22nd VSA arts International Young Soloists Concert

May 2, 2006

WASHINGTON, D.C., May 2, 2006 -- The 2006 VSA arts International Young Soloists Concert scheduled for May 23, will be hosted by Andrea Roane, W*USA 9 News morning anchor, in the Family Theater at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C.

The performance will be broadcast live on the Internet. At 7:30pm on May 23, simply click here to view the broadcast.

The VSA arts International Young Soloists Program was created 22 years ago to identify talented young musicians with disabilities and support and encourage them to turn their talent into a lifelong profession. A committee of prominent music professionals selected the award recipients, granting each a $5,000 award and the opportunity to perform at the Kennedy Center. The 2006 awardees are: Jacquelyn Weitz, 22, pianist, of Billings, Montana; Brian Sanders, 22, cellist, of Madison, Wisconsin; Nichola Kouzes, 14, vocalist, of Colleyville, Texas; and Giovanna Maira, 19, vocalist, of Osasco, Sao Paulo, Brazil.

“This program has helped launch the careers of talented young musicians for 22 years by offering awards and a concert performance at the Kennedy Center,” said, Soula Antoniou, president of VSA arts.

The 2006 VSA arts Young Soloists Award Recipients:

· Jacquelyn Weitz, a classical pianist studying at Montana State University-Billings, has won several national concerto competitions. In both 2004 and 2005, she was selected as one of 24 pianists throughout the country for the prestigious Van Cliburn Institute. She received the Outstanding Musician Award at the 2002 Bartok-Kabalevsky-Prokofiev International Piano competition and was one of five finalists in the Professional Category of the 2003 Pinault International Piano Competition in New York City. She maintains a private studio teaching piano students and is currently pursuing a professional concert career. Weitz has asthma, severe allergies and a rare immune deficiency syndrome

· Brian Sanders, a classical cellist, began playing the cello at 10 years old. As a high school student, he was in the local youth symphony and by his junior year became principal cellist. He will graduate this May from the renowned Eastman School of Music in Rochester, where he is a principal cellist of the Eastman Philharmonia, studying with Steven Doane. Sanders contributes his success as a musician to developing and understanding his own bowing technique, having been born with two fingers on his right hand.

· Nichola Kouzes, a Country, Pop and R&B vocalist has performed at the Grapevine Opry, Six Flags Over Texas, Billy Bob’s, and Radio Disney. She began performing at age 7 in local talent shows and has continued to excel while entertaining at local hospitals and senior citizen events. Kouzes, who writes her own melodies and lyrics, aspires to become a professional performer. She was born with ulnar hemimelia, marked by missing bones in her right hand and lower arm, and at 8-years-old was diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

· Giovanna Maira, vocalist, has made several appearances on Brazilian television and radio programs. She was a featured soloist at the Teatro Municipal, a prominent performance venue in Brazil and performed in a touring production of An Evening with Andrew Lloyd Webber. Maira, who is blind, works with Instituto Paradigma, an advocacy group that works toward the inclusion of people with visual disabilities in society. She is currently pursuing a bachelor’s degree in music at the Universidade de São Paulo.

The performance starts at 7:30 p.m.

Visit www.vsarts.org/concert for complimentary tickets. For more information, call (202) 628-2800.

Media Contact

Marcia Rhodes / VSA arts, (202) 628-2800, ext. 3883, marciar@vsarts.org