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Oberlin
Violinist Julia Sakharova Wins Koussevitzky Competition
By Marci Janas ’91
RELATED STORIES:
Violinist
Julia Sakharova Featured on New Rachmaninoff Release
Violin performance
major Julia Sakharova ’03 has won
first prize in the Musicians Club of New York’s 47th Olga Koussevitzky
Competition for Strings, held at the National Arts Club in New York City
April 4, 5, and 8. She brought home $2,500 and instructions to leave room
on her calendar for a New York recital in fall 2002.
Sakharova,
who is 22 years old and a native of Zheleznovodsk, Russia, studies with
Milan Vitek, professor of
violin. She is concertmaster of the Oberlin Orchestra and a member of
the Erato Quartet, which won the 2001 Coleman-Barstow Award for Strings.
"Sakharova gave a wonderful performance," says Virginia Benz
Anderer, chairman of the Koussevitzky Competition. "The judges were
unanimous in their decision, which took about 15 seconds to make."
Twenty-two string musicians
began the competition; by the final round seven remained. The judges for
the final round were violinists Anahid Ajemian, Artur Shtilman, and Gerald
Tarack and cellist Kermit Moore. Here is a sampling of their comments:
"Real talent . . ., first-class violinist . . ., very good feeling
of style and composition . . ., strong artistical presence on stage .
. . , first rate in all aspects . . . , she has it all."
"I am in absolute agreement with the judges’ comments,"
says Vitek. "Julia possesses a profound musicianship, a wonderful
stage presence, and she certainly conveys to the audience what music really
means."
For the first round and in the finals, Sakharova performed the same program:
the Adagio from J.S. Bach’s Sonata in G-minor, No. 1; Mozart’s
Sonata in G-Major, K. 301; the first movement from Strauss’ Sonata
for Violin and Piano, Op. 18; and Eugene Ysaÿe’s Sonata for
Violin Solo, Op. 27, No. 6. Pianist Evan Solomon of New York City was
her accompanist.
Olga Koussevitzky was the second wife of famed conductor Serge Koussevitzky
(1874–1951). A past president of the Musicians Club of New York,
she endowed the competition, which was first held in 1955 and which features
different instruments from year to year. The next Olga Koussevitzky Competition,
for winds, takes place in spring 2003. The competition will feature piano
in 2004, voice in 2005, and strings again in 2006.
Past winners of the Olga Koussevitzky Competition include violist Irene
Breslau; violinist Charles Castleman; violinist Laura Hamilton (associate
concertmaster of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra); cellist Chui-Yee Lee;
violist Paul Neubauer; soprano Young Ok Shin; and cellist Fred Slatkin
(brother of conductor Leonard Slatkin).
PHOTO CREDIT: HILLARY HAUSER
Back to the Backstage Pass
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