UGA Saxophone Studio quartet wins national competition

Student musicians in the Hugh Hodgson School of Music Saxophone Studio have been hard at work, with diligence and professionalism that has paid off with national recognition. Mixed Media saxophone quartet was awarded the Gold Medal in the senior wind division of the 49th Annual Fischoff Competition, held at the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, IN on May 20-22, 2022.  Camille Hayes in the Hodgson School reports:

Established in 1973, the Fischoff National Chamber Music Association sponsors the world's largest chamber music competition, drawing applications from hundreds of chamber ensembles from all over the world. Select groups are invited to the live rounds of the competition after submitting a preliminary recording.  

Members of the quartet include Michael Chapa (DMA ‘25), soprano saxophone; Julien Berger (BM performance and composition ‘23), alto saxophone; Lindsey Welp (DMA ‘25), tenor saxophone; and Grace Gelpi (MM ‘22), baritone saxophone. Professor of saxophone Connie Frigo is their primary coach, with support from lecturer of saxophone Brandon Quarles. They have been playing together for less than a year, and their friendships and shared discipline helped fuel their early success.  

“Embracing each of our backgrounds and experiences in music while keeping our minds open to criticism and suggestions from others came easily to us. This made our creative process more efficient, and we were able to learn and interpret music at a faster pace,” said Chapa.   

During the school year, the quartet rehearsed 6-8 hours per week and attended weekly one-hour coaching sessions with Dr. Frigo. Once the spring semester ended, they began rehearsing daily in preparation for Fischoff. “We spent a good deal of time discussing our repertoire selection so as to construct a stylistically diverse program that shows off a variety of our strengths as an ensemble,” said Gelpi.  

Specific to an ensemble that wishes to compete, Mixed Media and Dr. Frigo spent a lot of time discussing repertoire choices and flow of their programs, strategies to learn the music as efficiently and effectively as possible, and how to stay energized and inspired during the year-long preparation process. Creative pop-up performances in the school of music, along with organized concerts were a critical part of their process.  

“Mixed Media had a strong independent and consistent work ethic from the moment they formed as a quartet in summer 2021, which played a defining role in their growth during the year,” said Dr. Frigo.  

The competition semi-finals and finals were streamed from Notre Dame, so family, friends, and faculty were able to watch live as the quartet advanced to their gold medal program. “Everything seemed to click for us during that performance. It is rare that someone my age gets the chance to play music for such an audience at such a prestigious competition, and I was so fortunate to be given that opportunity," said Berger.   

Mixed Media quartet are no strangers to competition and winning on a big stage. Earlier in the semester they advanced to the national finals of the MTNA Woodwind Chamber Music Competition and also won first place in the Senior Instrumental division of the Coltman Chamber Music Competition in Austin, Texas, held at the UT-A Butler School of Music.  

“I noticed myself getting progressively more comfortable with the presence of a large audience with each subsequent performance. I remember looking out into the audience in the quarterfinals, seeing world-renowned judges, and feeling immense pressure to perform well. By the double gold performance, I was able to think about performing for the audience, not only to place well in the competition but to involve them in the experience,” said Welp.  

Dr. Frigo said how incredibly proud she was of their gold medal award at Fischoff and their first prize win at the national Coltman Chamber Music Competition in Austin, TX in March, especially after two years of pandemic-related cancellations and virtual music-making. “They are making music at a remarkably high level that exudes joy, resilience, and imagination [and that’s] a beautiful win regardless of the competition outcome,” said Dr. Frigo.  

As Gold medalists, Mixed Media was awarded a cash prize sponsored by Ann & Paul Divine and Nancy Hawkins. In addition, they will go on the Winner’s Gold Tour in September 2022, performing concerts and taking part in masterclasses and outreach at venues across the Midwest. This year is particularly special because, for the first time, past Fischoff Gold winners Akropolis Quintet are sponsoring a full scholarship for them to attend their Akropolis Mastermind career development workshop.  

Image: Left to right: Michael Chapa, Lindsey Welp, Julien Berger, Grace Gelpi