Welcome to the 2nd Annual MIMA Young Artist Competition! We’re thrilled to provide young musicians the opportunity to share their artistry and compete in this year’s categories: Solo Piano and (non-keyboard) Solo Instrumental. Selected winners are invited to perform at the awards ceremony and concert on July 12, 2025, at Zipper Hall, Colburn School of Performing Arts, Los Angeles, CA. We look forward to hearing your incredible performances!
Categories & Repertoire
There are two categories in this year’s competition (online):
1. Solo piano
2. Solo Instrumental (Non-Keyboard)
All video recordings must be sent in Youtube link.
PIANO
Repertoires: 1 or 2 works from the Baroque to the 21st century. Individual/separate movements from larger works are acceptable.
Group 1: age 7, 8, 9, 10 - free program, no longer than 7 mins
Group 2: age 11, 12, 13, 14 - free program, no longer than 12 mins
Group 3: age 15, 16, 17, 18 - free program, no longer than 18 mins
Group 4: age 19-24 - free program, no longer than 20 mins (must include works of two contrasting periods)
INSTRUMENTAL (strings, woodwinds, percussion etc.)
Any non-keyboard instrumentalist performing solo or with an accompanist.
Repertoires: 1 or 2 works from the Baroque to the 21st century. Individual/separate movements from larger works (sonata, concerto, etc) are acceptable. Works should be performed with accompaniment, except when the composition is intended to be played without it.
Group 1: age 10-14 - free program no longer than 12 mins
Group 2: age 15-19 - free program no longer than 18 mins
Group 3: age 20-25 - free program, no longer than 20 mins (must include works of two contrasting periods)
Prizes
The competition offers over $10,000 in cash prizes and scholarships towards tuition to attend the Montecito International Music Festival (MIMF). Besides cash and scholarship awards, 1st and 2nd prizewinners are invited to perform at the Zipper Hall on July 12th, 2025, during the winners' concert and ceremony. 3rd prize winners may be invited subject to availability. There’s no additional fees to participate in the Winner’s Showcase for the invited prize winners. Participants residing outside the USA who are invited to perform at the Winner’s Showcase will receive $300 for travel and accommodation expenses, to be used at their discretion.
PIANO
Group 1
1st prize: $500 ($100 cash, $400 Montecito Festival scholarship, certificate + winner’s showcase)
2nd prize: $200 ($100 cash, $100 Montecito Festival scholarship, certificate + winner’s showcase)
3rd prize: $100 (cash + certificate)
Group 2
1st prize: $700 ($200 cash, $500 Montecito Festival scholarship, certificate + winner’s showcase)
2nd prize: $300 ($200 cash, $100 Montecito Festival scholarship, certificate + winner’s showcase)
3rd prize: $200 ($100 cash, $100 Montecito Festival scholarship, certificate + winner’s showcase)
Group 3
1st prize: $1000 ($500 cash, $500 Montecito Festival scholarship, certificate + winner’s showcase
2nd prize: $600 ($300 cash, $300 Montecito Festival scholarship, certificate + winner’s showcase)
3rd prize: $200 ($100 cash, $100 Montecito Festival scholarship + certificate)
Group 4
1st prize: $1500 ($800 cash, $700 Montecito Festival Scholarship, certificate + winner’s showcase)
2nd prize: $800 ($400 cash, $400 Montecito Festival Scholarship, certificate + winner’s showcase)
3rd prize: $500 ($200 cash, $300 Montecito Festival Scholarship + certificate)
INSTRUMENTAL
Group 1
1st prize: $500 ($200 cash, $300 Montecito Festival scholarship, certificate + winner’s showcase)
2nd prize: $300 ($200 cash, $100 Montecito Festival scholarship, certificate + winner’s showcase)
3rd prize: $200 ($100 cash, $100 Montecito Festival scholarship + certificate)
Group 2
1st prize: $800 ($400 cash, $400 Montecito Festival scholarship, certificate + winner’s showcase)
2nd prize: $500 ($200 cash, $300 Montecito Festival scholarship, certificate + winner’s showcase)
3rd prize: $200 ($100 cash, $100 Montecito Festival scholarship + certificate)
Group 3
1st prize: $1000 ($600 cash, $400 Montecito Festival scholarship, certificate + winner’s showcase)
2nd prize: $600 ($300 cash, $300 Montecito Festival scholarship, certificate + winner’s showcase)
3rd prize: $400 ($200 cash, $200 Montecito Festival scholarship + certificate)
Registration & Agenda
The competition is open to participants of all nationalities. Please fill in the competition registration form accurately and ensure the authenticity and validity. If there is any false information, the qualification will be canceled. Contestants need to accurately select the group according to their age as of April 1st, 2025. If you have questions regarding your application or you are looking for additional information, you can contact us by e-mail: info.mima.ca@gmail.com
REGISTRATION FEE (non-refundable)
The application fee is $80 US dollars per applicant. ALL Montecito Festival Applicants are waived the application fee.
March 30TH 2025 (11:59 PST): Application Deadline (online)
Fully submitted online application form
Paid application fee of $80 per application
APRIL 15TH 2025: WINNERS ANNOUNCEMENT
The jury selects 3 prize winners from each groups. Contestants will be notified and prizewinners will be featured on our website and social media.
LIVE WINNER’S SHOWCASE CONCERT
The prizewinners from each group in both PIANO and (non-keyboard) INSTRUMENTAL categories will perform live on stage on July 12th, 2025 at the Zipper Hall, Los Angeles, California.
Jury Committee
Hailed as "lively and sensational” by Montreal’s Arts and Opinion, and “flawless” by New York Concert Review, prize-winning violinist Iryna Krechkovsky enjoys an international career as soloist, chamber music collaborator, educator, and arts executive. She has appeared on Classical KUSC, KABC-TV Los Angeles, the Korean Broadcasting System, National Public Radio, the Public Broadcasting Service, and as a speaker/performer at TEDxChapmanU. Born in Ukraine, Iryna Krechkovsky attended the Cleveland Institute of Music and holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from Stony Brook University in New York where she was awarded the distinguished 40 Under Forty Alumni Award. She is Co-Founder and Executive Director of Chamber Music | OC where she curates the nationally recognized Pre-College Program, and is a founding member of the award-winning ensemble Trio Céleste with cellist Ross Gasworth and pianist Kevin Kwan Loucks.
Hong Xu, acclaimed as "technically brilliant" with "seemingly limitless potential" by The New York Times, is among China's leading pianists. He debuted at 16 with Rachmaninov's Second Piano Concerto and has since collaborated with esteemed conductors like Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Vladimir Ashkenazy, and Mikhail Pletnev. His performances span prestigious venues, including Wigmore Hall, Carnegie Hall's Weill Recital Hall, and Beijing's National Centre for the Performing Arts. A proponent of contemporary music, Xu premiered Frederic Rzewski's "Rubinstein in Berlin" in 2008. An alumnus of Wuhan Conservatory, Eastman School of Music, and The Juilliard School, he has earned accolades from competitions such as the Gina Bachauer International Piano Competition. Currently, Xu serves as Associate Professor of Piano at The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, and is the Artistic Director of the New Zealand International Piano Festival.
Dr. Yi-Yang Chen, an internationally acclaimed Taiwanese pianist, has captivated audiences worldwide with his artistry and versatility. He has earned top honors in numerous prestigious competitions, including first prize at the 2018 Sussex International Piano Competition and the 2017 Washington International Competition. Dr. Chen has graced some of the world's most celebrated stages, such as Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center in New York, the Melbourne Recital Centre, and the National Concert Hall in Taipei.
As a soloist, he has collaborated with renowned ensembles like the Worthing Symphony Orchestra and the Thailand Philharmonic Orchestra. Dr. Chen holds advanced degrees from the Eastman School of Music (DMA, BM) and The Juilliard School (MM), studying with luminaries like Douglas Humpherys and Robert McDonald. He is currently an Associate Professor of Piano, inspiring the next generation of musicians.
Flautist and conductor Jean Ferrandis enjoys an international career that takes him throughout Europe, Asia, and North America. He has presented recitals, performed chamber music, and appeared as soloist with orchestra in such prestigious concert halls as the Salle Pleyel and Théâtre des Champs Elysées in Paris, Alice Tully Hall in New York, the Tapei Arts Center, Wigmore Hall in London, La Fenice in Venice, Hamarikyu Hall in Tokyo, the Vigado in Budapest, the Palau de la Musica Catalana in Barcelona, and the Moscow Tschaikovsky Conservatory, under such conductors as Leonard Bernstein, Tibor Varga, Laurent Petitgirard, and Yoram David. He has been invited to numerous festivals, including the Lanaudière in Canada, Switzerland's Sion Festival, the Budapest Spring Festival, the Midem Festival in Cannes, and the Berlioz Festival in Lyon. Chamber music collaborators have included Gidon Kremer, Ivry Gitlis, Jean Philippe Collard, and Emile Naoumoff. His appearances at the 2006 National Flute Association convention in Pittsburgh, an event attended by three thousand flutists, included a gala headliner concert in Heinz Hall and a master class. Jean Ferrandis currently teaches at l'Ecole Normale in Paris and at California State University-Fullerton.
Suejin Jung is a co-founder of MIMA, dedicated to designing meaningful art forms and realizing their hidden potential through collaboration. Her multimedia project, "Breathmark,” received first prize at the Goodmesh Concours and is showcased in her debut album released by the TRPTK label. As a collaborative pianist, Suejin has been featured at festivals such as Music Academy International, Ecoles d’Art Américaines de Fontainebleau, and New York International Piano Competition. A recipient of bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the Juilliard School, Suejin furthered her studies at the École Normale de Musique de Paris as a Harriet Hale Woolley Scholar of the Fondation des États-Unis. She completed her Doctorate in Piano Performance from Rutgers University. Her performances have been broadcasted and live-streamed on PBS, NPO Klassiek, and The Strad. As an educator, she has served as a faculty at Drew University, Rutgers University Extension Division and New York Music School. Suejin teaches at the Montecito International Music Festival and is a member of the Music Teachers Association of California.
Mari Kimura is a violinist/composer, entrepreneur, and a leading figure in interactive computer music. She is world-renowned for Subharmonics—the production of pitches that sound up to an octave below the violin’s lowest string—and her dynamic performances as an interpreter as well as an improviser. She received numerous awards including the Guggenheim Fellowship, the Fromm Commission Award from Harvard University, a residency award at IRCAM in Paris, and from the Rockefeller Brothers Fund. Educated at Toho School of Music, Boston University and The Juilliard School, Mari is a Professor of Music at UC Irvine and at Juilliard. In 2017, She developed a motion sensor prototype MUGIC®, a small WIFI device which can be worn as a ‘wearable tech’ or attached to objects. Commercialized in 2020, MUGIC® is now used by musicians, artists and beyond and in numerous conservatories and universities around the world such as Harvard, Juilliard, Univ. of Toronto and University of Arts in Berlin. As an entrepreneur, Mari received the Certificate of Recognition from the House of Representatives and the California State Assembly in 2020. She’s a co-founder of MIMA.