Wednesday, June 10th
Classical Lower Strings - Level 8
Adjudicator: Joanne Yesol Choi
Korean-Canadian cellist Joanne Yesol Choi, recipient of the Canada Council’s 2025 Virginia Parker Prize and named one of CBC’s 30 Under 30 Canadian Musicians, is a distinguished artist, educator, and arts leader recognized for her dynamic work in chamber music and community engagement.
She is a founding member of the Dior Quartet, an ensemble praised for its artistic depth and cultural diversity. From 2021–2024, the quartet served as Quartet-in-Residence at the Glenn Gould School of the Royal Conservatory of Music. The ensemble won the 2023 Concert Artists Guild Victor Elmaleh Competition and has appeared on major stages across North America, Europe, and Oceania, including Carnegie Hall, Koerner Hall, Stanford University’s Bing Concert Hall, Bravo! Vail, Tippet Rise Art Center, and the Banff International String Quartet Festival. The quartet has also competed at prestigious international competitions including the Banff and Melbourne International String Quartet Competitions.
Beyond performance, Joanne is deeply committed to mentorship and access. She is the Founder and Artistic Director of Solegio Arts, a nonprofit dedicated to making high-level music education more accessible for young string players. Her work reflects a commitment to expanding opportunities for emerging musicians while fostering creativity, collaboration, and representation in classical music.
Joanne has served as a guest lecturer at Stanford University and the University of Toronto, and was on faculty at the PRIZM International Chamber Music Festival and Mostly Modern Festival USA. She has coached at the Phil and Eli Taylor Academy and Oscar Peterson School of Music, and served as an adjudicator for the 2026 Kiwanis Music Festival and the 2023 Don Banks Music Awards. A former Taylor Academy student herself, she returned to the Royal
Conservatory in 2021 as a Rebanks Family Fellow.
She holds Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music.
Outside of music, Joanne debuted as a children’s book author with Blob the Colorful Star, appeared as a special skills actor in Netflix’s Bet, and currently works with Music Toronto as a social media manager and correspondent.
Location
Mount Zion Lutheran Church
29 Westmount Rd. S.
Waterloo, ON N2L 2K4
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Classical Lower Strings - Level 8
| Time | Name | Titles | Home Festival |
|---|---|---|---|
| Time:9:00 AM | Name:Madeline Ma | Titles: Suite No. 1 in G Major, BWV 1007, Prelude by Johann Sebastian Bach Concerto No. 2 in D Major, Rondo by Jean-Baptiste Bréval | Home Festival:Unionville |
| Time:9:15 AM | Name:Janine Gong | Titles: Concerto No. 4 in G Major, op. 65, 1st mvt. by Georg Goltermann Salut d'amour, op. 12 by Edward Elgar | Home Festival:Hamilton |
| Time:9:30 AM | Name:Gavin Wang | Titles: Lied ohne Worte, op. 109 by Felix Mendelssohn Sonata in G Minor, 1st and 2nd mvts. by Henry Eccles | Home Festival:Hamilton |
| Time:9:45 AM | Name:Callum Durward | Titles: Suite No. 1 in G Major, BWV 1007, I. Prelude by Johann Sebastian Bach Sonata in G minor, 1st mvt.: Largo and 2nd mvt.: Allegro by Henry Eccles | Home Festival:Guelph |
| Time:10:00 AM | Name:Kyle Wong | Titles: Country Dance by Carl Maria von Weber Suite No. 1 in G Major, BWV 1007, Prelude by Johann Sebastian Bach | Home Festival:Toronto |
| Time:10:15 AM | Name:Emily Pavlin | Titles: Suite No. 1 in G Major. BWV 1007, Allemande by Johann Sebastian Bach Supplication to Hans Kindler, Jewish Life, no. 2 by Ernest Bloch | Home Festival:Kitchener-Waterloo |
| Time:10:30 AM | Name:Kenneth McConomy | Titles: Concerto No. 2 in D Major, Rondo by Jean-Baptiste Bréval Sonata No. 5 in E Minor, RV 40, 3rd and 4th mvts. by Antonio Vivaldi | Home Festival:North York Live |
| Time:10:45 AM | Name:Hannah Zacharias | Titles: Concerto No. 4 in G major, op. 65, 1st mvt. by Georg Goltermann Reverie by Claude Debussy | Home Festival:London |
| Time:11:00 AM | Name:Rylee Chang | Titles: Sonata in G Minor, 1st and 2nd mvts. by Henry Eccles Concerto No. 4 in G Major, op. 65, 1st mvt. by Georg Goltermann | Home Festival:Kitchener-Waterloo |
| Time:11:15 AM | Name:Kaylee Liu | Titles: Concerto in A Minor, RV 422, 1st and 2nd mvts. by Antonio Vivaldi Le carnaval des animaux, The Swan (no. 12) by Camille Saint-Saëns | Home Festival:London |
| Time:11:30 AM | Name:Curtis Li | Titles: Lied ohne Worte, op. 109 by Felix Mendelssohn Organ Toccata in C Major, BWV 564, Adagio by Johann Sebastian Bach | Home Festival:Pickering GTA |
11:45 AM - Lunch Break
Classical Lower Strings - Level 8
| Time | Name | Titles | Home Festival |
|---|---|---|---|
| Time:1:15 PM | Name:Irene Lee | Titles: Concerto No. 4 in G Major, op. 65, 1st mvt. by Georg Goltermann Sonata in D Minor, op. 8, no. 9, 1st and 2nd mvts. by Willem De Fesch | Home Festival:Toronto |
| Time:1:30 PM | Name:Harper Wang | Titles: Lied ohne Worte (Songs without Words). op. .109 by Felix Mendelssohn Concerto No. 4 in G Major, op. 65, 1st mvt. by Georg Goltermann | Home Festival:Peel |
| Time:1:45 PM | Name:Blake Zhu | Titles: Suite No. 1 in G Major, BWV 1007, Prelude by Johann Sebastian Bach Concertino No. 1 in C Major, op. 7, 1st mvt.: Allegro by Julius Klengel | Home Festival:Unionville |
| Time:2:00 PM | Name:Vannice Fan | Titles: Suite No. 1 in G Major, BWV 1007, Prelude by Johann Sebastian Bach Etude in D Major, op. 35, no. 2 by Auguste-Joseph Franchomme | Home Festival:Toronto |
| Time:2:15 PM | Name:Amelia Wu | Titles: Suite No. 1 in G Major, BWV 1007, Prelude by Johann Sebastian Bach Concertino No. 1 in C Major, op. 7 BRH; INT, 1st mvt. by Julius Klengel | Home Festival:Peel |
| Time:2:30 PM | Name:Devin Sum | Titles: Suite No. 1 in G Major, BMV 1007, Prelude by Johann Sebastian Bach The Swan (No. 12), Le carnaval des animaux by Camille Saint-Saens | Home Festival:Kitchener-Waterloo |
3:30 PM - Workshop and Announcement of Winners - MANDATORY
Workshop will be held from 3:30 pm to 5:00 pm.
Announcement of winners will happen at the end of the workshop.