wang, piano | 15 | Dublin, CA |
| Student of Ling Shi | ||
| Lizzie Noel, violin | 16 | Murray, UT |
| Student of Asheley Watabe | ||
| Olivia Kwak, flute | 16 | Columbia, MD |
| Student of Amy Kwon | ||
| Zachary Han, piano | 16 | Solon, OH |
| Student of Xiao-Ling Anderson | ||
| Heather Tomlinson, piano | 17 | Henderson, NV |
| Student of Damaris Morales | ||
| Seoyoun Son, geomungo | 22 | Decatur, GA |
| Piano Duo: | ||
| Olina Xia, oboe | 15 | San Diego, CA |
| Student of Francisco Castillo | ||
| Olivia Xia, piano | 14 | San Diego, CA |
| Student of Tatiana Stignev | ||
| Piano Duo/Four Hands: | ||
| Daniel Lilja, piano | 9 | Boynton Beach, FL |
| Krista Lilja, piano | 33 | Boynton Beach, FL |
| Students of Olga Romoff | ||
| Honorable Mention | ||
| Pitchayapon Techateerawat, piano | 9 | Pak Kred, Thailand |
| Student of Teeranuch Kaewkungwal | ||
| Shreyaan Kotkar, alto saxophone | 11 | St Louis, MO |
| Student of Michael Rodriguez | ||
| Arsh Gupta, piano | 13 | Short Hills, NJ |
| Student of Emilie Filipek | ||
| Daniel Son, haegeum | 15 | Cerrtos, CA |
| Samuel Stearns, piano | 17 | San Jose, CA |
| Student of Maria Brodsky | ||
| Piano Duo/Four Hands: | ||
| Sofia Blakely, piano | 10 | Weston, FL |
| Carmen Blakely, piano | 13 | Weston, FL |
| Students of Yadelia Leyva | ||
Other applicants received Diploma of Participation
CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL WINNERS!
1. Each participant will be notified about the Competition results after the Artistic Director releases the Competition placements. Each Winner will perform at one Recital. Recital date and time will be offered to the Winner based on the Competition results.
2. Only ONE piece from the audition repertoire within a time limit will be performed at the Winners Recital.
3. Extra performance time of up to 1 minute can be accepted for the Winners Recital with an additional fee of $100.
4. Only piano accompaniment can be used at the Winners Recital. Only one grand piano will be available at the Weill Recital Hall. No acoustic system will be provided.
5. Participants must bring their own piano accompanist. American Protégé does not provide piano accompanist, but can recommend one after enrollment into the program.
6. Photo or video recording during the recital is strictly prohibited per the Carnegie Hall policy. A professional photographer will be taking pictures of the performers.
7. Recital and Photo Fees are not refundable.
8. During the COVID-19 Health Crisis, U.S. participants, who are unable to or unwilling to take a risk to travel to NYC for the Recital, may request a Competition Winner’s Package with a non-refundable $300 fee. The Package includes online recognition, Winner’s Certificate, Teacher’s Diploma, four Booklets with biographies and photos, and participation Plaque Trophy. International participants may arrange a Package pickup or request a shipment to the friends or relative residing in the U.S. We do not mail packages internationally.
9. All participants are responsible for their own expenses (travel, housing accommodations, etc.).
10. Detailed Winners Recital Guidelines will be emailed to the participants.