2026 Winners Intermediate List

Kasen Pham

Kasen has been learning music when he was 7 years old. He has been participate for the piano competition since middle school, and he has won prizes from Bach Festival, Sonatina Festival.

Elizabeth Yu

Elizabeth Yu has been playing piano for about six years. She performed at numerous different recitals and concerts and has placed second and third in competitions.

Ariana Yu Xin Liu

Hello! My name is Ariana Yu Xin Liu. I play the cello and the piano. I have also composed musical pieces. I go to Tyee Middle School as a 6th grader.

Calvin To

Calvin loves music and has been playing the piano since he was 5 years old. He has also studied cello for about 5 years now. Calvin has made significant progress in his music studies and received high marks with distinction for his piano and cello exams from the Royal Conservatory of Music (RCM) and Trinity College London. He received the RCM Regional Gold Medal for his levels 6 and 7 exams for piano. He was accepted to the 2025 WMEA Junior All-State Orchestra. He serves as the cello section leader in his school orchestra and selected to participate in the 2025 and 2026 LWSD Middle School Honor Orchestra. Calvin is also a cellist in one of the string quartets at The Music Matters Foundation, performing regularly for charitable and educational communities. Additionally, he has participated in various local and international music competitions, receiving top awards. Outside of music, Calvin enjoys playing board games and various sports such as ultimate frisbee, flag football, basketball, and badminton.

Mandi Dou

Mandi Dou, thirteen years old, began studying piano at age five and started violin at age eight and a half. She won the 2024 Music Matters International Music Competition (Strings Division) and has performed with the BYSO for four years.

Nathan Jang

Nathan Jang, a dedicated 7th-grade student at Liberty Middle School in Madison, Alabama, began his piano journey at the age of seven. Nathan's prodigious talent has earned him widespread recognition in numerous competitions. Domestically, he has secured top honors in events like the Boykin and the AMTA Piano Competition. His distinction was further cemented when he was invited to perform at thr Governor's Mansion in Alabama. On the international stage, Nathan has won the World Artistry Music Award, Classical Music Star Competition held in Poland, the Miclot International Music Competition, the Special Venue Music Awards, and the Music Talent Competition American Protege. His accomplishments have led to prestigious performance opportunities, including the winner's Concert at the Memorial Church of Harvard University, the Shalin Liu Performance Center in Boston and Carneigie Hall. He loves learning all aspects of music.

Viki Wang

Viki embarked on her music journey at the age of 5, learning to play piano. She began playing violin at her middle school orchestra in the 5th grade, and started violin private lessons around a year ago. She loves music, and will play in Mercer Island Philharmonic Orchestra next year at Mercer Island High School.

Andrew Tsang

Andrew is an 8th grader and has been playing violin for 4 years. He participates in his middle school orchestra. Awarded 3rd in Music Matters International Music Competition in 2025.

Evan Ip

Evan has been playing the piano since he was seven years old and the violin since he was nine. Over the years, he has enjoyed participating in various recitals, concerts, music festivals, and competitions. He won the third prize in the Junior Piano Division at the 2025 Music Matters International Music Competition.
Outside of music, Evan is a 2nd degree black belt in Taekwondo and enjoys playing tennis and video games.

Summer Li

Summer’s been playing violin for 7 1/2 years now. Alongside violin, she has also been playing the alto saxophone for 4 years and the guitar for 5. She has passed numerous Trinity College London violin exams with distinction.