Music Department announces winners of Performance Competition Finals

The annual UPEI Music Department Performance Competition Finals were held last month with the following preliminary finalists and award winners announced:

Students chosen from the preliminary round: Rebecca Apps, third-year voice major, performing music by Weinzweig, Floyd and Somers; Jillian Clow, third-year voice major, performing music by Samuel Barber; Nadine Haddad, fourth-year voice major, performing cabaret songs by William Bolcom; Evan Hammell, third-year trombone major, performing a Sonatina by Halsey Stevens; Melissa MacKenzie, second-year voice major, performing works by Adam Guettel and Leonard Bernstein; and Lucas MacPhail, third-year saxophone major, performing Wings by Joan Tower.

Judges for this year's competition were well- known PEI educators and musicians - Leo Marchildon, Jennifer Gillis, Kirk White, Alexandra Gallant, and Doug Millington.

After an exciting evening of performances, the winners were announced. First place went to Lucas MacPhail, second place Rebecca Apps, and third place Melissa MacKenzie.

MacPhail, a native of Warren Grove, PEI, is in his third-year of the Bachelor of Music program at UPEI studying saxophone performance with Kevin MacLean. He is currently the principal alto saxophonist for the UPEI Wind Symphony and a member of the UPEI Jazz Ensemble. This past summer, Lucas competed at the FCMF National Competition at Wilfred-Laurier University in Waterloo, Ontario.

Congratulations to all the finalists!