FRESNO ASTA COMPETITION 2026

SATURDAY, JUNE 6, 2026

10am to 3pm
AT FRESNO STATE’S WAHLBERG RECITAL HALL

CLICK HERE FOR INFO AND APPLICATION

Note that there are prizes for various winners.

At the discretion of the judges, prizes may be awarded to one or more winners in each division.

  • Senior Division First Prize is $150.

  • Junior Division First Prize is $100.

  • Novice Division First Prize is $50.

Each prize-winning participant will receive a certificate via email. Judges may declare one or more winners in each division.

Hildred Minich Scholarship

Fresno ASTA also offers a special prize sponsored by the Fresno Musical Club.

We are happy to announce that this year, once again, the Fresno Musical Club, in partnership with the California ASTA Fresno Section, will present the Hildred Minich Scholarship of $1,000 to an outstanding string player who has placed in the 2026 Solo Competition.

To qualify for the scholarship, the awardee must:

  1. Play violin, viola, cello, or bass.

  2. Be a graduating high school senior or a community college student.

  3. Plan to attend a four-year college in the 2025 fall semester as a music major or minor.

Scholarship funds will be sent directly to the student's account at the designated college for Fall semester, 2026.

Judges' decisions are final.

This year’s judges

Jennifer Kloetzel

ceillist

Praised for her “ceaseless musicianship” (BBC Music Magazine) and “impressively passionate performances” (The Strad), cellist Jennifer Kloetzel has performed as soloist and chamber musician at Lincoln Center, the Ravinia Festival and San Francisco Performances. Her international credits include Harpa Concert Hall (Reykjavik), Izumi Hall (Osaka) and the Eroica-Saal (Vienna). Jennifer’s engaging programs offer audiences a surprising mix of repertoire by Shostakovich, Mel Bonis, Frank Bridge, John Williams, and Philippe Hersant. She has premiered over 80 solo and chamber works, including five concerti written specifically for her.

Fascinated with performance projects that create community, Jennifer’s Mission:Bach—A Pilgrimage of Sound tour has included nearly 60 concerts at all 21 California Missions, performing the Bach Cello Suites and commissioned companion pieces. These concerts with conversation explore local history and musical connections across centuries. Her Inspired By America project brought a multi-media collaboration to large concert halls, exploring what it means to be an American through live chamber music combined with film.

Jennifer’s “Beethoven: The Conquering Hero,” (the complete works for cello and piano with Robert Koenig), was chosen as “Recording of the Month” by BBC Music Magazine in March 2022. Other highlights include recording Elena Ruehr’s Cello Concerto “Cloud Atlas” with the Boston Modern Orchestra Project, as well as the entire cycle of Beethoven Quartets and Brahms Sextets. Jennifer has been featured regularly in both concerto and chamber performances on National Public Radio’s “Performance Today.” Among her 38 CDs, many have been broadcast on radio stations in South Africa, Romania, Brazil, Germany and Australia.

A Fulbright scholar, Jennifer holds two degrees from The Juilliard School, winning the institution’s top award at graduation. A founding member of the Cypress String Quartet, she now performs with Quartet ES and the jazz quintet Bow & Mallet. Jennifer serves as Professor of Cello and Head of the String Area at the University of California Santa Barbara, and she regularly offers masterclasses and workshops along with her mainstage performances. www.jkcello.com

 

violinist

Peter Wilson

Peter Wilson is an engaging and multifaceted violinist, conductor, arranger, and composer, whose artistry has been noted as “first-class” by The Washington Post. He is the former senior enlisted music advisor to The White House, where he led countless ensembles and performed for 30 years as a Marine violinist in direct support of five Presidents. Peter currently serves as Music Director of the Richmond Philharmonic and The American Prize-winning Waynesboro Symphony Orchestras in Virginia as well as Artistic Director and Conductor of the American Festival Pops Orchestra in the National Capital Region. 

He began his career as Concertmaster of the Walt Disney World Orchestra, has conducted the National Symphony and National Gallery of Art Orchestras, and holds degrees from Northwestern and Catholic University, where he earned a Doctor of Musical Arts. He has appeared as soloist with legends Rosemary Clooney, Renée Fleming, Bernadette Peters, and Randy Travis and performed the “Theme” from Schindler’s List at The Kennedy Center under the baton of Academy Award-winning film composer John Williams, who hailed Peter as “a brilliant musical artist.”

A true music ambassador, Peter has soloed in unique venues around the globe including the American Embassy in Paris, the Presidential Retreat at Camp David, the private chambers of the Vatican before The Pope, and Carnegie Hall. A Cleveland native, he began violin at age two, later moving to Morgantown, West Virginia, where he became the first musician ever to receive the Governor’s Award for Exceptional Achievement in the Arts.

Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia national music fraternity honored Peter with its prestigious “Signature Sinfonian” award for his “outstanding commitment and dedication to the performing arts while serving as a successful role model.” The Strad magazine encapsulated his performances best, stating “[Wilson] made music that had the stamp of quality.” For further information, visit PeterWilsonMusician.com

 

Emmanuel