COMPETITION JUDGES
Summer Competition 2022
Professor Dr. Meiling Jin, USA
Judge of Summer Competition 2022
Affiliation: Founder of Taichi and Piano Study; Visiting Professor at Guangxi Arts Institute, Nanning, China; Former Piano faculty at Lubbock Christian University, TX, USA
Lisa Liske, USA
Judge of Summer Competition 2022
Affiliation: Concert Cellist, member of Philadelphia-based trio New River Ensemble as well as North Carolina Baroque Orchestra; Cello Faculty at Roanoke College; Founder of Community Cello Works, The Cello Camerata, and Cello Springs Festival. Appears as a guest artist at conferences, festivals, and music institutes throughout the U.S. and abroad; Her forthcoming books include her beginner cello method, The Ants Book; How To Fly Your Cello, a comprehensive collection of cello and musicianship activities to help build fluid musicianship; and a manual for meaningful musicianship, A Practical Pedagogy of Expression, North Carolina, USA
Anthony Thompson, Canada
Judge of Summer Competition 2022
Affiliation: Concert Clarinetist and Pedagogue; Artist of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and the Toronto Concert Orchestra; founding member of the Blythwood Winds woodwind quintet, Toronto, Canada
Maestro Yuri Yevchuk, Canada
Judge of Summer Competition 2022
Affiliation: Former Soloist (Bass) at the Mariinsky Theatre; recepient of multiple Grand Prix and First Place awards worldwide; toured to France, Poland, Switzerland, Finland, Israel, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Estonia and China; Repertoire at the Mariinsky Theatre includes Cherevik (Sorochintsy Fair), Bomelius (The Maid of Pskov), Cardinal Lorenzo Montanelli (The Gadfly in concert), Bass (Orango), Frol Baev (Into the Storm in concert), Maestro Spinelloccio (Gianni Schicchi), Cockneys, Professor Higgins’ Butler (My Fair Lady), Second Philistine (Samson et Dalila). Other repertoire includes Varlaam, Pimen (Boris Godunov), Old Gypsy (Aleko), Prince Gremin (Eugene Onegin), Chub (Christmas Eve), the Viking Merchant (Sadko) and King René (Iolanta).
Spring Competition 2022
Professor Neysun Rouhani, United Kingdom
Judge of Spring Competition 2022
Affiliation: Head of Education at Miele Canto, a music education and performance company, London, United Kingdom; Concert Pianist, performed with a number of orchestras such as Pazardjik Symphony Orchestra, Docklands Sinfonia, Sofia Philharmonic Orchestra, Sofia Soloists Chamber Orchestra and the Graz Chamber Orchestra and at the Oxford Piano Festival, UK
Professor Marie Bérard, Canada
Judge of Spring Competition 2022
Affiliation: Music Faculty of the University of Toronto and the National Youth Orchestra of Canada; Violin Faculty of the Glenn Gould School as well as the Taylor Academy, Toronto, Canada
Professor Dr. Gregory Brookes, USA
Judge of Spring Competition 2022
Affiliation: Associate Professor of Voice at Texas Tech University, TX, USA
Winter Competition 2022
Professor Giuseppe Devastato, Spain
Judge of Winter Competition 2022
Affiliation: Professor of Piano, Composition, and Chamber Music at Madrid Academy of Musical Arts, Spain, and Accademia Musicale Europea in Naples, Italy; Official Krause Piano Artist and President of World Piano Teachers Association, Spain
Professor Sergei Skorobogatov, Russia
Judge of Winter Competition 2022
Affiliation: Head of Woodwind and Brass Department at Voronezh Musical College; Professor of Trombone at Voronezh State Academy of Arts; Artist of Voronezh State Opera and Ballet Theatre, Voronezh, Russia
Matvey Lapin, USA
Judge of Winter Competition 2022
Affiliation: Violin Faculty at the String Instruments Department of Chatham Hall, Chatham, VA, USA
Alexandra Zaryankina, Russia
Judge of Winter Competition 2022
Affiliation: Soloist of the Saint Petersburg Chamber Theater of Classical Operetta, Saint Petersburg, Russia
New Year Competition Season 2021
Professor Maria Agibalova, Russia
Judge of New Year Competition Season 2021
Affiliation: Professor of Chamber Ensemble and Collaborative Piano at Voronezh State Academy of Arts, Voronezh, Russia; Winner of international competitions
Maestro Philip Mann, USA
Judge of New Year Competition Season 2021
Affiliation: Director of Orchestral Studies and Professor of Practice at Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX, USA; Guest Conductor at Lincoln Center's Avery Fischer Hall and London's Barbican Center; Founder of Arkansas's first collaborative arts festival - Acansa; Conductor for performances with the Cleveland Orchestra, Berlin Philharmonic, Vienna Philharmonic, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, l'Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Sofia Philharmonic, Busan Philharmonic, National Radio Orchestra of Romania, Voronezh Philharmonic, and major orchestras, operas, and festivals in Europe, USA, and Asia
Renata Shumskaya, USA
Judge of New Year Competition Season 2021
Affiliation: Pianist and Pedagogue; Founder of Piano Studio in Newcastle; Committee Chair of the EMTA Scholarship Competition; Member of National and Washington State Music Teachers Association, Newcastle, WA, USA
Professor Tatyana Timoshenko, Russia
Judge of New Year Competition Season 2021
Affiliation: Violin Faculty at the String Department of Voronezh College of Music for gifted children; Head of the Voronezh Group of violinists and cellists, Voronezh, Russia
Anastasiya Bazhenova, Norway
Judge of New Year Competition Season 2021
Affiliation: Concert Pianist and Organist, Larvik, Norway
Professor Ni Zhijie, China
Judge of New Year Competition Season 2021
Affiliation: Distinguished Professor of Flute Studies at Xi'an Conservatory of Music; Vice President of China Flute Federation; Head of flutes of China National Symphony Orchestra; Adjudicator of prestigious national and international music competitions, China
Professor Shen Nan, China
Judge of New Year Competition Season 2021
Affiliation: Professor of Vocal Studies at Shanghai Conservatory of Music and Visiting Professor at Nanjing Normal University; Executive Director of Jiangsu Vocal Music Society and Head of Opera of Jiangsu Performing Arts; Director of Jiangsu Chorus Association, Head of Jiangsu Radio Chorus and Chorus of Nanjing University, China
Fall Competition 2021
Professor Anastasia Timoshenko, Russia
Judge of 2021 Fall Competition
Affiliation: Professor of Violin Studies at State Music and Pedagogical Institute named after M.M. Ippolitov-Ivanov, Moscow, Russia; Artist of State Symphony Orchestra "New Russia", Moscow, Russia
Dr. Elena Nezhdanova, USA
Judge of 2021 Fall Competition
Affiliation: Piano Faculty at Opus Ithaca School of Music; Concert Artist and Pianist at Nezhdanova-Placzek Duo, Ithaca, USA
Tamara Yusman, Israel
Judge of 2021 Fall Competition
Affiliation: Concert Pianist, Soloist of Ashkelon Chamber Orchestra; Piano Faculty at Modus Music School, Ashkelon, Israel
Kristan Toczko, Canada
Judge of 2021 Fall Competition
Affiliation: Concert Harpist and Pedagogue; Founding Member of Harp Duo: Duo Novus; Social Media Creator: @harpistkt, ON, Canada
Mikhail Knyazev, Russia
Judge of 2021 Fall Competition
Affiliation: Concert Pianist, Artist of Voronezh Philharmonic Orchestra, Voronezh, Russia
Alexandra Zaryankina, Russia
Judge of 2021 Fall Competition
Affiliation: Soloist of the Saint Petersburg Chamber Theater of Classical Operetta, Saint Petersburg, Russia
Casey Granofsky, Canada
Judge of 2021 Fall Competition
Affiliation: Artist of the Toronto Concert Orchestra and the Guelph Symphony; Founder of the Niagara Flute School, ON, Canada
Summer Competition 2021
Professor Maria Rybina, Russia
Chief Judge of 2021 Summer Competition
Affiliation: Professor of Piano and Organ Studies at State Music and Pedagogical Institute named after M.M. Ippolitov-Ivanov, Moscow, Russia
Professor Giuseppe Devastato, Spain
Judge of 2021 Summer Competition
Affiliation: Professor of Piano, Composition, and Chamber Music at Madrid Academy of Musical Arts, Spain, and Accademia Musicale Europea in Naples, Italy; Official Krause Piano Artist and President of World Piano Teachers Association, Spain
Dr. Rachel Mazzucco, USA
Judge of 2021 Summer Competition
Affiliation: Harp Studies and Music Theory Faculty at Texas Tech University School of Music; President of the West Texas Harp Society, Lubbock, TX, USA
Dr. Laura Lennis, Colombia
Judge of 2021 Summer Competition
Affiliation: Concert Pianist and Pedagogue; Fulbright Scholar, Medellín, Colombia
Valentina Ignatova, Russia
Judge of 2021 Summer Competition
Affiliation: Artist of the Voronezh Opera and Ballet Theatre, Violin devision; Artist of Voronezh Symphony Youth Orchestra, Voronezh, Russia
Dr. Mikhail Johnson, Jamaica
Judge of 2021 Summer Competition
Affiliation: Composer and Pianist; Owner of a publishing label "Johno Muzik Publications", Jamaica
Svetlana Dyudina, Russia
Judge of 2021 Summer Competition
Affiliation: Soloist of Voronezh Opera and Ballet Theatre; Winner of "Bravo" title from the Russian Theatre Union organization, Voronezh, Russia
Professor Dr. Liu Zongqin, China
Judge of 2021 Summer Competition
Affiliation: Professor of Flute at Zhejiang Conservatory of Music; Member of Zhejiang Musicians' Association; Director of small funded projects of National Art Foundation, China
Joseph T. Paz, USA
Judge of 2021 Summer Competition
Affiliation: Percussions and Jazz Performer, Pedagogue, Lubbock, TX, USA