Past Award Winners listed below

Local Awards for 2023

Contemporary Showcase Edmonton’s Recognition Awards are given to recognize students who have put extra effort and creative musicianship into their performances.

The Bella Music Awards for strings have kindly been donated by Jim Doucet, owner of Bella Music in Edmonton.

The National Association of Teachers of Singing from North Central Alberta has kindly donated a scholarship for our Voice classes.

The Alberta Registered Music Teachers’ Provincial Association has kindly donated scholarships to promote students exploring music by Alberta Composers, having performed these pieces in the Joyce Oliver Alberta Composer and Featured Composers Classes. This organization also presents an award to a promising young Alberta composer from our Creative Music Classes. 

The Edmonton Branch of the Alberta Registered Music Teachers’ Association has kindly donated a scholarship to promote areas other than piano in our festival.  This year it will be given to a student from the Guitar Classes.

The Gladys Odegard Award for Beginner Piano has kindly been donated by Gladys Odegard to encourage a first-time student who shows aptitude and interest in the performance of music with contemporary idioms.

The Duo Majoya Keyboard Ensemble Award has been kindly donated by Dr. Marnie Giesbrecht and Dr. Joachim Segger from the keyboard duet team called Duo Majoya.

Violet Archer Awards in Junior Piano.  Canadian composer, Violet Archer, spent the last years of her life composing works for students to experience the joys of contemporary music. These awards recognize her faithful contribution and support of Contemporary Showcase, The Canadian League of Composers and The Canadian Music Centre.  Violet Archer, an Edmontonian, was a founding member of each of these Associations. 

All awards will be given at the discretion of the clinicians.

2023 Awards

Young Composers Program
CSE Recognition Award – Rachel Chow

Creative Music 
Alberta Registered Music Teachers’ Association (ARMTA), Provincial & CSE Recognition Award – Mark Rico-Lam
CSE Recognition Award – Charlton Qiu

Strings
Bella Music Award & CSE Recognition Award –  Senior – Kylie Pitsaroop
Bella Music Award – Junior/Int – Viggo Napora and Matthias Klann

Voice
National Association of Teachers of Singing (North Central Alberta) – Danielle Tang

Guitar
Alberta Registered Music Teachers’ Association (ARMTA), Edmonton Branch – Gideon Emke

Joyce Oliver & Featured Composer Classes, Alberta Composer Awards
Alberta Registered Music Teachers’ Association (ARMTA), Provincial – Int/Senior – Michael Rico-Lam
Alberta Registered Music Teachers’ Association (ARMTA), Provincial – Junior – Aiden Griffith

Duo Majoya Keyboard Ensemble Award – Roland McNeil and Charlton Qiu

Beginner Piano
Gladys Odegard Beginner PIano Award – Cindy Jiang
CSE Recognition Award – John Engel

Junior Piano
Violet Archer Award – Irena Tang
Violet Archer Award – Mei Chi
Violet Archer Award – Rohin Sandhu
CSE Recognition Award – Rafael Creutzig

Intermediate Piano
CSE Recognition Award – Liam Li
CSE Recognition Award – Michael Rico-Lam
CSE Recognition Award – Charlton Qiu
CSE Recognition Award – Kathleen Cai

Senior Piano
CSE Recognition Award – Mark Rico-Lam
CSE Recognition Award – Charlotte Kiang
CSE Recognition Award – Natalia Kuzma
CSE Recognition Award – Brandon Bouwmeester

2022 National Winners

National Award Nominees for 2022
The Mary Hildebrand Memorial Award for Performance Excellence – Noah Mok
The Mary Gardiner Award of Performance Excellence – Senior (Grade 9 +) – Isabella Houston
The Ann Southam Award – Senior (Grade 9 +) – Yue-Xing Vincent Zhang
The Ann Southam Award – Junior (up to Grade 8) –  Vivian Shen
John Weinzweig Scholarship – Senior (Grade 9 +) – Eric Davidson
John Weinzweig Scholarship – Junior (up to Grade 8) – Elijah Mok

2021 National Winners

National Award Nominees
The Mary Hildebrand Memorial Award for Performance Excellence – Molly Danko
The Mary Gardiner Award of Performance Excellence – Senior (Grade 9 +) – Isabella Houston
The Mary Gardiner Award of Performance Excellence – Junior ( up to Grade 8) – Oliver West
The Ann Southam Award – Senior (Grade 9+) – Ben McGowan
The Ann Southam Award – Junior (up to Grade 8) – Mark Rico-Lam
John Weinzweig Scholarship – Senior (Grade 9 +) – Noah Mok
John Weinzweig Scholarship – Junior (up to Grade 8) – Maica McEachern

ACNMP National Awards

The Ann Southam Award

The Ann Southam Award is a new performance excellence award that is established in memory of pioneering Canadian composer Ann Southam by the Southam family.

This new national award will recognize an outstanding performance of a work by a Canadian female composer.  Each Contemporary Showcase centre may nominate one performer at the Junior Level (pre-Grade 1  to 8) and Senior Level (Grade 9 and above).

Click here to read more about Ann Southam.

The Mary Gardiner Award of Performance Excellence

This award was established in 2010 to honour Mary Gardiner – an awarded composer, pianist, educator, mentor, great champion of Canadian music and long- serving President of Alliance for Canadian New Music Projects.

Qualifications for this solo performance: The nominee must have participated for three years in the Contemporary Showcase Festival at a high level of performance.

Procedure: Each Contemporary Showcase Centre with a qualifying performer will submit the performance by December 13 of the festival year via a personal youtube video.

Please list the name of the performer, composition and grade in the email and announce this information on the video. The recipient will be announced on the ACNMP website by January 15.

Levels: Each Centre may submit a Senior, grade 9 and above, and a Junior, grade 8 and below , candidate.

Mary Hildebrand Memorial Award for Performance Excellence

ACNMP is pleased to announce a new National Award: The Mary Hildebrand Memorial Award for Performance Excellence

Mary Hildebrand was a teacher, composer and dedicated supporter of Contemporary Showcase Mississauga. This award has been established by Mary’s family.

Qualification: Each Contemporary Showcase Centre may submit one senior (grade 9 and up) solo performance on the recommendation of the adjudicator.

Each nominee will submit a performance by December 13 of the festival year via a personal youtube video. The recipient will be announced on the ACNMP website by January 20. 

Amount of Award: $500.00

John Weinzweig Centenary Scholarship

ALLIANCE FOR CANADIAN NEW MUSIC PROJECTS  and Contemporary Showcase are pleased to announce the John Weinzweig Scholarship.

To honour John Weinzweig, “the Dean of Canadian Composers”, ACNMP is pleased to announce a scholarship for the performance of solo works by Weinzweig. The scholarship is funded by “John Weinzweig ONE HUNDRED YEARS 1913-2013”.

The performer must have participated in a Contemporary Showcase and be recommended by the centre coordinator.

Solo performances of any Weinzweig composition or a work by a first or second generation Weinzweig student will be accepted.  Find pieces listed in the ACNMP syllabus (www.acnmp.ca) or www.johnweinzweig.com. Click here for a list of Weinzweig’s students.

Submissions can be done through a personal youtube video submitted to acnmp@rogers.com 

There will be a junior (up to grade 8) and a senior scholarship (grades 9 and up).  The two recipients will also receive a Weinzweig Biography.

The submission does not have to be a recording of the Contemporary Showcase performance.

Previous Award Winners

2022 Awards

Young Composers Program
Robert Rosen Memorial Award – Niles Maj-Pfleger
CSE Recognition Award – Elliot Taylor

Creative Music 
Alberta Registered Music Teachers’ Association (ARMTA), Provincial & CSE Recognition Award – Senior – Mark Rico-Lam

Strings
Bella Music Award & CSE Recognition Award –  Int/Sr – Elijah Mok
Bella Music Award – Junior – Liyuan Pan

Winds
CSE Recognition Award – Eric Davidson

Voice
CSE Recognition Award – Senior – Laura Bittman

Erin Bai Memorial Award
Alberta Registered Music Teachers’ Association (ARMTA), Edmonton Branch – Lexi Nagowski

Joyce Oliver Class, Alberta Composer Awards
Alberta Registered Music Teachers’ Association (ARMTA), Provincial – Senior – Isabella Houston
Alberta Registered Music Teachers’ Association (ARMTA), Provincial – Jr/Int – Angela Sun

Gladys Odegard Beginner Piano Award – Keyla Chu

Duo Majoya Keyboard Ensemble Award – Isabella Houston and Jonathan Urschel

Junior Piano
Violet Archer Award – Fillip Sibal
Violet Archer Award – Rohin Sandhu
Violet Archer Award – Mei Chi
CSE Recognition Award – Gabrielle Jiang
CSE Recognition Award – Angus Merritt

Intermediate Piano
CSE Recognition Award – Natalia Kuzma
CSE Recognition Award – Kathleen Cai
CSE Recognition Award – Leah Wang
CSE Recognition Award – Michael Rico-Lam
CSE Recognition Award – Roland McNeil

Senior Piano
CSE Recognition Award – Noah Mok
CSE Recognition Award – Mark Rico-Lam
CSE Recognition Award – Élise Auld
CSE Recognition Award – Oliver West
CSE Recognition Award – Naomi Chan

2021 Awards

Young Composers Program
Robert Rosen Memorial Award – Niles Maj
CSE Recognition Award – Jonathan Urschel
CSE Recognition Award – Ian Liu

Strings
Bella Music Award – Liam Ng
Bella Music Award – Anna Regehr
Tirecraft Award – Liam Ng

Winds
Tirecraft Award – Intermediate – Megumi Varghese
Tirecraft Award – Junior – Calla Ehrkamp

Voice
CSE Recognition Award – Senior – Molly Danko
CSE Recognition Award – Intermediate – Alessandra Belle Ortynski

Creative Music 
ARMTA (Prov) – Senior – Mark Rico-Lam
CSE Recognition Award – Mark Rico-Lam
MacEwan University Award for Creative Music – Sointu Aalto

Erin Bai Memorial Award
ARMTA (Edm) – Avianna Shieh

Joyce Oliver Class, Alberta Composer Awards
ARMTA (Prov) – Senior – Isabella Houston
ARMTA (Prov) – Intermediate – Fen Krotz Adams

Gladys Odegard Beginner Piano Award – Olivia Tobisch

Junior Piano
Violet Archer Award – Bruno Lukevicious
Violet Archer Award – Michael Rico-Lam
Violet Archer Award – Clark Charlton

Intermediate Piano
CSE Recognition Award – William Lee
CSE Recognition Award – Ava Marquez
CSE Recognition Award – Hannah Gutowski
CSE Recognition Award – Sarah Steinke

Senior Piano
CSE Recognition Award – Mark Rico-Lam
CSE Recognition Award – Elise Auld
CSE Recognition Award – Oliver West
CSE Recognition Award – Ela Yabis-Sibal

Duet / Ensemble
CSE Recognition Award – Odin, Kyla, Tidus, Sylar Garritano

2021 National Winners

National Award Nominees

The Mary Hildebrand Memorial Award for Performance Excellence – Molly Danko
The Mary Gardiner Award of Performance Excellence – Senior (Grade 9 +) – Isabella Houston
The Mary Gardiner Award of Performance Excellence – Junior ( up to Grade 8) – Oliver West
The Ann Southam Award – Senior (Grade 10 +) – Ben McGowan
The Ann Southam Award – Junior (up to Grade 9) – Mark Rico-Lam
John Weinzweig Scholarship – Senior (Grade 9 +) – Noah Mok
John Weinzweig Scholarship – Junior (up to Grade 8) – Maica McEachern

2020 Awards

YCP – Robert Rosen Memorial Award – Sointu Aalto

Alberta Registered Music Teacher’s Association Awards
Creative Music (Sr.) – Sointu Aalto
Senior Piano (Joyce Oliver class) – Jonathan Urschel
Junior Piano (Joyce Oliver class) – Eliah Urschel

Bella Music Awards for Strings
Elijah Mok
Luke Emery

Tirecraft Awards
Winds – Megumi Varghese
Strings – Sointu Aalto

Violet Archer Awards for Piano Gr. 1-3
Eliah Urschel
Fen Krotz Adams
Sara Mis

CSE Recognition Awards
Voice – Allessandra Belle Ortynski
Gr. 4-6 Piano – Elise Auld
Gr. 4-6 Piano – Sarah Steinke
Gr. 4-6 Piano – Evangelene Doring-Lindgren
Gr. 7+ Piano – Noah Mok
Gr. 7+ Piano – Oliver West
Gr. 7+ Piano – Isabella Houston Piano ensemble award – Hugo & Amos Koehn

National award nominations for 2020

Mary Hildebrand Award – Sr – Sointu Aalto, cello
Mary Gardiner – Sr. – Sointu Aalto, cello (Winner – video)
Mary Gardiner – Jr. – Kauri Aalto, violin
Ann Southam – Sr – Cassidy Nouanethong, piano
Ann Southam – Jr. – Yue-Xing Vincent Zhang, piano (Winner – video)
John Weinzweig Award – Jr – Noah Mok, Piano (Winner – video)
Louise MacPherson Memorial Award in composition – Sointu Aalto – announcement

National award WINNERS for 2020

2019 Awards

Photo: Some Award Recipients from 2019