Blair School of Music students received numerous awards at the state level of the Music Teachers National Association Competitions, held last month at Tennessee Tech University in Cookeville. The annual event featured 97 students, ages 11-26, competing in piano, string, vocal, and woodwind categories.
In the Piano Competition, Josephine Borne won the Junior Division and Spencer McKee was named the winner in the Senior category.
Three Blair students were awarded top honors in the Strings Competition: Eliana Kovacova in the Junior Division, Jasper Sewell in the Senior Division, and Max Vanhoej in the Young Artist Division.
These five state winners will move on to the Southern Division Competition, with the winners of that round advancing to the MTNA National Competitions, which will be held in Atlanta, Georgia, in March 2024.
The full list of Blair-affiliated students winning awards includes:
Sonja Moons – Winner, Piano Solo University Competition (collegiate student of Jama Reagan)
Josephine Borne – Winner, Piano Junior Competition (student of Jama Reagan)
Tyler Schwartz – Honorable Mention, Piano Junior Competition (student of Heather Conner and Jama Reagan)
Eliana Kovacova – Winner, Strings Junior Division (violin student of Carolyn Huebl)
Jasper Sewell – Winner, Strings Senior Division (violin student of Carolyn Huebl)
Sophia Jensen – Alternate, Strings Junior Division (violin student of Christina McGann)
Max Vanhoeij – Winner, Strings Young Artist Division (violin student of Connie Heard)
Avagail Hulbert – Runner-up, Strings Young Artist Division (violin student of Connie Heard)
Spencer McKee – Winner, Piano Senior Division (student of Heather Conner)
Daniel Guo – Honorable Mention, Piano Senior Division (student of Heather Conner)
Katie Wang – Honorable Mention, Piano Senior Division (student of Heather Conner)
Sean Yang – Winner, Young Artist (BMus’23; former student of Amy Dorfman)
Jack Allen – Honorable Mention, Young Artist (BMus’23; former student of Craig Nies)
