35th Annual Young Artist Competition: Honors Recital

Isaac Moorman currently serves as Assistant Principal Cellist for the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra since 2022. He also performs as Principal Cellist for the Space Coast Symphony and the Riverside Chamber Orchestra. He has performed on three occasions as a soloist with the Space Coast Symphony Orchestra, as well as with the Riverside Chamber Orchestra, Melbourne Municipal Band and the Central Florida Winds. Isaac has given solo performances at Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center and in 2019, he received 1st prize in the Brevard’s “Got Music” Talent Competition in Melbourne, Florida. In addition to his performing activities, Isaac is the teaching assistant for Joseph Johnson at the Eastman School of Music in pursuit of his doctorate. He earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Kentucky School of Music where he completed a double major in Cello Performance and Piano Performance with highest honors in just three years. Subsequently, Isaac received his master’s degree at Eastman as the teaching assistant for Guy Johnston.

Matthew Phan, 19, of Jacksonville, FL, is a sophomore at Vanderbilt University pursuing a Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance in the Blair School of Music under Dr. Heather Conner. He has won first place in the Florida Federation of Music Clubs Senior Concerto and Gold Cup Concerto Competitions as well as their highest honor open to all instrumentalists, the Irene Muir Award; Florida State Music Teachers Association Senior Concerto Competition; and the Tennessee division of the Music Teachers National Association Senior Performance competition, as well as being named an Alternate in the Southern Division competition. He has soloed with the Jacksonville Symphony, Ocala Symphony, and Northwest Florida Symphony Orchestra as a winner of their respective concerto competitions. He looks forward to sharing his enthusiasm for music with audiences in the future.

Praised for her “innate musicianship” (Maestro Carmon DeLeone) and “formidable technique” (Raphael’s music notes), violinist Gabrielle Sewell is an active soloist, educator, and community advocate. A first prize winner of the Nancy F. Walker Memorial Scholarship, the Fall 2025 winner of the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM) Concerto Competition, and a prizewinner of the 2025 Jaqueline Avent Concerto Competition, she has appeared as a soloist with the Starling Chamber Orchestra, Northern Kentucky Youth Orchestras, Cumberland Orchestra, and the CCM Concert Orchestra, among others. Sewell has performed in Cincinnati Music Hall, a National Historic Landmark and the home of the Cincinnati Symphony and Ballet. She has also been invited to perform in principal positions for orchestras throughout the Cincinnati area. Dedicated to education, she serves as a violin and chamber music faculty member at the Cincinnati Starling Project, a specialized pre-college program for talented young string players. Sewell also enjoys creating community outreach programs in local churches and elderly care facilities. She is currently a scholarship student of Kurt Sassmannshaus at CCM.

Noelle Potenzini is an accomplished music student and performer who approaches the stage with both humility and ambition. She is currently in her last semester of pursuing her Bachelor’s degree in Music Performance at the University of Florida under the guidance of her flute professor, Dr. Kristen Stoner. Upon graduation, she looks forward to attending graduate school and soon beginning her professional career as an orchestral and collaborative flutist. Her undergraduate experience provides her with leadership opportunities that emphasize the importance of establishing good rapport and communication with colleagues, as well as showing up over-prepared. In her experience, music has always been at least one of these three things: an outlet of emotional expression, something meaningful that she can try to perfect, and a form of ineffable storytelling. Noelle is beyond honored and grateful to be selected as a finalist in the 2025 Ocala Symphony Young Artist Concerto Competition. This opportunity serves as a profound reminder of the immense gratitude she holds for the unwavering support of the mentors, family, and friends in her life

Omar Khan is a 16 year old percussionist native to Orlando, Florida. He is a junior at Timber Creek High School where he serves as the principal percussionist of the Wind Ensemble and Philharmonic Orchestra, in addition to playing drum set, vibraphone, and other percussion instruments in the jazz band and timpani in the percussion ensemble. Throughout middle school and high school, he frequently participated in the FMEA all state band and orchestra as well as the Orange County all-county bands. In the summer of 2024 and 2025, he was part of Carnegie Hall’s National Youth Orchestra 2, where he performed at Carnegie Hall in New York City for World Orchestra Week, the Meyerson Symphony Center in Dallas, and at the opening weekend of the Edinburgh International Festival at Usher Hall. Furthermore, in 2025, Omar also participated in the University of Central Florida Summer Percussion Seminar and the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra Summer Camp. Throughout the school year he is a part of the Timber Creek Regiment Marching Band and the Timber Creek Scholastic Concert Percussion Ensemble, competing in the WGI World Championship in 2024. Omar has participated in masterclasses, lessons, and seminars with percussionists including Matt Howard, Jacob Nissly, Jauvon Gilliam, Don Liuzzi, Dr. Thad Anderson, Kirk Gay, Jeff Moore, and Mark Goldberg and has played under the baton of Gustavo Dudamel, Rafael Payare, Teddy Abrams, James Ross, José-Luis Novo, and Kirt Mosier.

Siena Dewing, age twelve, began studying the violin at the age of seven and currently studies with Grazyna Zeranska. Earlier this year, she was named a finalist at the Young Musician International Violin Competition in Tallinn, Estonia. A passionate and dedicated young musician, Siena is a sixth-grade student at Landon Middle School in Jacksonville. Her current favorite recording is Janine Jansen’s performance of Bach’s Violin Concerto in E major. Outside of music, she enjoys spending time with her two younger sisters, creating art, and designing stickers and bracelets together.

Ivan Kostornyi is a sixteen-year-old violinist and organist. When he was five years old, he began his musical studies on the violin in Sydney, Australia, where he gave his first solo concert on the violin. When he was eleven, he started learning organ. Ivan has participated in a number of masterclasses and received individual lessons from various prominent professors, violinists, and organists from around the world including Professor Antal Zalai, Dr. David Kim, Professor Julia Bushkova, and Felix Hell. In addition, Ivan has participated in and received top prizes in various competitions. Thus, in March 2024, Ivan performed as a national finalist of the MTNA National Competition in Atlanta, GA. Later the same year, he received the Irene Muir Award and the Connie Tuttl-Lill All Performance Award from the Florida Federation of Music Clubs on the violin. Also, Ivan received second prize in the OPUS National Competition in 2025. Recently, Ivan was also selected to perform Ravel’s Tzigane in Carnegie Hall as part of Stetson’s Dr. M. Jean Greenlaw Stetson University Concert. Currently, Ivan is studying violin with Professor Routa Kroumovitch and organ with Dr. Boyd Jones as a student at Stetson University for his Bachelor in Violin and Organ Performance (double-major) degree.

Lilah Hahn is a 12-year-old pianist from West Palm Beach, Florida. She began playing piano at the age of five and has dreamed of becoming a concert pianist since she was six. She is homeschooled and studies with Dr. Luca Cubisino through the Frost Prep Advanced Piano Program at the University of Miami. Lilah has taken part in many solo, concerto, and duo competitions, earning recognition for her dedication and expressive playing. Her recent awards include prizes from the 2025 FFMC Solo and Concerto Competitions, the 2025 Ray Millette Young Artists Concerto Competition, the 2024 Pat Simpson Concerto Competition, and the 2024 Greater Miami Youth Symphony Piano Concerto Competition. Lilah has attended festivals such as Clavicologne, the Imola Summer Music Academy, Rollins College Summer Piano Academy, the Frost Chamber Intensive, and PianoTexas, where she has worked with distinguished artists including Kevin Kenner, Tian Ying, Santiago Rodriguez, Stanislav Ioudenitch, Ingrid Fliter, and Michel Beroff. She made her orchestral debut at age ten performing Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 12 with the Greater Miami Youth Symphony. Since then, she has appeared with the Palm Beach Atlantic University Symphony, the Alhambra Orchestra, the Stamps String Quartet, and the Master Orchestra in Brescia, Italy, after winning their concerto competition. She is especially passionate about chamber music and works by women composers, and she enjoys sharing her music at local retirement homes. Outside of piano, Lilah plays violin, serves as the collaborative pianist for the North Palm Youth Symphony, and sings with the Young Singers of the Palm Beaches. She also loves baking, art, jewelry making, Girl Scouts, swimming, and caring for her fifteen chickens—each named after a woman pianist.