(Left to right): Nathan Mertens, Carter DeSouza, Joel Ferst and Ian Gunnarschja with Kaori Uno-Jack, MTNA judge and CU Boulder alum.The Music Teachers National Association (MTNA) hosted the Colorado state round of the Young Artist Woodwind Competition at the University of Colorado Boulder on Oct. 21, 2023. Three CU Boulder saxophone students鈥擟arter DeSouza, Joel Ferst and Ian Gunnarschja鈥攅ntered the woodwind division of the competition to great success.听
Ferst, a first-year doctoral student, won the competition! DeSouza, a first-year master鈥檚 student, received alternate; and Ian Gunnarschja, also a first-year master鈥檚 student, received honorable mention.
The students prepared their respective 藴30-minute programs with faculty from the College of Music鈥檚 collaborative piano program鈥擧siao-Ling Lin, Robert Hjelmstad and Barbara Boyes鈥攊ncluding works by Schubring, Rueff, Tomasi, Schubert, Zupko, Decruck, Teleman, Shirley, Grieg, Cockcroft and Nagao.
鈥淭hey all prepared these programs in about eight weeks鈥攚hich is a feat in itself鈥攁nd then delivered poised, professional and artistic performances,鈥� says Assistant Professor of Saxophone Nathan Mertens. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 the goal! Winning is just an added bonus.听
鈥淚鈥檓 so incredibly proud of these students.鈥�
As winner of the three-tiered competition, Ferst will compete in the MTNA West Central Division Young Artist Woodwind competition. Division winners will be announced in mid-January and will then compete in the national finals at the annual MTNA National Conference in Atlanta, Georgia.
The MTNA鈥檚 national competitions are the most successful and prestigious student competitions in the country; each year, thousands of students compete for top prizes and national recognition. The purpose of MTNA performance competitions is to provide educational experiences for students and teachers, and to recognize exceptionally talented young artists and their teachers in their pursuit of musical excellence.
