While student musicians at the School of Music, Theatre & Dance have abundant occasions to make music as part of ensembles, the opportunity to perform as a soloist is rare. Even more rare is the chance, as a soloist, to perform an entire concerto with an ensemble. Each year, SMTD holds the Concerto Competition to offer just such an opportunity: the coveted prize for the winners is playing their selected concerti with one of SMTD’s major ensembles at a future concert in Hill Auditorium.
Kate Fitzpatrick, associate dean for undergraduate academic affairs and associate professor of music, oversees the competition. “The Concerto Competition is one among the broad array of performance experiences that we try to provide our music students,” she said. “We make sure that we are creating opportunities to foster excellence in all areas of students’ performance. We’re lucky at SMTD that we have amazing large ensembles that these students can perform with and have these phenomenal experiences themselves as soloists.”
The winners of the 2025 Undergraduate Concerto Competition are Ellen Hayashi (BM ’25, violin) and Lauren Troutman (BM ’26, saxophone, music education). Hayashi, who studies with Professor Danielle Belen, performed Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto in D Major, op. 35, accompanied by Naki Sung Kripfgans, collaborative pianist for the Department of Strings. Troutman, a member of Professor Timothy McAllister’s studio, performed André Waignein’s Rhapsody for Alto Saxophone and Orchestra. She was accompanied by Liz Ames, collaborative pianist for the Department of Winds & Percussion. Both are recipients of merit-based scholarships; Hayashi is supported by the Julian & Vera McIntosh Memorial Fund and Troutman by the Don and Sue Sinta Endowed Scholarship.
Ellen Hayashi
Lauren Troutman
The winners of the Graduate Concerto Competition are Catherine Goode (DMA ’26, voice) and Cheryl Pandora (MM ’26, piano). Goode, a soprano who studies with Professor Amanda Majeski, performed Libby Larsen’s Sonnets from the Portuguese and was accompanied by Eric Head (MM ’25, collaborative piano). Pandora played Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto no. 3, op. 26, with So Hyang In (DMA ’27, piano) as the accompanist. She studies with Professor Christopher Harding, chair of the Department of Piano. In addition to the opportunity to perform their concerti with a major ensemble, all winners also earn the Bossart Prize, a monetary award.
Catherine Goode
Cheryl Pandora
The Concerto Competition, which takes place each January over two days, is open only to SMTD students enrolled in a music degree program. It is conducted with the rigor and professionalism of any international music competition, with firm rules and regulations. “You feel like this is your version of the Olympics,” Hayashi noted. The entire piece must be memorized. Participants must first perform in preliminary rounds for their department; no more than two undergraduate and two graduate students advance to the finals from each of the four eligible categories: piano/keyboard, voice, strings, and winds & percussion. Those who compete in the finals are judged by faculty members from the school’s ten music departments.
Preparing to Compete
Preparing for the Concerto Competition is not unlike training for a marathon. Participants begin preparing months in advance, devoting significant daily practice time to their chosen repertoire. They strategically plan out their rehearsals to hit milestones along the way. “Students who are entering the Concerto Competition are putting in many hours of devoted practice time to prepare these pieces,” Fitzpatrick noted, “and that journey itself, we hope, is something that they will learn from.”
“It was intense,” Troutman said of the preparation. “But it was very rewarding work, because I always found more that I could put into it – more emotions, more musicality. It was a constant discovery.” For Goode, the song cycle she performed had been a part of her life for several years. During the fall 2023 semester, she spent hours rehearsing the cycle for the 2024 Concerto Competition, being coached by Professor Kirk Severtson, but a scheduling conflict meant she wasn’t able to compete. So when she decided to enter the 2025 competition, she was already extremely familiar with the music, but she never tired of it: “The more I sing it, the more I discover nuances in the poetry.”
Beyond the purely musical aspects, preparing for and competing in the Concerto Competition involved a substantial measure of resilience and mental toughness. Pandora noted, “It wasn’t just about how well I could play the piece; maintaining a strong mindset and staying focused in the moment were equally crucial.” Hayashi acknowledged that such skills would be vital for her not just as a student, but as a professional musician: “Knowing how to operate under high-stress situations is what we’re going to have to do in our careers. I think the biggest benefit of this competition is not so much about the opportunity of winning; it’s about teaching yourself how to be a bulletproof musician.”
Catherine Goode, voice // 2025 SMTD Concerto Competition winner
The Big Night: Performing in the Finals
When the day of the finals arrived, each participant knew that what they had already achieved was significant. And now they were going to perform as soloists amid the grandeur of Hill Auditorium. “Singing in Hill as a soloist is an opportunity that you don’t get very often,” Goode noted. “It was really wonderful to fill up that space with my voice and the story I was telling.”
After all the preparation, the finals felt, in a way, like a celebration. “SMTD is home to exceptionally high-standard musicians,” Pandora said, “and simply making it to the finals, surrounded by such talented and hardworking peers, already felt incredibly rewarding.” Troutman felt a sense of jubilance that night: “The finals performance was a very magical experience for me. I felt like I could really let go and just trust the work that I had put in. I had a blast performing on stage, and I hope everyone could feel that.” For Hayashi, the big night came with an epiphany of sorts: “I think the biggest takeaway for me was, it’s always really great to win, but it’s also okay if you don’t. Music making and performing – it’s not about winning the titles, getting all of the attention or all of the glory. It’s being able to find your own grit within yourself. And then along the way, finding the joy that comes with playing your heart out on stage.”
Ellen Hayashi, violin // 2025 SMTD Concerto Competition winner
“A Wave of Gratitude”
After competing in the Undergraduate Concerto Competition finals, Troutman had to leave Hill Auditorium to get to a saxophone ensemble rehearsal, so she learned that she was a winner of the competition via email later that evening. “My whole studio was there, and they were really excited for me. It was really cool to share that moment with people who have been supporting me the whole time.” She described her reaction as “incredibly shocked,” and she looks forward to performing with an SMTD orchestra. A member of Symphony Band, she noted the unusual opportunity of playing with an orchestra as a saxophonist. “I’ve had the pleasure of attending all of their concerts throughout my time here, and their musicality and how they carry themselves is incredibly inspiring. I’m very excited to work with them and the conductor, too.” Troutman expressed her appreciation and admiration for her accompanist: “Our studio is incredibly lucky to collaborate with Dr. Liz Ames. She was very gracious in collaborating with me on this project, and her musicality and teaching really inspired my final product.” She also gave thanks for “the support of my friends, family, studio members, the faculty, Dr. Ames, and Dr. McAllister. I’m incredibly grateful for their support.”
Lauren Troutman, saxophone // 2025 SMTD Concerto Competition winner
Waiting for the results at Hill Auditorium, Hayashi heard her name announced as a winner and felt “this wave of gratitude.” She felt a special appreciation for her accompanist and the entire collaborative piano department: “We are incredibly lucky to have the piano faculty and the collaborative pianists that we do. I think it’s fair to say that not every program has that level of dedication when it comes to collaborative pianists. Dr. Kripfgans has proven to me time and time again that it’s not about her; she’s there for you, and she’s always going to be there to support you.” Hayashi expressed her admiration for her fellow students – “our program is just full of artists and unparalleled musicians. I’m extraordinarily lucky to be in such a high-level program” – and her thanks to her studio mates and peers for their support. She thanked the judges for their time and careful attention. She reserved a special thank-you for Professor Belen: “She believes in me sometimes more than I believe in myself, and she’s made me into the violinist that I am.” Acknowledging the support from the faculty and her scholarship, Hayashi said, “Michigan was the best decision I’ve made. I’ve been on this earth for 21 years, and I can say that, coming to Michigan, being able to choose Professor Belen, it’s incredible. I couldn’t be more grateful for what I’ve been given, and the chance that the school has decided to take on me.”
For Goode, hearing her name announced as a winner of the Graduate Concerto Competition surpassed her expectations. “I wasn’t expecting to win,” she shared, “even though I felt like I did the best I could. My goal wasn’t to win. My goal was to sing my best.” The victory was especially significant because Goode had chosen to perform a work by a living female composer, and that, she noted, “is something that I’m really passionate about in my scholarship and my performance. Being chosen as one of the winners was a really lovely validation of the work that I have done and of the success I felt I’d had in my own performance.” She looks forward to having the song cycle she chose be featured at a future concert and for the opportunity to sing the work with an orchestra. “You don’t get to stand on stage and just sing an aria in front of an orchestra in a concert setting very often,” she noted. “It is just a really neat opportunity that doesn’t come up in the real world frequently.” Goode expressed gratitude for Head, her accompanist, saying, “He’s incredible. He’s been so great to work with, and I wouldn’t have wanted to do it without him.” She also paid tribute to her teacher, Professor Majeski, as well as Kirk Severtson, professor of music, and Elena Lacheva, lecturer in collaborative piano, whom she worked with last year.
Cheryl Pandora, piano // 2025 SMTD Concerto Competition winner
“Winning the graduate concerto competition in my first semester is beyond anything I could have expected,” Pandora shared; “SMTD has an incredible orchestra, and I am so excited to be able to perform as a soloist.” She also appreciated what participating in the competition helped her achieve personally and professionally: “It’s not just about the competition itself, but the entire journey leading up to it. Events like this teach me how to prepare for major performances, pushing me to bring out my best abilities and giving me the opportunity to perform for large audiences.” She praised the abilities of her accompanist: “So Hyang In is a highly accomplished pianist. I am truly happy to have the opportunity to work with her.” And she offered her thanks to those who have supported her along the way: “I am deeply grateful for all the support that I’ve received from my teachers (especially Professor Harding), my family, and friends – I wouldn’t have made it this far without them.”
Fitzpatrick emphasized the accomplishment of the winners for attaining distinction amidst a cohort of extremely talented musicians: “Our level of student musical ability is so high and so consistently impressive that to be a part of this competition, to compete in the departmental prelims and to make it to the finals in itself is a huge, huge achievement. And then, to win this competition is an incredible marker of artistic achievement.”