Basil Alter and Xinyue Yang to perform with the Delta Symphony Orchestra on April 23

Grand Prize Winner – Basil Alter

Hailed as a “teenage virtuoso” in his Commercial Appeal profile, violinist Basil Alter began violin lessons with his mother at age 3. Beginning schooling at the University of Memphis’ Rudi E. Scheidt School of Music, where he was the violinist of the Contemporary Chamber Players and concertmaster of the school’s symphonic and opera orchestras, he later moved to New York to study at the Manhattan School of Music, where he was a rotating concertmaster of the school orchestras. He was featured in Jewish Scene Magazine’s article “Basil Alter’s World of Music,” and has been a frequent guest performer at Temple Emanu-El of New York, most recently performing on instruments from the traveling exhibit “Violins of Hope.” Upcoming spring performances include appearances with the Germantown Symphony (Tennessee) and the Delta Symphony (Arkansas), appearances at Calvary Episcopal Church (Tennessee) and Temple Israel (Tennessee), as well as recitals across the U.S.

Grand Prize Winner – Xinyue Yang

Born in China in 1997, Xinyue is a prize-winner of many national and international music competitions, including the grand prize of the Delta Symphony Orchestra Young Artist Competition (2023), first prize of the Weatherford College International piano competition (2022), the first prize of the New York and Eastern division MTNA young artist competition (2021-2022), the first prize of the 4th Spanish Ciguenza international piano competition (2013) and Second prize at Allegro Vivo music festival. Ms. Yang has performed throughout China, Europe, and the United States, such as the Concert Hall of China Conservatory of Music, the Concert Hall of Central Conservatory of Music, the Concert Hall of Tsinghua University in China, the Recital Concert Hall of Siguenza in Spain, Stift altenbertg, bibliothek in Austria, Museum of Liszt’s former residence, Budapest, Hungary and Kilburn Hall in Rochester, New York.

Xinyue Yang completed her Bachelor’s study at the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing under professor Taihang Du. Then, she completed her Master’s degree at the Eastman School of Music and continues as a doctoral candidate, studying piano with Professor Natalya Antonova and Angela Kim. Xinyue holds graduate assistantships in accompanying and teaching secondary piano at the Eastman School of Music. Recently, she is the first-ever recipient of the Rebecca McCord scholarship at Eastman School of Music.

Neale King Bartee Award Winner – Anamaria Tarkington

Anamaria Tarkington, Pianist, is a resident of Jonesboro. She’s 15 years old, has studied violin from age three, and began her study of piano at age nine. She placed second in the 2020 J.D. Kelly String Competition and was given an Honorable Mention in the 2022 J.D. Kelly Piano Competition. She most recently received the Neal King Bartee Award in the Delta Symphony Orchestra’s Young Artist Competition for her piano performance of Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue. Anamaria has performed with the Delta String Quartet as well as orchestras in the NEA area. She currently attends The Royale Garden Academy. She studies piano with Dr. Lauren Schack Clark, violin with Jenny Rong Cao, and is a member of the Tarkington String Quartet, the ASU Orchestra, and performs regularly around the area in musical stage productions with her family, The Tarkingtons.