Since 1991, The Hochstein School has commemorated the life of David Hochstein – Rochester native and gifted violinist and composer – with a yearly competition for local upper-level high school students. The 2021 David Hochstein Recital Competition winners are Katherine Huang, flute; Luke Pisani, violin; and Margaret Bauman, piano. They will perform a free concert on Friday, May 28 at 7:00 pm. Click here for the concert program.
Attendance at these performances is limited to family members – however, the concert will be live streamed on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/user/hochsteinschool. The concert will be recorded for later broadcast on WXXI-FM Classical 91.5. The program includes works by Debussy, Bach, Chopin, and Prokofiev.
The David Hochstein Recital Competition is open to advanced students in grades 10-12 in the nine-county region surrounding Rochester. In order to compete, these talented young musicians were required to prepare challenging music in varied styles and perform for juries of noted professional artists. Judges included: Robert Simonds, violin; Aaron Mossburg, viola; Lars Kirvan, cello; Elizabeth Shuhan, flute; Maura McCune Corvington, horn; Craig Sutherland, tuba; Jacob Ertl, piano; Irina Lupines, piano; and Joseph Werner, piano. Winners of the 2021 David Hochstein Recital Competition are honored for their achievement with a $500 prize.
Additionally, the David Hochstein Recital Competition selected as runners-up: Aiwen Li, violin; Christopher Shen, piano; and Maxwell Sun, piano, with an honorable mention to Rachel George, French horn, and Katheryn Uetz, flute. The Hochstein School is proud to continue the legacy of its namesake by celebrating and encouraging these talented young musicians.
The 2021 David Hochstein Recital Competition is sponsored by Paul and Marie Nasipak, in memory of Shirley Oliver Nasipak.
Katherine Huang is a senior at Pittsford Mendon High School. She has played the flute for 10 years and is currently studying with Diane Smith at The Hochstein School. At Mendon, Katherine is a part of the Wind Ensemble and Pep Band. This year, she participated in New York State’s virtual Conference All-State band. Katherine also shares her love for music in the RPYO and at church as a worship team leader. Outside of flute, Katherine enjoys swimming competitively for Pittsford’s varsity team. She plans to study Business and Economics at Notre Dame in the fall, and continue making music in college.
Luke Pisani is a sophomore at Hilton High School and studies violin with Shannon Nance. Luke began violin at age 3 and has studied and played in Hochstein studios and ensembles ever since. Luke played with the Hochstein Youth Symphony Orchestra for six seasons and served as concertmaster and conducting apprentice. Twice, he won the HYSO concerto competition. Luke also earned the concertmaster role in the MCSMA High School All-County Orchestra and the Csehy Summer School of Music. Other accomplishments include First Prize in the Junior Instrumental Division and Runner Up in the Senior Instrumental Division of the NYSMTA Heddy Kilian Empire State Competition, Hochstein Merit Scholarships (piano), and Honorable Mention in the Mark Bradley Young Artist Competition. Luke loves his Hochstein chamber group, The Saturday Quartet, who were recent finalists in the national Coltman Chamber Music Competition and won Best Ensemble in the 2021 Syracuse Friends of Chamber Music Youth Chamber Music Competition. Luke studies jazz piano with Yoshiko Arahata and music theory at the Eastman Community School. He plays in the Hilton Jazz Ensemble and the Cornerstone Presbyterian Church praise team. In addition to music, Luke plays on the Hilton High School varsity basketball team.
A sophomore at Our Lady of Mercy of High School, Margaret Bauman began studying piano at the age of five with Pamela Rossi and has been a student of Tamari Gurevich since 2014. She is grateful for the dedication and instruction of her teachers. Margaret has been a top prize-winning pianist in several competitions, including the Junior All Star Piano Competition, the DuQuesne National Piano Competition, and the Empire State Piano Competition. As a freshman, she claimed first prize in both the Ithaca College Solo Piano Competition and the Vince Lenti Piano Competition at Eastman School of Music. In school, Margaret enjoys making music with others in orchestra, and has a particular interest in history and math. She especially finds meaning in reaching out to others through Campus Ministry and Mercy service activities. An avid baker, Margaret is also a sunset enthusiast, spending many evenings on the shores of Lake Ontario. Margaret lives in Irondequoit.