Trio Sinfonia wins the the string and piano division and $2,500
The 13th edition of the annual Coltman Chamber Music Competition took place from 7–8 March at the University of Texas at Austin’s Butler School of Music in Austin, TX, US. The two divisions were for string and piano ensembles and mixed ensembles, with senior and junior age categories.
In the string and piano division, the grand prize and first prize of the senior category were awarded to Trio Sinfonia. It receives a performance engagement with the Artist Series Concerts of Sarasota for the 2025–26 season, an educational concert engagement and $2,500. The group comprises violinist Isabella Sun, cellist Ching-Yu Tseng, and pianist Daniel Chen-Wang, and was established at the New England Conservatory. It is coached by Ara Gregorian and Alessio Bax.
The second prize of the senior division went to the Dōnum Quartet, receiving $1,500. The other finalists were the Soha and Auréya quartets.
In the junior category of the string and piano division, the first prize of $1,500 was won by the Moca Trio. The ensemble was established in 2025 at the Colburn School and is coached by Moni Simeonov.
The $1,000 second prize was awarded to Quartet Meraviglia. The other finalists were the Cascadian and Strelitzia trios.
The mixed ensemble division was dominated by saxophone quartets. In the senior category, the Synchrony Quartet won the first prize, and the Reverie Quartet the second prize; in the junior category, the Soteria Quartet was awarded the first prize, and the Creekview Quartet the second prize.
For the preliminary round, this year’s judges comprised Pei-Ling Lin, Nathan Mertens, Sarah Hetrick, Li-Mei Liang, Julia Bell, Aaron Berofsky, Kenneth Larson and Alice Yoo. For the live round, the jury comprised Kevin Kwan Loucks, Daniel Jordan, Melanie Kjellsen, Kara LaMoure, Joshua Gindele and Stephen Page.
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