Four talented youngsters will compete this week in the Yavapai Symphony Guild's Young Musician Competition, which delivers substantial scholarship money to students in grades 6-12.
The top winners in each of four categories (voice, piano, woodwind/brass, and strings) within two divisions - grades 6-9 and grades 10-12 - will perform Tuesday, Nov. 10, in a free Young Musicians' Concert at 10 a.m. at the Prescott Adult Center. A second performance takes place Sunday, Nov. 15, at 7 p.m. also at the Prescott Adult Center.
From Dewey, Shalom Eis, 13, will perform Sonatina by Frederick Kuhlau, who was called "the Beethoven of the flute" in his time.
Eis said she picked this particular piece because she had one flute piece that was too difficult, and another that was too easy. Like Goldilocks, the Sonatina was just right.
"I like this piece because it has a lot of different parts to it - fast and slow, sad and happy," she said.
The eighth-grader is home-schooled and has been playing the flute for about four years. She initially took lessons with her mother, and said the flute was not exactly her first choice, but was something her mother wanted to learn. Eis wanted to play the clarinet. Incidentally, her mother, Cindy, continued with flute lessons for three years.
Eis said, "Then as I got into it, I liked it - the music, and the sound of the flute. When I get enough money, I would like to buy a piccolo."
She also plays "a tiny bit of piano," having taught herself how to play. To prepare for competition, she uses a metronome to check her timing, and a tuner for pitch.
Eis said she enjoys performing before an audience. She's thought about becoming a flute teacher, but enjoys art now and even has a line of greeting cards that she makes and sells.
Matthew Bowers, 17, is another home-schooled student who is competing on the flute.
"My main instrument is the flute, but I play several others - viola, cello and piano," Bowers said.
He played the flute for about three years in elementary school, then stopped when home-schooled. He got involved again after being asked to play for a junior high graduation, and has been practicing consistently for the past two-and-a-half years, he said.
Bowers will play Fantasies by Gabriel Faure.
"I love music. I would love to take my knowledge of all music to use for composition and follow in the steps of the classics, Beethoven, Mozart and such, big orchestral works," he said.
He has dabbled with writing some pieces "here and there, nothing that I would show anyone," and hopes to study with Henry Flurry this coming summer.
Other goals include attending Biola University's Conservatory of Music in southern California, but he's not ruling out Julliard School in New York.
"Julliard's always a possibility. I will continue (with music). I love to share my passion of music with others, either performing or teaching," Bowers said.
He plays with the Yavapai College Symphonic Band, and has competed for more than two years in both the Yavapai Symphony Guild and the Prescott Fine Arts Association competitions.
Bowers said his skills are the result of determination as much as a natural talent or gift.
"I consider it more of a passion than a gift. I consider it more as play time than work."
Miranda Palmarozza, 16, is a junior at Bradshaw Mountain High School where she sings in two choirs - the Jazz Ensemble and Chamber Choir - and also with the Select Singers who meet before school.
She will compete in the senior division voice category, singing a piece of Italian classical opera called Sento nel core by Stefano Donaudy, and a second piece, Into the Night, by Clara Edwards.
"I have been practicing since about 10 years old. I was in Volante Academy for the Arts for two to three years. In high school, I've been with Reuter," she said. Katie Reuter is the choir teacher at BMHS who also works one-on-one with students.
Palmarozza has performed in high school choir and solo competitions in her freshman and sophomore years. She plays no other instruments, concentrating on voice.
"I tried piano and recorder. I failed epicly, it was not my forte," she said with a laugh.
After high school, Palmarozza plans to attend college, majoring in foreign languages and minoring in music, while obtaining a secondary teaching certificate.
The fourth young musician is a Prescott Valley resident who attends Prescott High School, where she is a member of the marching band.
Rachel Logan, 17, moved to PV three-and-a-half years ago from Florida when her father transferred here. She was looking for classes in fashion design, which PHS offered. Since then, her interest has changed to the medical field, obstetrics to be exact.
Logan started playing the flute in sixth-grade, played the piccolo for a year during eighth-grade, and returned to the flute until April of this year when she came back to piccolo near the end of her junior year.
Since May, Logan has been practicing her performance piece, the Piccolo Concerto in C by Antonio Vivaldi.
She plays a metal piccolo while marching and one made of wood for indoor performances. The high school senior struggled to find words to describe how the sound of each differs.
"I guess you could say it's like the difference between playing a keyboard and a grand piano. Christine (the wood instrument) is softer and Lucy (the metal flute) is more harsh," she said. Logan names her instruments, including her flute, Charles.
Her plans for the future at Yavapai College include performing in the band and entering the nursing program. She has other dreams, too, of renewing her love of ballet and tennis, working at TCBY Yogurt ("I like ice cream"), and traveling to California or Maine to be near the ocean.
The Young Musicians' Concerts on Tuesday and the following Sunday are free to the public. The Guild accepts donations, all of which directly benefit the youth programs and scholarships. The Guild's Music Memory Program introduces nearly 3,000 students each year in grades 3-5 to classical music.
In 2007 the Guild awarded $10,500 in scholarship prize money. In 2008, 31 students won $12,250. Guild member Carol Friedman said this year judges have a bit more money to bestow on students.
All judges in the Young Musicians' competition are professional musicians. They include Dr. Chen-Ju Chiang from NAU for the piano competition; Clydene Dechert, founder and conductor of the Central Arizona Band, for brass/woodwinds; Marion Maby, former concertmistress of the Verde Valley Symphonetta and the Flagstaff Orchestras, and percussionist with the Prescott POPS for strings; and French opera singer Helene Bergeon, currently working in Phoenix, for voice.
From Dewey, Shalom Eis, 13, will perform Sonatina by Frederick Kuhlau, who was called "the Beethoven of the flute" in his time.
"My main instrument is the flute, but I play several others - viola, cello and piano," Bowers said. 
Miranda Palmarozza, 16, is a junior at Bradshaw Mountain High School where she sings in two choirs - the Jazz Ensemble and Chamber Choir - and also with the Select Singers who meet before school.
Rachel Logan, 17, moved to PV three-and-a-half years ago from Florida when her father transferred here. She was looking for classes in fashion design, which PHS offered. Since then, her interest has changed to the medical field, obstetrics to be exact. 
