“On 27 and 28 January, the finals of the annual Sphinx Competition took place in Detroit MI, U.S.,” states an unsigned article in Tuesday’s (1/31) Strad (U.K.). “17-year-old cellist Brandon Leonard was awarded first prize in the Junior Division, while violinist Njioma Chinyere Grevious, 23, took home first prize in the Senior Division. Leonard won $10,000, solo concert engagements and a radio performance opportunity, and Grevious received the $50,000 Robert Frederick Smith Prize and solo concert engagements with major orchestras. She also received the Audience Choice Prize, worth $5,000. In the Junior Division, violinist Gabriela Salvador Riera, 16, won second prize and $5,000, while 17-year-old cellist Vincent Garcia-Hettinger was awarded third prize and $3,000. In the Senior Division, second prize and $20,000 went to violinist Alejandra Switala, while third prize and $10,000 were awarded to violist Dillon Scott.… The 2023 competition jury comprised Joseph Conyers, Zuill Bailey, Juan-Miguel Hernandez, Patrice Jackson, Jennifer Koh, Michael Kondziolka, and Erik Rönmark. All finalists performed with the Sphinx Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Kalena Bovell. The Sphinx Organization … aims to celebrate Black and Latinx classical string players from around the world.”
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