Naumburg Foundation Announces Winners of Classical Saxophone Competition

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The Walter W. Naumburg Foundation Announces
Winners of the 2022 International Saxophone Competition

Andreas Mader and Valentin Kovalev Named First Place Co-Winners
Each receives a cash award of $20,000; a NY Concert Debut and a Commissioned Work

October 10, 2022 (New York, NY) – The winners of the 2022 Walter W. Naumburg Foundation’s International Saxophone Competition were announced on Sunday evening, October 9, 2022, at the conclusion of the competition’s final round, held in Manhattan School of Music’s Neidorff-Karpati Hall.

Sharing first prize are Andreas Mader, age 29, from Austria and currently residing in Luxembourg and Valentin Kovalev, age 21, a native of Russia who now resides in Philadelphia, PA. Both Mr. Mader and Mr. Kovalev received a cash award of $20,000; a New York debut concert; and a Naumburg commission, composer TBA.

Second prize, a cash award of $10,000, was given to Robert (Chance) Stein, age 26, who resides in Washington, DC and is a member of Pershing’s Own United States Army Ceremonial Band.

Rounding out the final round were Walter Puyear, age 25, who is persuing a Doctor of Musical Arts degree at the University of Michigan; and Thomas Giles, age 32, who works as a freelance musician in New York City and also holds the baritone chair of the San Francisco-based MANA Quartet. Mr. Puyear and Mr. Giles each received an honorarium of $2,000.

Pianists Liz Ames and Casey Dierlam-Tse each were awarded a special prize of $1,000. Liz Ames, from Ann Arbor, MI collaborates worldwide with instrumentalists, vocalists and composers; and Casey Dierlam-Tse, who since 2014 has served as a collaborative pianist at Knox College in Galesburg, IL, is the collaborative piano coordinator for the North American Saxophone Alliance conference.

The distinguished jury included Charles Neidich, Chair; Paul Cohen, John Corigliano, Carrie Koffman, Timothy McAllister, Otis Murphy Bence Szepesi, Joan Tower and Carol Wincenc.

With cash awards totaling more than $50,000, concert recital debuts and commissioned works, this was the largest ever competition to be held for the saxophone. The competition began on Oct. 4, 5 and 6 with the preliminary round in Thalia Theater at Symphony Space; and at Manhattan School of Music on Oct. 7 the semi-final round in Greenfield Recital Hall and the final round on Oct. 9 in Neidorff-Karpati Hall. An international roster of 31 saxophonists competed in the competition.

The semi-final and final rounds of the Naumburg Saxophone Competition can be viewed:
Bby live stream. at the following URL
https://www.naumburg.org/live-stream/

About the Co-Winners:
Andreas Mader, attended the Conservatorium van Amsterdam where he received a master's degree of Live Electronics as well as his bachelor and master of music degrees. He currently lives in Luxembourg and just prior to the Naumburg competition was named first prize winner in Europe's prestigious International Werner Pirchner Preis in Austria. He has performed in 12 major Dutch concert halls as part of the prestigious Dutch Classical Talent Tour. His debut CD, “Lilith & Lulu” (2019) received rave reviews from Dutch, Austrian and German press as well as Bavarian Radio.

Saxophonist, composer, educator and content creator Valentin Kovalev’s unique performing arts style was developed following studies in Russia, France and the US. He is the winner of several international competitions and has soloed with prestigious orchestras in his native Russia, toured China, and performed throughout Europe through the Rostropovich Foundation. He is a Henri Selmer, Paris artist and is represented by Astral Artists of Philadelphia.

The Walter W. Naumburg Foundation was founded in 1926 by Walter Naumburg and continues today in the pursuit of the ideals set out by Mr. Naumburg. It was his desire to assist gifted young American musicians and to make possible a long-standing program of competitions and awards in solo and chamber music performance. It was Mr. Naumburg’s belief that such competitions were not only for the benefit of new stars, but would also be for those talented young musicians who would become the prime movers in the development of the highest standard of musical excellence throughout America and worldwide.