Chapman’s Hall-Musco Conservatory of Music announced this year’s Temianka Scholars as well as the newest recipient of the prized Temianka-Saparoff violin and bow. In addition to financial support, a Temianka Scholar may be granted the opportunity to use the prized Albert Saparoff bow, a gift from the Temianka family, during their time at Chapman. This special instrument is inspected annually by an expert luthier to maintain the violin to the highest standards.

Meet the Teminaka Scholars:

Young man with blonde, curly, shoulder-length hair wearing a black dress shirt and black pants holding a violin and bow in playing position.David Anderson, junior, BM Violin Performance, music business minor

David started playing the violin through his 5th-grade public school music program at the age of 10. He later began taking private lessons with accomplished violinist and conductor Alyze Dreiling in 7th grade. Throughout his high school career, he has played in multiple orchestras including the Youth Philharmonic Orchestra, Civic Youth Orchestra, and Grossmont College Symphony Orchestra. David served as concertmaster for his high school orchestra from 2017–2018. He earned awards such as the Certificate of Merit Branch Honors Award in 2016, 2018, and 2019, along with 3rd place in the Senior Scholarship section of the Music Teachers Association of California. David plays an eclectic range of music genres: in addition to classical music, he performed electric violin in a high school rock band, and currently writes and produces alternative/indie music with a friend in a self-formed group called Lo-Tide.

Sebastian Brumm, senior, BS Computer Science, music minor

Sebastian originally started playing the cello in 7th grade but had wanted to play since elementary school when his resident music teacher brought one for his class to try out. Since then, he was always part of the school orchestra and later joined the San Diego Youth Symphony, playing with them for five years. Sebastian currently studies cello with Chapman’s Lazslo Mezo. Prior to Chapman he studied with Ruslan Biryukov, who later formed a cello quartet of which he is still a part, having performed in Italy on several occasions and competed in the Voce competition. As a soloist, Sebastian has also participated in many competitions. He won 1st place in the American Protégé international competition where he later went on to perform in Carnegie Hall. While at Chapman, he  has participated in the The Chapman Orchestra every year, as well as chamber groups, including the recently formed “ChapCelli” ensemble. He plans to pursue a master’s degree in artificial intelligence after graduation, and also plans to continue his music education as his second passion.

Adrian Fernandez, sophomore, BM Violin Performance

Adrian is an up-and-coming violinist who started playing the instrument at the start of 8th grade, though prior to that, he started playing the viola at his public middle school in 5th grade. He switched shortly after his aunt gifted a violin to him from a local music store for his 13th birthday. He was on his own learning as much as he could with the classes at school and without any private lessons from the day he started. It wasn’t until his junior high school year, after his mother got a second job, when the family was finally able to pay for private violin lessons for him with the distinguished Dutch violinist, pianist, and conductor Antoine van Dongen. After a year of tremendous and vigorous work, Adrian earned the co-concert master seat in his high school’s symphony orchestra. From there, he auditioned at various universities and colleges, ultimately enrolling at his top choice, Chapman University, as a violin performance major. He continues his studies and growth with Professor William Fitzpatrick in the Hall-Musco Conservatory of Music and dreams of one day becoming a concert violinist.

Grace Gee, senior (fall 2021), BM Violin Performance, Interdisciplinary major/The Modern Experience

Grace has played the violin since the age of five and is a senior violin performance major at Chapman. Gee also studies with Chapman’s William Fitzpatrick and says of her goals as a member of the Temianka quartet, “I hope to see myself constantly improve my technical and musical abilities as well as expand my repertoire and performance opportunities.”

 

 

smiling woman with long dark hair in purple dress holding a violinKaitlyn Irianto, first-year student, BM Violin Performance

Kaitlyn started learning the violin at the age of eight as an after-school activity. Though it was only after she went to the London Olympics to perform in a local orchestra that she fell in love with performing on the violin. Throughout her high school career, Kaitlyn held principal seats in the Orange County Youth Orchestra and in her high school orchestra. She was also a violinist in her school performance group, Montage, and played at various venues for groups such as CHOC Children’s Hospital and the Pasadena Tournament of Roses Foundation. Kaitlyn is also thankful to have been part of the Musishare Young Artists Program under William Fitzpatrick’s direction, having performed in masterclasses from Philip Setzer, Cho-Liang Lin, and Cornelia Heard. Kaitlyn looks forward to growing both musically and personally while studying violin performance at Chapman.

Danielle Liu, senior, BM Violin Performance, BS Health Science
Current Temianka-Saparoff Violin and Bow recipient

Danielle began learning to play the violin at age four. Since then, she has had opportunities to learn from many violin teachers and mentors, including Ms. Eunhee Kim, Prof. Sam Fischer and Chapman’s William Fitzpatrick. “I feel extremely fortunate to have had this sequence of teachers; their teaching has helped to develop different aspects of my violin playing and my understanding of this art,” she said. Mentors in include Chapman’s Dr. Tammy Yi, Dr. Elizabeth Summers, Mrs. Irene Kroesen, Maestro Alejandro Guitierrez, Maestro Roger Kalia, Mr. Dennis Kim, Chapman’s Prof. Robert Becker and Maestro Daniel Wachs, and Presidential Fellow Maestro Carl St.Clair, to name a few. One of the reasons she chose Chapman was her ability to pursue her interests in music and medicine at the same time. Her post-graduation plans include attending medical school to study oncology.

Eleas Vrahnos, sophomore, BS Computer Science, BS Electrical Engineering

Eleas has been playing the viola since 4th grade, originally starting out with the violin in 1st grade. His school music teacher recommended that he switch from the violin to the viola, and he has stuck with it ever since. Eleas participated in all his schools’ orchestras before Chapman. He earned multiple Director’s Awards from his elementary and middle schools and became principal viola during his later years in the Orange County School of the Arts high school symphony orchestra. He has also participated in numerous outside ensembles before college, including Prelude Strings, the Pacific Symphony Santiago Strings, and the Pacific Symphony Youth Orchestra. Eleas mainly studies computer science and electrical engineering at Chapman University but is fortunate to continue studying under Chapman’s Prof. Robert Becker as a growing violist.

String students taking playful poses with their instruments.

They may be exceptional musicians, with serious ambitions from a range of academic disciplines, but our Teminaka Scholars still know how to have fun!