Youth Artist Competition

Stuart Carlson

Giancarlo Latta

Max Bruch - Violin Concerto No. 2 in D Minor, 1st movement, Op. 44

Sergei Prokofiev - Violin Concerto No. 2 in G minor, 1st movement, Op. 63

STUART CARLSON is a 16-year-old sophomore at Dexter High School. He first played violin at age 10 as part of the Dexter 5th grade orchestra. He began his private studies in 2008 with Gabriel Villasurda in Ann Arbor and, since 2010, has been a student of Stephen Shipps at The University of Michigan. He studies viola with Dr. Danae Witter and composition with David Biedenbender.

In 2011, Stuart attended the “International Music Academy – Pilsen” in the Czech Republic where he studied with Stephen Shipps, Rodney Friend, Patinka Kopec, Dr. Danae Witter and Michal Sedlacek and performed with pianist Mohamed Shams. In July of 2012 he will attend the “Cambridge International String Academy” in England where he will study with Mr. Shipps, Mr. Friend, Sylvie Gazeau, Joel Smirnoff and Dr. Witter.

Stuart has performed as a soloist with the Dexter High School Chamber Orchestra as a two-time winner of the DHS Concerto Competition. Stuart has been chosen as a member of the MSBOA All-State Orchestra each of the past three years and is a current member of the University of Michigan Youth Symphony Orchestra (violin) and the Dexter Community Orchestra (viola) – both under the direction of Anthony Elliott.

Stuart plays violin, viola, electric guitar and piano and has composed 15 pieces of classical music since 2008 – six of which have been performed live (including 2 cadenzas for Haydn’s Violin Concerto in G). He is a licensed ham radio operator (KD8LWR), his favorite composer is Tchaikovsky and his favorite rock group is AC/DC. His ultimate goal is to become a professional musician.

Violinist GIANCARLO LATTA is a scholarship recipient at the Music Institute of Chicago's Academy for pre-college musicians, where he studies with Almita Vamos. He is a winner of the 2011 Toledo Symphony League's Young Artist Competition and performed with the Toledo Symphony in March 2012. He has also performed with the Oistrach Symphony as a winner of the Eighth Annual DePaul Concerto Festival for Young Performers, and has won prizes in the Society of American Musicians and Birmingham Bloomfield Symphony Orchestra Young Artists competitions.

Giancarlo has performed in master classes with Joel Smirnoff, Milan Vitek, John Kendall, Jacques Israelievitch, and David Taylor, and has attended the Chautauqua Music Festival (2011), the Meadowmount School of Music (2010), and the Ithaca Suzuki Institute's Preludio Violin Program (2009). He was concertmaster of the Pioneer High School Symphony Orchestra for performances in Vienna, Salzburg, and Munich in April 2011, and was previously concertmaster of the Ann Arbor Youth Symphony Orchestra. Also in 2011, Giancarlo played in the Chicago Youth in Music Festival Orchestra, where he worked with Riccardo Muti and performed side-by-side with the Carlos Chavez Youth Orchestra of Mexico. A passionate chamber musician, he has studied chamber music with members of the Cavani Quartet and Lincoln Trio.

Giancarlo began his violin studies at age six with Anna Bittar Weller. He enjoys biking, reading, and listening to old recordings in his free time.