Young Concert Artists Announces Semi-Finalists and Jury Panel for 2025 Auditions

37 Early-Career Artists from 12 Countries Comprising
26 Instrumentalists, 5 Singers, and 6 Chamber Ensembles

Esteemed Jury Members Include Daniel Kellogg, Susan Wadsworth,
Anne-Marie McDermott, Pat Winter, Chee-Yun, Ransom Wilson,
Alban Gerhardt, Ken Noda, and Nokuthula Ngwenyama

“Young Concert Artists has acquired a special status in the musical world, and deservedly so… It is extremely doubtful that any organization anywhere could have matched the YCA record for spotting great talent and helping it along.” – The New York Times

www.yca.org

New York, NY (October 8, 2025) – Renowned for identifying and investing in musicians of “exceptional caliber” (The New York Times), Young Concert Artists has announced the semi-finalists in the 2025 Susan Wadsworth International Auditions. Based on a preliminary round of live auditions in New York and Los Angeles, and virtual auditions via video submission, 37 artists have been selected from a pool of more than 200 applicants to advance to the semi-final round on November 5-7, 2025 at Merkin Hall at Kaufman Music Center in New York City.

The semi-finalists are as follows: pianists Elias Ackerley, Charles Berofsky, Laure Cholé, Derek Hartman, Yongqiu Liu, Derek Wang, Zihao Wu, and Jiusi Zhang; pianist and violinist Ray Ushikubo; violinists Tianyou Ma, Christina Nam, Hannah Tam, Claire Wells; violists Laura Liu and Samuel Rosenthal; cellists Hun Choi, Simon Tetzlaff, and Antoni Wrona; clarinetists Elad Navon and Pablo López Ortega; flutists Nikka Gershman and Arin Sarkissian; oboist Ben Price; saxophonists Estel Vivo Casanovas and Colin Crake; sopranos Kerrigan Bigelow, Juliet Schlefer, and Margaret Tigue; baritone Korin Thomas-Smith; bass Vinicius Costa; guitarist Muxin Li; piano trios Amara Trio, Trio Azura, and Paddington Trio; String Quartets Kleio and Katarina; and woodwind quintet ZaRiah.

Anchored by YCA President Daniel Kellogg*, the jury for the semi-final and final rounds also comprises YCA Founder Susan Wadsworth, pianist Anne-Marie McDermott*, former Opus 3 Artists Senior Vice President Pat Winter, violinist Chee-Yun*, conductor and flutist Ransom Wilson, cellist Alban Gerhardt*, violist Nokuthula Ngwenyama*, and the Metropolitan Opera’s Ken Noda, musical advisor for the Lindemann Young Artist Development Program. The jury makeup of artists, managers, concert presenters, and conductors reflects YCA’s broad connections across the classical music world, which in turn is one of the key benefits for the young artists accepted into its three-year YCA Jacobs Fellowship.

This year’s 37 semi-finalists will travel to New York for the two remaining rounds of auditions, performing for the chance to join the YCA Roster either as soloists or – in a new offering for ensembles – as YCA’s first Ensemble-in-Residence. The final round, sponsored by the Linda & Isaac Stern Charitable Foundation, will be held on Sunday, November 9, 2025 at Merkin Hall. In another “first” this year, the jury will also select up to three Laureates, who will receive $5,000 in career development grants and an invitation to compete in the semi-final round of future audition cycles. Winners and Laureate prizes will be announced on Monday, November 10, 2025 followed by a Winners Concert, sponsored by Irene Roth and Vicken Poochikian, at 7:00pm that evening at the Stanley H. Kaplan Penthouse at Lincoln Center. 

Named for a generous gift from Joan** and Irwin Jacobs, the YCA Jacobs Fellowship offers artists selected through YCA’s famously rigorous audition process a holistic system of support and opportunities, including comprehensive artist management, performance opportunities at top venues around the globe, and YCA-presented debut recitals in New York City and Washington, DC, as well as ongoing mentorship by YCA leadership and alumni; training in education and community engagement projects; individual brand development which includes a photoshoot guided by a top-tier creative director and stylist; a professional video shoot; special projects including video recordings, commissions, and collaborations. The YCA Jacobs Fellowship kicks off with the 21st Century Artist Incubator, a 14-month intensive artist training program that guides artists through developing a toolkit including engagement best practices, social media and website review and development, and more. This Fellowship is recognized as the world’s most comprehensive, innovative, and well-resourced incubator for the brightest and most promising young artists, preparing these rising stars to lead the future of classical music. 

YCA Jacobs Fellows continue an illustrious legacy of YCA alumni that includes such luminaries as Emanuel Ax, Julia Bullock, Anne Akiko Meyers, Jeremy Denk, Ray Chen, Anne-Marie McDermott, Richard Goode, Dawn Upshaw, Mason Bates, Zlatomir Fung, Jean-Yves Thibaudet, Kevin Puts, Pinchas Zukerman, Randall Goosby, Sasha Cooke, and 2025 Van Cliburn Winner Aristo Sham.

*YCA alum
**in memoriam

Semi-Finals: November 5-7, 2025; finalists announced November 8, 2025

Finals: November 9, 2025, beginning at 10:00am at Merkin Hall at Kaufman Music Center, New York City – streamed live on The Violin Channel

Generously sponsored by The Linda & Isaac Stern Charitable Foundation

Winners Announced: November 10, 2025

Winners Concert: November 10, 2025 at 7:00pm in Stanley H. Kaplan Penthouse at Lincoln Center streamed live on The Violin Channel

Generously sponsored by Irene Roth and Vicken Poochikian

Photo Credit: Chris Lee