A panel of three judges has awarded clarinetist Romie De Guise-Langlois first prize in the 2009 Houston Symphony Ima Hogg Young Artist Competition. The award comes with a prize of $5,000 and a solo appearance with the Houston Symphony on July 12, led by Houston Symphony Music Director Hans Graf. De Guise-Langlois was given the award following the competition finals concert on June 6, at which she performed the Mozart Clarinet Concerto. De Guise-Langlois, a native of Canada, is currently a fellow of The Academy—A Program of Carnegie Hall, The Juilliard School, and the Weill Music Institute. She earned an Artist Diploma from the Yale School of Music. Judges for the competition were Melinda Bargreen, former music critic at The Seattle Times; Robert Berretta, manager of artists and attractions at Opus 3 Artists; and conductor Thomas Wilkins, music director of the Omaha Symphony and principal guest conductor of the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra. Other competition laureates this year were cellist Hee-Young Lim (second place); pianist Jeewon Lee (third place and audience choice award); and violinist Gao Can (fourth place). The Ima Hogg Young Artist Competition takes place annually; it was established in 1976 in honor of Miss Ima Hogg, a founder of the Houston Symphony and the Houston Symphony League.
Posted June 12, 2009
