• Symphony Orchestra musicians may apply once they have been accepted into an ESYO group for its 2019-2020 season.
• Competition Date: The competition will be held on Saturday, January 18, 2020 (snow date Sunday, January 19) at The Massry Center for the Arts at The College of St. Rose.  The winner will perform with the Symphony Orchestra as part of the April 2020 concert.
• Application Deadline: November 15, 2019, and it will be strictly enforced. NO applications will be accepted after the deadline, and any applications that were submitted in time but were incomplete (for example, lacking the name of your accompanist) must be completed by the deadline or they will be removed from consideration.
• The application fee for the Concerto Competition is $25.

• Eligibility / Choice of competition music:
  • The competition is open only to members of the Symphony Orchestra in good standing. Previous ESYO Lois Lyman Concerto Competition Winners are not eligible to re-apply for consideration during the season following their concerto performance.
  • Applications will be accepted for all orchestral instruments including harp, percussion, and piano. Applicants may audition on only one instrument in any given year, and it need not necessarily be the instrument played in the Symphony Orchestra.
  • Applicants may choose any concerto or other published work for solo (soloists) with orchestral accompaniment.
    • Your choice must be pre-approved by the Music Director using the Repertoire Approval Form before you submit the full application.
      • The Concerto Competition Repertoire Approval Form must be submitted to the ESYO office by October 25, 2019. You will be notified by email when approval has been granted.
      • Permission is partly dependent upon the availability of parts and score.
      • The length of the concerto must not exceed 30 minutes, unless pre-approved by the Music Director.  

• Preparation and Competition Audition:
  • Applicants must prepare the entire concerto, but the judges will determine what portions of your selected piece will be played during the competition audition. The length of the audition will be approximately ten minutes.
  • For both the audition and the performance, applicants are required to play from memory, unless, as per standard performance practice, this requirement has been waived by the Music Director. All applicants will be permitted to have music available at the audition in order to facilitate finding particular sections in the concerto as requested by the judges.
  • Applicants must provide the judges with a clean copy of the music.
  • Applicants must provide their own accompanist and must supply the required information about the accompanist by November 15, 2019, the deadline for submitting the application.
  • Warm-up rooms will be available on the day of the competition. Harpists, percussionists, and pianists will warm up in the audition space because of audition set-up issues and, for pianists, the use of unfamiliar instruments.
  • With the exception of the judges, the accompanist, page-turners for the accompanist (if needed), and the individual applicant at his/her scheduled time, no one is allowed in the audition space during the competition.

• Competition Results:
  • Judges will select the winner and runner-up.
    •  ESYO reserves the right to declare no winner based upon the decision of the judges.
  • The winner will play the entire concerto (performed for the competition) with the Symphony Orchestra at its concert in April.
  • The runner-up may be invited to perform a movement (or movements) of his/her piece with the Repertory Orchestra. This decision will be made by the Repertory Orchestra Conductor and the Music Director.
  • The adjudication forms will be sent to each student after the competition.
  • Applicants will be notified by email or telephone of the judges’ decision within 48 hours of the competition.

Note: If you wish to enter the competition, we strongly recommend that you obtain approval for the piece and make arrangements with an accompanist as soon as possible. if you have any questions about your application and/or participation in the competition, please contact Sue Lascoe, Operations Director, at the ESYO office at (518) 382-7581 or at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

To participate, Symphony Orchestra members must fill out the following forms by the indicated deadlines: 

• Concerto Competition Repertoire Approval Form due October 25, 2019
• Concerto Competition Application due November 15, 2019

2018-19
William Han, cello
Cello Concerto No. 1, Op. 107, Dmitri Shostakovich

2017-18
Gabrielle Kim, piano
Piano Concerto in A minor, Op. 16, Edvard Grieg

2016-2017
Aram Kim, violin
Violin Concerto No. 5 in A minor, Op. 37, Henri Vieuxtemps

2015-2016
Michael Zhu, violin
The Lark Ascending, Ralph Vaughan Williams

2014-2015
Hannah Dick, percussion
Concerto for Marimba and Orchestra, Op. 12,  Ney Rosauro

2013-2014
Clare Criscione, violin
Concerto No. 3 in B minor, Op. 61, Camille Saint-Saëns

2012-2013
Jacob Efthimiou, cello
Cello Concerto No. 1 in A minor, Op.33, Camille Saint-Saëns

2011-2012
Lisa Liu, violin
The Butterfly Lovers, by Chen Gang and He Zhanhao

2010-2011
Turi Scilipoti, flute
Concerto for Flute and Orchestra, by Jacques Ibert

2009-2010
Zachary Evans, violin
Symphonie espagnole, Op. 21, by Édouard Lalo

2008-2009
Ryan Reilly, piano
Piano Concerto No. 1 in E-flat, S. 124, by Franz Liszt

2007-2008
Anthony Bellino, trumpet
Proclamation, by Ernest Bloch

2006-2007
Leo Brown, violin
Zigeunerweisen, Op. 20

2005-2006
Jack Qian, violin
Concerto in E Minor, Op. 64, by Felix Mendelssohn

2004-2005
Eric Zhou, violin
The Butterfly Lovers, by Chen Gang and He Zhanhao

2003-2004
James Benoit, marimba
Fantasy on Japanese Woodprints, Op. 211, by Alan Hovhaness

2002-2003
Kathryn Andersen, violin
Symphonie espagnole, Op. 21, by Édouard Lalo

2001-2002
Ashley Bathgate, cello
Concerto in A Minor, Op. 129, by Robert Schumann

1999-2000
Ashley Bathgate, cello
Concerto No. 1 in A minor, Op. 33, by Camille Saint-Saëns

1998-1999
Benjamin Chan, violin
Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 61, by Ludwig van Beethoven

1997-1998
Felice Kuan, piano
Piano Concerto in A minor, Op. 16, by Edvard Grieg

1996-1997
Jonathan Chu, violin
Concerto No. 3 in B Minor, Op. 61, by Camille Saint-Saëns

1995-1996
Adrienne Chamberlain, French horn
Concerto #1 by Richard Strauss

1994-1995
Jennifer Chu, piano
Piano Concerto No. 1 in G Minor, Op. 25, by Felix Mendelssohn

1993-1994
Marisa Range, piano
Concerto No. 2 in G Minor, Op. 22, by Camille Saint-Saëns

1992-1993
Nathan Lawrence, violin
Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 35, by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky

1991-1992
Clancy Newman, cello
Cello Concerto in B Minor, Op. 104, by Antonín Dvořák

1990-1991
Emily Greitzer, violin
Symphonie espagnole, Op. 21, by Édouard Lalo

1989-1990
Meg Bragle, violin
Concerto for Violin and Orchestra, by Samuel Barber

1988-1989
Michelle Fenton, bassoon
Concerto in B flat Major, by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Stefon Harris, marimba
Fantasy on Japanese Woodprints, by Alan Hovhaness

1987-1988
Martha Pushee, piano
Concerto No. 2 in B-flat, Op. 19, by Ludwig van Beethoven

1986-1987
Dana Gooley, piano
Concerto No. 1 in G Minor, Op. 25, by Felix Mendelssohn

Lisa Cole, clarinet
Concerto in A Major, K. 622, by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

1985-1986
Joyce Ryu, violin
Concerto in E Minor, Op. 64