November 2024
2024-2025 Khuner Young Artist Concerto Competition
The next Khuner Concerto Competition will be held during Prometheus Symphony Orchestra’s 2025-2026 concert season.
Interested in applying for next year’s competition? Visit our Application & Rules Page
The Khuner Young Artist Concerto Competition, open to Bay Area string, woodwind, brass, harp and percussion players, has been a notable element in the Bay Area’s rich offering of opportunities for young musicians for over 30 years. Many gifted musicians, age 18 or younger, audition every year, seeking the exceptional opportunity to perform with a full symphony orchestra before a live and appreciative audience. The Competition Winner will gain the valuable experience of working with our Music Director, Eric Hansen, and will be featured on Prometheus Symphony’s website and in concert publicity. The Winner will receive a professional recording of the performance, a framed certificate, and a $300 award. Even the audition itself is a valuable educational experience for all who apply, as auditioning will be a significant aspect of aspiring musicians’ future careers.
Each season, we are faced with the challenge of naming just one of the exceptionally talented auditioners as the competition winner, who will join our panoply of amazing past young artists, some of whom have been as young as 10. Our Previous Winners page has the program biographies and updates on their careers as leading musicians throughout the U.S. and abroad.
Who is eligible? Applicants must be 18 or younger on the audition date and ready to play from memory a complete concerto at the audition. Applicants must be able to perform at Prometheus’s concert in Oakland on the last Sunday afternoon in January, and must be available to attend Monday evening rehearsals in Oakland. Contestants from prior seasons are urged to audition again, as our winners have often auditioned more than once.
Questions? The Application & Rules page addresses most frequently asked questions, but don’t hesitate to email any further questions to us at ConcertoCompetition@PrometheusSymphony.org. You may also request email notice when the audition date is set for the next Competition.
Story of the Concerto Competition
This youth concerto competition was initiated in 1989 at the instigation of the late Dorinda Chase, extraordinary music educator and long-time principal clarinetist for Prometheus Symphony. The Competition is named in honor of Felix Khuner, who played with Prometheus after retiring from a career as a violinist with the San Francisco Symphony, San Francisco Opera Orchestra and California String Quartet. His son, Jonathan Khuner, conducted the Prometheus Symphony for 13 years before moving on to be music and artistic director of the Berkeley (Left-Coast) Opera, an assistant conductor with the San Francisco Opera, prompter for the Metropolitan and San Francisco Operas, and guest conductor for major opera companies throughout the country.
Since 1997, Eric Hansen, current Music Director of the Prometheus Symphony Orchestra, has served as Audition Judge. He works closely with the winners, providing an extraordinary educational experience as these young artists learn what is involved in performing with a live orchestra. The Competition is administered by members of Prometheus and is supported by orchestra members’ dues, modest contest fees, and audience donations.
Prometheus greatly appreciates the continued support of the program by Jonathan Khuner in honor of his father Felix, for whom the Competition is named.
Please consider joining our generous group of donors and help us continue to offer this excellent opportunity for young Bay Area musicians. DONATION
