7 years old - Achievements Kaelyn Yunci Soh (Singaporean - born 12 May 2006 in London) 1. 3rd Prize Winner (Violin Junior category, 12 years & below) - National Piano & Violin Competition 2013, organised by the National Arts Council, Singapore. 2. 2nd Place Winner - American Protégé International Piano & Competition 2014. 3. 1st Place Winner - American Protégé Music Talent Spring Competition 2014. 8 years old - Achievements 1. AMADEUS Young Talent Prize Winner (Grand Prize) - Young Talents Project 2014 (YTP), organised by MediaCorp Symphony 92.4. MediaCorp is the largest media broadcaster in Singapore. 2. Violin Solo Performance on TV, Young Talents Project Gala Concert at MediaCorp TV Theatre (Broadcast on Channel 8 and OKTO). TV Interview & News Report on Channel News Asia. Live Radio Interviews on 92.4 FM. 3. Audience's Choice Award - Youth Got Talent! Select Showcase, Singapore Youth Festival 2014 at Marina Gardens by the Bay, organised by Ministry of Education. 4. Inaugural Singapore Raffles International Music Festival 2014 Violin Solo - Gold Award Winner (Children Division) Violin Ensemble - Gold Award Winner (First Violin in a Vivaldi Four Violin Quartet) Upcoming Engagements (2014) 1. President's Star Charity 2014 on Live TV, lead violinist in a joint classical music performance item with two other YTP winners. 2. Master-class in Vienna with world class violinists, sponsored by Young Talents Project 2014. 3. Winner's recital performance at Carnegie Hall, New York City for American Protégé awards. From left: Kaelyn receiving awards from 1) Mr Lawrence Wong, then-acting Minister for Culture, Community and Youth, Singapore 2) Mr Chang Long Jong, Deputy CEO MediaCorp, Singapore 3) Mr Heng Swee Keat, Minister for Education, Singapore 1
Kaelyn Yunci Soh Singaporean, Born 12 May 2006 in London (Kaelyn performing at the Singapore MediaCorp TV Theatre, 27 Jun 2014) Since the age of four, Kaelyn started learning the violin from Mdm Zhang Ying at the "School of Young Talents" under the auspices of Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (NAFA), Singapore. In Dec 2013, Kaelyn won third prize (Violin Junior Category for children 12 years old and below) at the 2013 National Piano - Violin Competition organised by the National Arts Council, Singapore. At seven and a half years old, she was the youngest child to have won a prize in this category, since the inauguration of this national level competition in 1997. The jury of the competition included the distinguished Professor David Cerone of Cleveland Institute of Music (CIM), USA. She received her prize from the then-acting Minister Lawrence Wong. Kaelyn was awarded first place winner in the American Protégé Music Talent Spring Competition 2014 and 2nd place winner in the American Protégé International Piano and Strings Competition 2014. She will be delivering a winner's recital at the Carnegie Hall, New York City in Dec 2014. On 27 Jun 2014, after an impressive TV performance of the technically challenging violin piece "Scherzo Tarantelle" by Henri Wieniawski, she won the judges' heart to emerge the grand prize winner of the Young Talent Project amongst the 150 contestants. The jury panel included renowned Singaporean violinist Professor Siow Lee Chin and Singaporean conductor Mdm Wang Ya-Hui. As the Amadeus Young Talent prize winner, Kaelyn will be travelling in a sponsored trip to Vienna for master-classes with top classical musicians later this year. Further to her win, she was interviewed on live radio by Symphony 92.4 and on TV by Channel News Asia. She will be performing in the President's Star Charity Show that will be hosted by MediaCorp in Nov 2014. On 5 July 2014, Kaelyn delivered a violin solo piece at the "SYF Youth Got Talent! Select Showcase" as part of the "Singapore Youth Festival Celebrations 2014" organised by Ministry of Education at "Gardens by the Bay". She was awarded the "Audience's Choice" prize by Minister Heng Swee Keat. On 20 Aug 2014, Kaelyn was awarded double Gold Award Prizes for her violin solo performance and for her violin ensemble performance (she was the first violin leading a Vivaldi String Quartet contest item) in the Singapore Raffles International Music Festival 201. The jury panel included the distinguished Professor Peter Zhang Shi-Xiang from the Shanghai Conservatory of Music and the Sydney Conservatory of Music. At the tender age of seven years old, Kaelyn achieved a pass with merit for the internationally accredited ABRSM Grade 5 Music Theory exams. She is scheduled for ABRSM Grade 8 practical exams in Sep 2014. In her studies at NAFA school of Young Talents, she had consistently achieved very good grades, such as an overall Grading of "A" for the most recent Grade 6 assessment. Other than Mdm Zhang Ying, Kaelyn honed her playing techniques through attending master-classes by virtuoso Japanese violinist Mrs Masako White, Chinese conductor and violinist Mr Zhang Zhen Shan, Japanese Professor Takaya Urakawa of Tokyo University and Professor David Cerone, CIM. Kaelyn passionately enjoys performing and sharing her music. She had several public performance experiences at the NAFA Lee Foundation Theatre, Singapore Esplanade Concourse and School of the Arts - Singapore, as a soloist and in the capacity of leader of a violin quartet and a violin ensemble. As reported in Channel News Asia, when Kaelyn was interviewed after her win in the Young Talents Project, she said that the win taught her "to be humble and work hard" - values that Kaelyn aspires to live. 2
//Enclosures 1) Third Prize Winner's Certificate for National Piano and Violin Competition 2013 2) Certificate for ABRSM( The Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music) Grade 5 Music Theory 3) Results Slip for ABRSM Grade 5 Music Theory 4) Certificate for AMADEUS Young Talent Prize, Young Talent Project 2014 5) Gold Awards Winner's Certificate for Violin Solo(Children) and Violin Ensemble Categories, Singapore Raffles Music Festival 2014 (yet to be inserted) 6) Result Slip for Grade 6, School of Young Talents, NAFA 3
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